Indiana Senate Tax Chairman Luke Kenley has derailed the South Shore expansion bill by sending it to a summer study committee — meaning that any legislation to build new lines to Valparaiso and Lowell has been killed this legislative session.

Reports the Northwest Indiana Times’ Patrick Guinane:

Legislation to steer $350 million in state money toward South Shore expansion will take a major detour Tuesday.

Senate Tax Chairman Luke Kenley, R-Noblesville, said Monday he has decided to route the commuter rail funding bill to a summer study committee for further review. That means the effort to finance South Shore extensions to Lowell and Valparaiso is dead for the year — unless region lawmakers can broker an unlikely backroom deal in the final weeks of the legislative session.

“I’m going to recommend that we put that bill back to the Tax (and Financing Policy) Commission for this summer, the reason being that I’m not comfortable with the funding mechanisms that they’ve put in there,” Kenley said.

The legislation, House Bill 1220, would steer 12.5 percent of the state sales tax collected in Lake and Porter counties toward the proposed Lowell and Valparaiso lines, a move that would generate more than $30 million annually without raising local taxes.

Technorati Tags: Lowell, Luke Kenley, Senate Tax Committee, South Shore, Valparaiso

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