Appeal petitions; emergency financial relief; referendum
Sec. 4.5. (a) With respect to every appeal petition that is delivered
to the tax control board by the department of local government
finance under section 4.1 of this chapter and that includes a request
for emergency financial relief (except an appeal petition described
in section 4.7 of this chapter), the tax control board shall, after
having made the study of the appeal petition and related materials
that the tax control board considers necessary, make an appropriate
recommendation to the department of local government finance. If
the appeal petition requests an excessive tax levy under subsection
(c), the tax control board shall expedite the board's review as
necessary to permit the referendum to be conducted without a special
election. In respect of the appeal petition, the tax control board may
make to the department of local government finance any of the
recommendations described in section 4.4(a) of this chapter, subject
to the limitations described in section 4.4(b) of this chapter.
(b) In addition, if the tax control board concludes that the
appellant school corporation cannot, in the ensuing calendar year,
carry out the public educational duty committed to the appellant
school corporation by law if, for the ensuing calendar year, the
appellant school corporation does not receive emergency financial
relief, the tax control board may recommend to the department of
local government finance that the order of the county board of tax
adjustment or the county auditor in respect of the budget, tax levy,
or tax rate of the appellant school corporation be approved, or
disapproved and modified, as specified in the tax control board's
recommendation and that the appellant school corporation receive
emergency financial relief from the state, on terms to be specified by
the tax control board in the board's recommendation, in the form of:
(1) a grant or grants from any funds of the state that are
available for such a purpose;
(2) a loan or loans from any funds of the state that are available
for such a purpose;
(3) permission to the appellant school corporation to borrow
funds from a source other than the state or assistance in
obtaining the loan;
(4) an advance or advances of funds that will become payable
to the appellant school corporation under any law providing for
the payment of state funds to school corporations;
(5) permission to the appellant school corporation to:
(A) cancel any unpaid obligation of the appellant school
corporation's general fund to the appellant school
corporation's cumulative building fund; or
(B) use, for general fund purposes, any unobligated balance
in the appellant school corporation's cumulative building
fund and the proceeds of any levy made or to be made by the
appellant school corporation for the appellant school
corporation's cumulative building fund;
(6) permission to use, for general fund purposes, any
unobligated balance in any construction fund, including any
unobligated proceeds of a sale of the school corporation's
general obligation bonds; or
(7) a combination of the emergency financial relief described in
subdivisions (1) through (6).
(c) In addition to, or in lieu of, any recommendation that the tax
control board may make under this section, the tax control board may
recommend that the appellant school corporation be permitted to
make a referendum tax levy for the ensuing calendar year under this
subsection. The recommendation may not be put into effect until a
majority of the individuals who vote in a referendum that is
conducted in accordance with the following requirements approves
the appellant school corporation's making a referendum tax levy for
the ensuing calendar year:
(1) Whenever:
(A) the tax control board recommends to the department of
local government finance that the appellant school
corporation be permitted to make a referendum tax levy for
the ensuing calendar year if a majority of the individuals
voting in a referendum held in the appellant school
corporation approves the appellant school corporation's
making a referendum tax levy;
(B) the department of local government finance gives the
board's written approval of the recommendation; and
(C) the appellant school corporation requests that the tax
control board take the steps necessary to cause a referendum
to be conducted;
the tax control board shall proceed in accordance with this
subsection.
(2) The question to be submitted to the voters in the referendum
must read as follows:
"For the __ (insert number) calendar year or years
immediately following the holding of the referendum, shall
the school corporation impose a property tax rate that does
not exceed _____________ (insert amount) cents ($0.__)
(insert amount) on each one hundred dollars ($100) of
assessed valuation and that is in addition to the school
corporation's normal tax rate?".
The voters in a referendum may not approve a referendum tax
levy that is imposed for more than seven (7) years. However, a
referendum tax levy may be reimposed or extended under this
subsection.
(3) The tax control board shall act under IC 3-10-9-3 to certify
the question to be voted on at the referendum to the county
election board of each county in which any part of the appellant
school corporation lies. Each county clerk shall, upon receiving
the question certified by the tax control board, call a meeting of
the county election board to make arrangements for the
referendum. The referendum shall be held in the next primary
or general election in which all the registered voters who are
residents of the appellant school corporation are entitled to vote
after certification of the question under IC 3-10-9-3. However,
if the referendum would be held at a primary or general election
more than six (6) months after certification by the tax control
board, the referendum shall be held at a special election to be
conducted not less than ninety (90) days after the question is
certified to the circuit court clerk or clerks by the tax control
board. The appellant school corporation shall advise each
affected county election board of the date on which the
appellant school corporation desires that the referendum be
held, and, if practicable, the referendum shall be held on the day
specified by the appellant school corporation. The referendum
shall be held under the direction of the county election board,
which shall take all steps necessary to carry out the referendum.
If a primary election, general election, or special election is held
during the sixty (60) days preceding or following the special
election described in this subdivision and is held in an election
district that includes some, but not all, of the school
corporation, the county election board may also adopt orders to
specify when the registration period for the elections cease and
resume under IC 3-7-13-10. Not less than ten (10) days before
the date on which the referendum is to be held, the county
election board shall cause notice of the question that is to be
voted upon at the referendum to be published in accordance
with IC 5-3-1. If the referendum is not conducted at a primary
or general election, the appellant school corporation in which
the referendum is to be held shall pay all of the costs of holding
the referendum.
(4) Each county election board shall cause the question certified
to the circuit court clerk by the tax control board to be placed
on the ballot in the form prescribed by IC 3-10-9-4. The county
election board shall also cause an adequate supply of ballots
and voting equipment to be delivered to the precinct election
board of each precinct in which the referendum is to be held.
(5) The individuals entitled to vote in the referendum are all of
the registered voters resident in the appellant school
corporation.
(6) Each precinct election board shall count the affirmative
votes and the negative votes cast in the referendum and shall
certify those two (2) totals to the county election board of each
county in which the referendum is held. The circuit court clerk
of each county shall, immediately after the votes cast in the
referendum have been counted, certify the results of the
referendum to the tax control board. Upon receiving the
certification of all of the votes cast in the referendum, the tax
control board shall promptly certify the result of the referendum
to the department of local government finance. If a majority of
the individuals who voted in the referendum voted "yes" on the
referendum question, the department of local government
finance, upon being notified in the manner described in this
subsection of the result of the referendum, shall take prompt
and appropriate steps to notify the appellant school corporation
that the appellant school corporation is authorized to collect, for
the calendar year that next follows the calendar year in which
the referendum is held, a referendum tax levy not greater than
the amount approved in the referendum. The referendum tax
levy may be imposed for the number of calendar years approved
by the voters following the referendum for the school
corporation in which the referendum is held. If a majority of the
individuals who voted in the referendum voted "yes" on the
referendum question, the school corporation shall establish a
referendum tax levy fund under IC 21-2-11.6. A school
corporation's referendum tax levy may not be considered in the
determination of the school corporation's state tuition support
under IC 21-3-1.7 or the determination of the school
corporation's maximum general fund tax levy under this chapter
and IC 21-3-1.7. If a majority of the persons who voted in the
referendum did not vote "yes" on the referendum question, the
appellant school corporation may not make any tax levy for its
general fund other than a normal tax levy, and another
referendum under this subsection may not be held for a period
of one (1) year after the date of the referendum.
(d) With respect to any school corporation to which a loan or
advance of state funds is made under this section, or for which such
a loan or an advance is recommended, for purposes other than the
purpose specified in section 4.7 of this chapter, the tax control board
may recommend to the department of local government finance that
the school corporation be authorized, for a specified calendar year,
and solely for the purpose of enabling the school corporation to
repay the loan or advance, to collect an excessive tax levy. A
recommendation under this subsection must specify the amount of
the recommended excessive tax levy. Upon receiving the
recommendation from the tax control board, and without any other
proceeding, the department of local government finance may
authorize the school corporation, for a specified calendar year, to
make an excessive tax levy in accordance with the recommendation
of the tax control board or in accordance with a modification of the
recommendation that the department of local government finance
determines is proper. Whenever the department of local government
finance exercises the power given to the department of local
government finance under this subsection, the department of local
government finance shall, in the department's order to the affected
school corporation, specify the amount of the authorized excessive
tax levy and take appropriate steps to ensure that so much of the
proceeds of the excessive tax levy as should be used for loan
repayment purposes is not used for any other purpose. The
department of local government finance may not exercise the power
described in this subsection to authorize any school corporation to
collect an excessive tax levy for more than one (1) calendar year in
any period of four (4) consecutive calendar years.
As added by P.L.1-1991, SEC.44. Amended by P.L.2-1997, SEC.19;
P.L.90-2002, SEC.180; P.L.85-2002, SEC.1; P.L.66-2003, SEC.54;
P.L.14-2004, SEC.184.
Last modified: May 28, 2006