SOUTH BEND — Presenting a unified front is crucial if the cities of South Bend and Mishawaka and the St. Joseph County Council hope to convince the state legislature to give local bodies authority to pass a food and beverage tax.
Even then, city and county officials face an uphill battle, whether they choose to collaborate or pursue the enabling legislation separately.
That was the assessment of Rhonda Cook, director of government affairs and legislative counsel of the Indiana Association of Cities and Towns. She spoke at a special joint meeting here Wednesday that included members of the St. Joseph County Council and the South Bend and Mishawaka councils.
Cook provided an overview of food and beverage taxes that have been implemented in 13 counties and 14 municipalities. She also spoke of her agency's effort to lobby the General Assembly to pass legislation that would allow cities and towns the authority to adopt a tax without legislative approval.
Those efforts, which began in 2011, have been unsuccessful, according to Cook. She said bills rarely made it out of committee and only received a vote in the House Ways and Means Committee once, where it was rejected.
Cook said IACT members asked lawmakers why they resisted the idea of legislation giving localities authority to adopt the tax. "We were told by legislators who voted against it that they preferred to have each community come in and make their case because they wanted that control," Cook said.
She also reminded the council members that whenever the legislature gives authority to a locality to impose a food and beverage tax, they open themselves up to criticism and campaign ads about that tax increase — even if the tax increase does not affect people in their communities.