Taking the stories in reverse chronological order, on Thursday, May 6th the Munster Times carried a story headlined: "No respite for the tax weary: Judge does not issue ruling in homeowner group's reassessment lawsuit." Some quotes:
HAMMOND -- Residents of Gary's Miller neighborhood seeking property tax found little solace at a court hearing Wednesday. Nearly 60 Miller residents piled into a Hammond courtroom for a two-hour hearing, while upwards of 50 protestors from Hammond marched outside the courthouse chanting "Save our Homes" and brandishing handmade signs with similar messages.The story included some background:Ten homeowners, along with the Miller Citizens Corp., filed a lawsuit last week against state and local officials, asking for an emergency injunction to halt property tax bills from going out Tuesday. To the dismay of homeowners, Lake Superior Court Judge Robert Pete did not say whether he will stop Lake County's treasurer from mailing out tax bills based on the county's reassessment. "I hope the judge will come down with a ruling by this Monday at the latest. Once the bills go out, this becomes more difficult to accomplish," Miller resident Aletta Hicks said. * * *
The Miller group also wants Indiana's two statutes governing Lake County's 2002 property reassessment declared unconstitutional and its results discarded. * * * Lawyers from the state attorney general's office urged the judge to dismiss the lawsuit and said the proper venue for any legal challenge was before the Indiana Tax Court. "The tax court itself has exclusive jurisdiction over tax laws in this state," said deputy Attorney General Doug Webber.
Kenneth Reed, the Miller group's lawyer, said the lawsuit is not about whether someone's tax bill is too high, or any other similar appeals, but instead is about the constitutionality of a state law. Whether the law deals with taxes misses the point, he said.
In 1998, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled the state's method of reassessment unconstitutional and ordered "uniform and equal" statewide standards be implemented for valuing property. The General Assembly in 2001 passed laws requiring an outside firm to reassess Lake County's 250,000 parcels. The legislature also required the Department of Local Government Finance to reassess the three steel mills and BP Products.In a story published Friday, the Times reports: "Tax bills tossed out: Judge rules reassessment, resulting tax bills unconstitutional." Some quotes:Lake County was the only one of Indiana's 92 counties where state lawmakers forbade elected assessors from assessing property -- presumably because of historical allegations of corruption.
The state law did not cite Lake County specifically, but used population parameters meant only for Lake County, even though the state Supreme Court later outlawed this practice. Likewise, the law did not name the big four industries, but ordered any company valued at more than $25 million in Lake County to be assessed by the state. U.S. Steel Corp., International Steel Group. Inc., Ispat Inland and BP are the only industries that fall into that category.
Reed, the Miller group's lawyer, argued that the county's reassessment laws amount to special legislation, which the Indiana Constitution always has prohibited.
HAMMOND -- A Superior Court judge said today Lake County's reassessment is unconstitutional and ordered its treasurer to withhold mailing new tax bills. The ruling from Judge Robert Pete says it was unconstitutional for the legislature to single out Lake County by requiring an outside firm to reassess it, but not the rest of the state. The judge ruled the county treasurer, though, is authorized to bill taxpayers based on their previous assessments for the balance due of their 2002 tax bills, which was payable in 2003.Today's Times: "Miller residents revel in tax victory -- for now: Judge declares some bills and reassessment on which they're based invalid." Quotes from the story today:
GARY -- Residents of the city's Miller section were in a holiday mood Saturday -- a tax holiday mood. Hundreds of its families had been expecting tax bills this week as lofty as the sand dunes on which some super-sized beach cottages are perched. Lake Superior Court Judge Robert Pete declared those bills and the property reassessment on which they were based to be invalid Friday. "It was like a stay of execution," a relieved Evelyn Reaves said. * * *The Indianapolis Star today (Sunday) posted this comprehensive AP story on its indystar.com site. Some quotes:Pete's decision threw out the new values placed on Lake County's approximately 250,000 parcels and stopped the county treasurer from mailing the new tax bills. Pete said it was unconstitutional for the Legislature to single out Lake County by requiring an outside firm to reassess it, but not the rest of the state. Lake County was the only one of Indiana's 92 counties where state lawmakers forbade elected assessors from assessing property.
County officials are scheduled to have a joint executive session at 3 p.m. Monday to discuss the judge's decision and what's next for the county. The meeting will include legal and financial representatives, who will help determine what options the county has, said Lake County Council President Will Smith Jr., D-Gary.
Superior Court Judge Robert Pete ruled Friday that the Legislature acted unlawfully when it singled out Lake County by requiring an outside firm to reassess its property. The northwestern Indiana county was the only one of Indiana's 92 counties where state lawmakers forbade elected assessors from assessing property. Attorney Gregory Reising, who represented plaintiffs in the lawsuit challenging the county's reassessment, called the ruling a victory for taxpayers. "Now we can get down to the business of doing serious reform instead of shifting tax burdens," Reising said.I hope to be able to post a copy of Judge Pete's ruling.
[Update 5/10/04] Comments by Ed Feigenbaum this morning in his online blog, Indiana Daily Insight (under the heading "Heads Up"), are worth repeating here:
(MON) Late Friday afternoon, a Lake County Superior Court Judge granted an injunction against Tuesday's mailing of Lake County property tax bills, ruling that the 2001 legislation that included a $25 million reassessment of the county's parcels by a private contractor unconstitutional special legislation because it impermissibly singled out Lake County. That means that the Lake County Treasurer's Office will now be barred from sending out new tax bills, and instead must bill taxpayers for the remaining balance of their 2002 taxes based on previous assessed values -- a process expected to take up to eight months before mailing. This means that cash-starved local units of government (and schools) in Lake County will be in even worse shape . . . that the payments on the $25 million reassessment contract are likely to be totally deep-sixed by the locals, leaving it to the State to pick up the tab (for what could be a worthless process that has already cost a bundle in litigation expense) . . . and that if the process becomes even more protracted and the courts find the questioned process to be appropriate, local homeowners may eventually be socked with truly unimaginable retroactive tax bills.Posted by Marcia Oddi at May 9, 2004 03:23 PM