Weekly Statehouse update: Prosecutor salaries, property tax overhaul, minimum teacher salaries

A bill boosting local prosecutors’ salaries is discussed in the Senate. A House lawmaker proposes an overhaul to the property tax system. And lawmakers want to increase minimum teacher salaries.

Here’s what you might have missed this week at the Statehouse.

HB 1006: Prosecutors

The average salary for deputy prosecutors in Indiana is lower than the average starting salary for private sector attorneys. A bill in a Senate committee, HB 1006, would provide counties with state funding to help pay for deputy prosecutor salaries, in a bid to help make them more competitive.

SB 1: Property tax relief

House Ways and Means Chair Jeff Thompson unveiled his property tax reform proposal, one that would overhaul both the property tax and local income tax systems over several years.

Thompson said, under the plan he proposed inserting into SB 1, homeowners’ property tax bills would still likely go up, just not as much. Legislative leaders said Thompson’s long-term goal is the right target, but that more work needs to be done on short-term relief.
 

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SB 146: Teacher compensation

And a House committee debated SB 146, which would increase minimum teacher salaries to $45,000 a year, up from $40,000.

Education leaders worry they won’t get enough resources from lawmakers to make that goal work — and that not being able to raise salaries of other teachers will drive out experienced educators.

Find all the measures we're covering this legislative session on our 2025 bill tracker.
 

Brandon is our Statehouse bureau chief. Contact him at bsmith@ipbs.org or follow him on Twitter at @brandonjsmith5.