Hill Responds to Hoosier Taxpayers' Concerns, Introduces Property Tax Relief Act

(Washington, DC) - On Tuesday, September 18th, Congressman Baron Hill introduced legislation that assists middle- and low-income families in decreasing their taxes. The bill, the Property Tax Relief Act of 2007, will allow homeowners who do not itemize to deduct their property taxes from their federal income taxes. Currently, the only citizens benefitting from the property tax reduction are those who itemize their taxes. Estimates suggest that approximately 40% of homeowners do not itemize.

"I have heard from many constituents about how hard they have been hit by increased property taxes," Hill said. "And, as a homeowner in Southern Indiana myself, I understand their concerns."

Although the federal government's involvement with property taxes is quite limited, Hill saw a way to address homeowners' concerns by introducing legislation that will no longer require taxpayers to itemize in order to deduct their property taxes from their federal income taxes.

According to the Congressional Research Service, there are approximately 942,000 non-itemizers who could be homeowners in Indiana. Under this bill, a home-owning family that does not itemize and makes roughly between $64,000 and $128,000 per year would see an average benefit of $300.

"I could not sit back and do nothing while so many of my constituents were being affected," Hill said. "I have heard from some of my constituents whose property taxes have doubled this year. This is a huge financial burden to take on, and I want to do my part to help alleviate that."

The bill's lead cosponsor is Congressman Vito Fossella (R-NY), and other original cosponsors are Representatives Dan Burton, Joe Donnelly, Brad Ellsworth, Kirsten Gillibrand, John Hall, Patrick Murphy and Mike Pence.

England promotes ‘business management’ during campaign visit to New Albany's Mark Elrod Towers

By ERIC SCOTT CAMPBELL
Eric.Campbell@newsandtribune.com

New Albany’s public safety departments are strong, but the city needs to improve its business acumen, Democratic mayoral candidate Doug England told residents of Mark Elrod Tower in a campaign appearance Wednesday evening.

The former two-term mayor joined City Clerk Marcey Wisman and City Council candidates Bob Caesar and John Gonder in briefly addressing a crowd of about 50, mostly senior citizens. The public-housing building sits on Wolfe Trace just north of downtown.

“We need business management — someone who can create jobs,” said England, who is opposing Randy Hubbard, the Republican former sheriff, to replace Democratic incumbent Mayor James Garner. Less than six weeks remains before the Nov. 6 election.

England shared anecdotes about his youth, military service and past mayoral terms, and as he frequently has since his campaign began, England referred to the eventually instructive effect of his loss to Regina Overton in the 1999 election.

“I’m big enough to get up and keep on walking with the scratches on my knees,” England said.
One resident told England she and her neighbors have difficulty finding transportation downtown on short notice. England said he’d lobby U.S. Rep. Baron Hill to explore whether bus service to federal housing can be improved.

Before England spoke, Wisman highlighted her efforts to improve Internet accessibility to public documents as well as simplify code-enforcement procedures. She emphasized the variety of tasks encompassed in the city clerk job.

To learn more on the Democrats "Meet the Candidates," read more on the News Albany Tribune.

England goes online

From the Floyd County Democratic Party

Democratic Mayor Candidate Douglas England has gone digital! Taking his message of growth and opportunity online, he has announced the creation of his campaign website, http://www.dougenglandfornewalbany.com./ The website, which features information on Doug's background, previous accomplishments, and offers citizens ways they can contact him and volunteer for his campaign.

Many candidates in recent years have utilized the world wide web as an opportunity to connect with constituents. City Clerk Marcey Wisman even took the concept beyond the campaign and posted numerous records and other documents from the City Clerk's office online. Now, citizens don't even need to leave the comfort of her own home to view meeting minutes or obtain other documents. In the county, other officeholders such as County Clerk Linda Moeller have lead efforts to provide other records online.

Democrats view this continued commitment to provide information and communicate with citizens as the appropriate duty of government and positive campaigns. We hope other will join this effort to continue to improve and progress our government and its services.

Floyd Co. NAACP annouces Freedom Fund Banquet

From the New Albany National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)

The New Albany NAACP will host its annual Freedom Fund Banquet on Saturday, October 6th, 2007 beginning at 6:00 p.m. at Wesley Chapel United Methodist Church. This years speaker and special quest is Betty Baye and the theme of the dinner is "Power Beyond Measure." Tickets for the event at $40 each or $320 for a table of eight. Advertisement space in the organization's program booklet are also available. Full Page Advertisements are $125; Half Page Advertisements are $60; and quarter page advertisements are $35.

For more information on the event, contact New Albany NAACP President, Nicole Yates Toran at (812) 987 - 6266 or Jeannette Sumpter at (812) 949 - 5079.

Trash, slash and privatize: Mitch Daniels' governing philosophy

From the Indiana Democratic Party

Although he's been out of the country for a week, Mitch Daniels' efforts to sell off our state have been going strong back home. Earlier this week, Family and Social Services Administration Secretary Mitch Roob told a panel of lawmakers and advocates that there's essentially no other way to save the state's three psychiatric hospitals but to privatize them. No other way?

Of course not, if you listen to the advice of a man who made a career of outsourcing before he joined the Daniels administration. The state hospital scenario is a prime example of the way Mitch Daniels and his crew approach government: They'll say or do anything to sign over all accountability for the critical services Hoosiers depend on. If a few of their buddies get rich in the process, well, that's even better. It's an endless cycle of trashing what already exists -- and the people who work within that system -- to justify handing the keys to someone else. At this rate, will Mitch Daniels be accountable for any government function by the end of his first term?

That's not the way government for, by and of the people should work. We deserve to know who's behind the wheel and who's calling the shots when it comes to our roads, hospitals and other vital services. But Mitch Daniels doesn't know the first thing about how to oversee a complex organization with myriad moving parts that serve diverse groups across our state. Not only does he not understand how government works, but he believes it's an acceptable management philosophy to put down those people who work for government. How many times do we have to hear him complain about state employees and the work they've done both on his watch and under prior administrations?

Mitch Daniels likes to think of himself as a brilliant businessman, but no successful CEO would treat hard-working employees that way. In the end, it's clear that this administration is out to sell off as much as it can as quickly as possible -- after all, they know they might not get a second chance.For the sake of our great state and its public resources, we must force Mitch Daniels to be accountable for his slash-and-burn tactics, questioning these contracts and making sure he doesn't irreparably damage the critical services so many Hoosiers rely on. Ultimately, we must elect new leadership that cares about and listens to all Hoosiers. Together, we can do better than Mitch Daniels.

For more information visit the Indiana Democratic Party website.