Gary Gets More Time

An Indiana board granted the city of Gary an exemption from property tax caps last week for one final year. The exemption will mean $10.8 million more in property tax revenue for the struggling city.

The Indiana Distressed Unit Appeals Board last week accepted staff recommendations that Gary’s property tax levy be set at $40.8 million instead of the statewide cap of $30 million.

The law caps property tax bills for homeowners at 1%, rental property at 2%, and commercial property at 3%.

For the third time since the law took effect, however, the appeals board has recommended that Gary be allowed to exceed the cap. For the next year, Gary will tax homeowners at 1.25%, rental property owners at 2.47%, and industrial properties at 3.68%.

But it will also be the last year Gary gets an exemption, as state voters last November approved an amendment making the tax caps part of the constitution. The measure will dissolve the Distressed Unit Appeals Board.

The tax relief has provided the city up to $40 million over three years, according to local reports.

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