I was proud to support major tax cuts during the 2023 legislative session. Most importantly, Indiana's income tax will
drop to 2.9% over the next four years. This permanent tax cut is expected to
save Hoosiers over $1 billion by 2027, including more than $100 million in 2024 alone.
In addition:
- Indiana doubled the income tax deduction parents can claim for a new child.
- Members of the Armed Forces and National Guard will be totally exempt from state income tax on their military pay starting in 2024.
- Hoosier businesses, especially small businesses, will see over $50 million in federal tax savings through a new law making more LLCs and S corps eligible for a federal tax deduction already available to larger corporations.
- Indiana coupled the earned income tax credit to the federal credit requirements as of Jan. 1, 2023, which will make it easier for families to claim the credit in Indiana and save them an estimated $20 million per year.
- Going forward, the General Assembly will review our entire state and local tax system and consider ways to lower the income tax and/or property taxes on homes.
IMPROVING PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICES
Many of Indiana's health statistics – on smoking, obesity, infant mortality and more – rank among the lowest of the 50 states. SEA 4 from the 2023 session is intended to improve our public health efforts by offering counties an optional grant to expand the services of their local health departments. Counties that voluntarily choose to receive the grant funding will offer more public health services targeted at some of Indiana's key drivers of poor health. Services include tobacco cessation, maternal and child health care, and disease prevention.
The state budget funds this grant program at $225 million over the next two years. To find out if your county has opted to participate, click here.
There are countless community-based organizations throughout Indiana supporting children and parents to promote healthier, happier families. Our state budget provides financial support for some of these key organizations to continue doing good work on behalf of Hoosiers.
The budget also funds important public programs like Safety PIN grants and My Healthy Baby, which recently began serving pregnant women in all 92 Indiana counties. Our budget also offers financial support to parents by expanding the income tax exemption for new dependents and continuing to fund an adoption tax credit.
Indiana is facing a shortage of affordable homes. This problem is especially pressing for many of our rural communities, which face financial challenges in funding and building the infrastructure needed to accompany new home construction. HEA 1005 sets up a state revolving loan program to help local units of government pay for infrastructure projects necessary to support new housing development.
- Local governments will receive money upfront to build infrastructure that can then support new housing construction. As new residents move into the community and expand the tax base, the municipality will be able to pay back the loan from the state.
- 70% of the money in the fund must be used for housing infrastructure in communities with a population of less than 50,000 residents.
- The loans may be used to fund a variety of infrastructure projects including water distribution systems, water treatment plants, sewer systems, streets, roads, bridges, curbs and sidewalks, electrical and gas line installations, and many other projects related to getting a community ready for new housing development.
