Passing meaningful property tax relief

In recent years, Hoosiers across the state have been understandably frustrated by substantial year-over-year property tax increases due to inflation that drove up property values.

This year, Senate Republicans made property tax relief their top priority and passed a new law to provide $1.3 billion in property tax relief for homeowners over the next three years. The passage of this bill will result in two-thirds of Hoosier homeowners seeing lower tax bills in 2026 compared to their 2025 bill.

Not only will Senate Enrolled Act 1 provide homeowners with much-needed relief, but it also saves Hoosier farmers $116 million by adjusting the agricultural land assessment formula for two years, which will reduce the assessed value of farmland and cut property taxes.

SEA 1 also contains provisions to increase transparency for taxpayers and improve control over how local governments invest taxpayer dollars.

• It requires local referenda to be held during general elections to align with higher voter turnout, and increases transparency of referenda questions to better note the tax impact.
• It creates a Property Tax Transparency Portal to allow taxpayers to compare their current tax bill with proposed tax rate changes.
• It increases transparency for taxpayers by requiring local officials to annually vote in public meetings on their tax rates.
• It puts stronger controls in place to rein in the $54.3 billion in local government debt.
• It reduces how much LIT local governments can collect by $1.9 billion, lowering the maximum rate from 3.75% to 2.9%.

Property taxes are set and spent at the local level - state government does not receive any property tax dollars. State lawmakers' role in this system is to balance the needs of Hoosier homeowners and provide the property tax relief they deserve with the needs of local government.

SEA 1 not only ensures property tax cuts for homeowners, but it also ensures that local governments provide transparency to their taxpayers in the case that other tax increases are needed, like income tax, so that Hoosiers know why and how their hard-earned taxpayer dollars are being invested.

To learn more about Senate Enrolled Act 1, click here. To learn more about Senate Republicans' track record working to cut property taxes, click here.