Sec. 3.1. (a) Subject to section 3.5(a)(1)(C) of this chapter, this section applies only to the following:

(1) A controlled project (as defined in section 1.1 of this chapter as in effect June 30, 2008) for which the proper officers of a political subdivision make a preliminary determination in the manner described in subsection (b) before July 1, 2008.

(2) An elementary school building, middle school building, high school building, or other school building for academic instruction that:

(A) is a controlled project;

(B) will be used for any combination of kindergarten through grade 12; and

(C) will not cost more than the lesser of the following:

(i) The threshold amount determined under this item. In the case of an ordinance or resolution adopted before January 1, 2018, making a preliminary determination to issue bonds or enter into a lease for the project, the threshold amount is ten million dollars ($10,000,000). In the case of an ordinance or resolution adopted after December 31, 2017, and before January 1, 2019, making a preliminary determination to issue bonds or enter into a lease for the project, the threshold amount is fifteen million dollars ($15,000,000). In the case of an ordinance or resolution adopted in a calendar year after December 31, 2018, making a preliminary determination to issue bonds or enter into a lease for the project, the threshold amount is an amount (as determined by the department of local government finance) equal to the result of the maximum levy growth quotient determined under IC 6-1.1-18.5-2 for the year multiplied by the threshold amount determined under this item for the preceding calendar year. In the case of a threshold amount determined under this item that applies for a calendar year after December 31, 2018, the department of local government finance shall publish the threshold in the Indiana Register under IC 4-22-7-7 not more than sixty (60) days after the date the budget agency releases the maximum levy growth quotient for the ensuing year under IC 6-1.1-18.5-2.

(ii) An amount equal to one percent (1%) of the total gross assessed value of property within the political subdivision on the last assessment date, if that total gross assessed value is more than one billion dollars ($1,000,000,000), or ten million dollars ($10,000,000), if the total gross assessed value of property within the political subdivision on the last assessment date is not more than one billion dollars ($1,000,000,000).

(3) Any other controlled project that:

(A) is not a controlled project described in subdivision (1) or (2); and

(B) will not cost the political subdivision more than the lesser of the following:

(i) The threshold amount determined under this item. In the case of an ordinance or resolution adopted before January 1, 2018, making a preliminary determination to issue bonds or enter into a lease for the project, the threshold amount is twelve million dollars ($12,000,000). In the case of an ordinance or resolution adopted after December 31, 2017, and before January 1, 2019, making a preliminary determination to issue bonds or enter into a lease for the project, the threshold amount is fifteen million dollars ($15,000,000). In the case of an ordinance or resolution adopted in a calendar year after December 31, 2018, making a preliminary determination to issue bonds or enter into a lease for the project, the threshold amount is an amount (as determined by the department of local government finance) equal to the result of the maximum levy growth quotient determined under IC 6-1.1-18.5-2 for the year multiplied by the threshold amount determined under this item for the preceding calendar year. In the case of a threshold amount determined under this item that applies for a calendar year after December 31, 2018, the department of local government finance shall publish the threshold in the Indiana Register under IC 4-22-7-7 not more than sixty (60) days after the date the budget agency releases the maximum levy growth quotient for the ensuing year under IC 6-1.1-18.5-2.

(ii) An amount equal to one percent (1%) of the total gross assessed value of property within the political subdivision on the last assessment date, if that total gross assessed value is more than one hundred million dollars ($100,000,000), or one million dollars ($1,000,000), if the total gross assessed value of property within the political subdivision on the last assessment date is not more than one hundred million dollars ($100,000,000).

(4) This subdivision does not apply to a project for which a public hearing to issue bonds or enter into a lease has been conducted under IC 20-26-7-37 before July 1, 2023. Any other controlled project if both of the following apply:

(A) The political subdivision’s total debt service tax rate is more than forty cents ($0.40) per one hundred dollars ($100) of assessed value, but less than eighty cents ($0.80) per one hundred dollars ($100) of assessed value.

(B) The controlled project is not otherwise described in section 3.5(a)(1) of this chapter.

This subdivision expires December 31, 2024.

     (b) A political subdivision may not impose property taxes to pay debt service on bonds or lease rentals on a lease for a controlled project without completing the following procedures:

(1) The proper officers of a political subdivision shall publish notice in accordance with IC 5-3-1 and send notice by first class mail to the circuit court clerk and to any organization that delivers to the officers, before January 1 of that year, an annual written request for such notices of any meeting to consider adoption of a resolution or an ordinance making a preliminary determination to issue bonds or enter into a lease and shall conduct at least two (2) public hearings on a preliminary determination before adoption of the resolution or ordinance. The political subdivision must at each of the public hearings on the preliminary determination allow the public to testify regarding the preliminary determination and must make the following information available to the public at each of the public hearings on the preliminary determination, in addition to any other information required by law:

(A) The result of the political subdivision’s current and projected annual debt service payments divided by the net assessed value of taxable property within the political subdivision.

(B) The result of:

(i) the sum of the political subdivision’s outstanding long term debt plus the outstanding long term debt of other taxing units that include any of the territory of the political subdivision; divided by

(ii) the net assessed value of taxable property within the political subdivision.

(C) The information specified in subdivision (3)(A) through (3)(H).

(2) When the proper officers of a political subdivision make a preliminary determination to issue bonds or enter into a lease for a controlled project, the officers shall give notice of the preliminary determination by:

(A) publication in accordance with IC 5-3-1; and

(B) first class mail to the circuit court clerk and to the organizations described in subdivision (1).

(3) A notice under subdivision (2) of the preliminary determination of the political subdivision to issue bonds or enter into a lease for a controlled project must include the following information:

(A) The maximum term of the bonds or lease.

(B) The maximum principal amount of the bonds or the maximum lease rental for the lease.

(C) The estimated interest rates that will be paid and the total interest costs associated with the bonds or lease.

(D) The purpose of the bonds or lease.

(E) A statement that any owners of property within the political subdivision or registered voters residing within the political subdivision who want to initiate a petition and remonstrance process against the proposed debt service or lease payments must file a petition that complies with subdivisions (4) and (5) not later than thirty (30) days after publication in accordance with IC 5-3-1.

(F) With respect to bonds issued or a lease entered into to open:

(i) a new school facility; or

(ii) an existing facility that has not been used for at least three (3) years and that is being reopened to provide additional classroom space;

the estimated costs the school corporation expects to incur annually to operate the facility.

(G) A statement of whether the school corporation expects to appeal for a new facility adjustment (as defined in IC 20-45-1-16 (repealed) before January 1, 2009) for an increased maximum permissible tuition support levy to pay the estimated costs described in clause (F).

(H) The following information:

(i) The political subdivision’s current debt service levy and rate.

(ii) The estimated increase to the political subdivision’s debt service levy and rate that will result if the political subdivision issues the bonds or enters into the lease.

(iii) The estimated amount of the political subdivision’s debt service levy and rate that will result during the following ten (10) years if the political subdivision issues the bonds or enters into the lease, after also considering any changes that will occur to the debt service levy and rate during that period on account of any outstanding bonds or lease obligations that will mature or terminate during that period.

(I) The information specified in subdivision (1)(A) through (1)(B).

(4) After notice is given, a petition requesting the application of a petition and remonstrance process may be filed by the lesser of:

(A) five hundred (500) persons who are either owners of property within the political subdivision or registered voters residing within the political subdivision; or

(B) five percent (5%) of the registered voters residing within the political subdivision.

(5) The state board of accounts shall design and, upon request by the county voter registration office, deliver to the county voter registration office or the county voter registration office’s designated printer the petition forms to be used solely in the petition process described in this section. The county voter registration office shall issue to an owner or owners of property within the political subdivision or a registered voter residing within the political subdivision the number of petition forms requested by the owner or owners or the registered voter. Each form must be accompanied by instructions detailing the requirements that:

(A) the carrier and signers must be owners of property or registered voters;

(B) the carrier must be a signatory on at least one (1) petition;

(C) after the signatures have been collected, the carrier must swear or affirm before a notary public that the carrier witnessed each signature; and

(D) govern the closing date for the petition period.

Persons requesting forms may be required to identify themselves as owners of property or registered voters and may be allowed to pick up additional copies to distribute to other owners of property or registered voters. Each person signing a petition must indicate whether the person is signing the petition as a registered voter within the political subdivision or is signing the petition as the owner of property within the political subdivision. A person who signs a petition as a registered voter must indicate the address at which the person is registered to vote. A person who signs a petition as an owner of property must indicate the address of the property owned by the person in the political subdivision.

(6) Each petition must be verified under oath by at least one (1) qualified petitioner in a manner prescribed by the state board of accounts before the petition is filed with the county voter registration office under subdivision (7).

(7) Each petition must be filed with the county voter registration office not more than thirty (30) days after publication under subdivision (2) of the notice of the preliminary determination.

(8) The county voter registration office shall determine whether each person who signed the petition is a registered voter. However, after the county voter registration office has determined that at least five hundred twenty-five (525) persons who signed the petition are registered voters within the political subdivision, the county voter registration office is not required to verify whether the remaining persons who signed the petition are registered voters. If the county voter registration office does not determine that at least five hundred twenty-five (525) persons who signed the petition are registered voters, the county voter registration office shall, not more than fifteen (15) business days after receiving a petition, forward a copy of the petition to the county auditor. Not more than ten (10) business days after receiving the copy of the petition, the county auditor shall provide to the county voter registration office a statement verifying:

(A) whether a person who signed the petition as a registered voter but is not a registered voter, as determined by the county voter registration office, is the owner of property in the political subdivision; and

(B) whether a person who signed the petition as an owner of property within the political subdivision does in fact own property within the political subdivision.

(9) The county voter registration office, not more than ten (10) business days after determining that at least five hundred twenty-five (525) persons who signed the petition are registered voters or receiving the statement from the county auditor under subdivision (8), as applicable, shall make the final determination of the number of petitioners that are registered voters in the political subdivision and, based on the statement provided by the county auditor, the number of petitioners that own property within the political subdivision. Whenever the name of an individual who signs a petition form as a registered voter contains a minor variation from the name of the registered voter as set forth in the records of the county voter registration office, the signature is presumed to be valid, and there is a presumption that the individual is entitled to sign the petition under this section. Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, in determining whether an individual is a registered voter, the county voter registration office shall apply the requirements and procedures used under IC 3 to determine whether a person is a registered voter for purposes of voting in an election governed by IC 3. However, an individual is not required to comply with the provisions concerning providing proof of identification to be considered a registered voter for purposes of this chapter. A person is entitled to sign a petition only one (1) time in a particular petition and remonstrance process under this chapter, regardless of whether the person owns more than one (1) parcel of real property, mobile home assessed as personal property, or manufactured home assessed as personal property, or a combination of those types of property within the subdivision and regardless of whether the person is both a registered voter in the political subdivision and the owner of property within the political subdivision. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, if a petition is presented to the county voter registration office within forty-five (45) days before an election, the county voter registration office may defer acting on the petition, and the time requirements under this section for action by the county voter registration office do not begin to run until five (5) days after the date of the election.

(10) The county voter registration office must file a certificate and each petition with:

(A) the township trustee, if the political subdivision is a township, who shall present the petition or petitions to the township board; or

(B) the body that has the authority to authorize the issuance of the bonds or the execution of a lease, if the political subdivision is not a township;

within thirty-five (35) business days of the filing of the petition requesting a petition and remonstrance process. The certificate must state the number of petitioners that are owners of property within the political subdivision and the number of petitioners who are registered voters residing within the political subdivision.

If a sufficient petition requesting a petition and remonstrance process is not filed by owners of property or registered voters as set forth in this section, the political subdivision may issue bonds or enter into a lease by following the provisions of law relating to the bonds to be issued or lease to be entered into.

     (c) A political subdivision may not divide a controlled project in order to avoid the requirements of this section and section 3.2 of this chapter. A person that owns property within a political subdivision or a person that is a registered voter residing within a political subdivision may file a petition with the department of local government finance objecting that the political subdivision has divided a controlled project in order to avoid the requirements of this section and section 3.2 of this chapter. The petition must be filed not more than ten (10) days after the political subdivision gives notice of the political subdivision’s decision to issue bonds or enter into leases for a capital project that the person believes is the result of a division of a controlled project that is prohibited by this subsection. If the department of local government finance receives a petition under this subsection, the department shall not later than thirty (30) days after receiving the petition make a final determination on the issue of whether the political subdivision divided a controlled project in order to avoid the requirements of this section and section 3.2 of this chapter. If the department of local government finance determines that a political subdivision divided a controlled project in order to avoid the requirements of this section and section 3.2 of this chapter and the political subdivision continues to desire to proceed with the project, the political subdivision shall fulfill the requirements of this section and section 3.2 of this chapter, if applicable, regardless of the cost of the project in dispute. A political subdivision shall be considered to have divided a capital project in order to avoid the requirements of this section and section 3.2 of this chapter if the result of one (1) or more of the subprojects cannot reasonably be considered an independently desirable end in itself without reference to another capital project. This subsection does not prohibit a political subdivision from undertaking a series of capital projects in which the result of each capital project can reasonably be considered an independently desirable end in itself without reference to another capital project.

As added by P.L.25-1995, SEC.48. Amended by P.L.53-1996, SEC.2; P.L.56-1997, SEC.1; P.L.178-2002, SEC.31; P.L.1-2004, SEC.30 and P.L.23-2004, SEC.33; P.L.2-2006, SEC.54; P.L.219-2007, SEC.60; P.L.146-2008, SEC.191; P.L.182-2009(ss), SEC.143; P.L.41-2010, SEC.2; P.L.113-2010, SEC.33; P.L.42-2011, SEC.8; P.L.198-2011, SEC.1; P.L.218-2013, SEC.9; P.L.203-2015, SEC.2; P.L.138-2016, SEC.1; P.L.246-2017, SEC.3; P.L.159-2020, SEC.41; P.L.239-2023, SEC.7.

   Sec. 1. As used in this chapter, “board” refers to the distressed unit appeal board established by section 4 of this chapter.

As added by P.L.224-2007, SEC.36. Amended by P.L.146-2008, SEC.201.