There are two pieces of legislation moving forward in the Indiana General Assembly of special interest to the Fishers area. One deals with a dispute over distribution of County Option Income Tax (COIT) funds, the other creates a conservancy district for Geist Reservoir.
First, the COIT dispute, mostly between Fishers and Carmel, may be on the way to settlement now that leaders of both cities have agreed on moving forward. In 2019, Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness told the City Council Finance Committee that Carmel was receiving about $21 million more annually in COIT distributions compared to Fishers, despite the fact the two cities have roughly similar population numbers. Fadness cited the distribution formula created under state law as the reason for this.
A COIT distribution bill passed both houses of the legislature last year, but the local COIT provision did not survive the House-Senate conference committee that wrote the final version of that bill. State lawmakers are trying again this year, and State Representative Todd Huston, whose district encompasses the City of Fishers, says he is confident the issue will be resolved this time around.
The COIT agreement reached by leaders of Carmel and Fishers has passed the House this session and is poised for final passage in the Senate. “The bill will go to conference but I am confident the language will remain the same when we pass the final bill,” Huston said in an e-mail message to LarryInFishers. “I appreciate the work done by Fishers and Carmel leaders to get to this place.”
Mayor Fadness tells LarryInFishers the deal reached with Carmel calls for a revised COIT distribution formula that will add $15 million-$18 million in additional COIT funds to Fishers over three years, but that increase is tied to a rise in COIT tax collections of 2.5% each year. In other words, presuming a strong economy continues locally, Fishers will receive the extra funds. According to Fadness, after that initial three-year period, Fishers would receive $4 million-$6 million in additional money per year from COIT, but that would once again rely on continued COIT tax collection growth in the coming years.
On the second matter before state lawmakers, Huston says the measure aimed at creating a Geist Conservancy District has passed the Indiana House. State Senator Jim Merritt, whose district includes Fall Creek Township, is the Senate author of the Geist Conservancy District measure. A conservancy district would have the legal authority to tax property owners and impose fees in the area of Geist Lake in order to do required maintenance on the reservoir. For more background on the proposed Geist Conservancy District, read a recent article written by John Russell in the Indianapolis Business Journal at this link.