INDIANAPOLIS | Northwest Indiana legislators have high hopes for extending South Shore service to Lowell and Valparaiso, but some fear a proposed car tax teeters too close to a political third rail.
"That is one of the most hated taxes -- our plates on our vehicles, " said state Rep. Linda Lawson, D-Hammond. "The people in my community, my neighborhoods, they would be just outraged if we gave them another tax."
State Rep. Chet Dobis, D-Merrillville, acknowledged that he was initiating an uphill battle last week by suggesting a so-called wheel tax of up to $50 per vehicle in Lake and Porter counties.
The surcharge, which would come on top of existing annual license plate renewal fees, would generate more than $20 million a year to cover half the $1 billion cost of bringing commuter rail to Cedar Lake, Dyer, Highland, Hobart, Griffith, Merrillville, Lowell, St. John and Valparaiso. The Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority could impose the tax in both counties -- but only after securing $500 million in federal funds for the so-called West Lake Corridor expansion of the South Shore.
Dobis presented the plan to a Senate fiscal committee Tuesday, but it was not adopted. And time is running short for the concept to catch on in this legislative session, which is scheduled to end April 29.
"Whether it happens or not, my objective was to plant the seed," Dobis said.
"A local (funding) match has got to be found in order for this (rail project) to go forward." Several region legislators applauded their colleague's political courage, and RDA Chairman John Clark credited Dobis for an effort to "put some pants" on the South Shore plan.
"I give him all the credit in the world," said Clark, an adviser to Gov. Mitch Daniels. "It's never easy for a politician to talk about raising revenues."
But the wheel tax is perhaps one of the "most onerous" funding options, said state Rep. Charlie Brown, D-Gary.
"I don't think it would be well received by my constituents," Brown said.
Other lawmakers acknowledged that car owners in northern cities already served by the South Shore could have a tough time stomaching any new tax to benefit their southern neighbors.
Still, Lawson says she's glad transportation talks have shifted to commuter rail and away from the proposed Illiana Expressway, which she considers a conduit for suburban sprawl that could weaken Hammond and other northern cities.
The governor, among others, had suggested that a lease payment for a privately operated Illiana tollway might help subsidize South Shore expansion, but that avenue looks like a dead end with privatization-wary Democrats controlling half the Legislature.
"I support the rail line," said state Rep. Duane Cheney, D-Portage. "If there is no other way to do it, I would certainly consider raising taxes."
