Brownsburg council adopts amended municipal wheel tax and excise surtax after heated debate

The Town Council voted to adopt ordinance 20-26-14, imposing a municipal wheel tax and a municipal vehicle excise surtax and creating dedicated town funds. The ordinance was amended during second reading and then approved on third and final reading after a series of motions and roll-call votes.

Council discussion focused on revenue estimates, statutory constraints and recent changes at the state level that affect how LMDD and CCMG funds will flow to municipalities. Town legal staff clarified eligibility and timing, saying the town would have been eligible for roughly $90,000 from the LMDD distribution if an earlier effective date had applied; staff and the council noted that legislative language and agency guidance remain fluid.

During debate councilors proposed several amendments. Councilor Adams moved to cut the wheel tax to $5 and the excise to $7.50; that specific amendment failed to receive a second. Later amendments were proposed and debated; Councilor Adams then proposed lower amounts and Councilor Tashane and others offered compromise figures. Councilor Adams explicitly proposed an amendment "to take the wheel tax, down to $5 and the excise to $7.50." The council ultimately approved an amendment setting the adopted amounts (motion and roll-call recorded) and passed second reading as amended, then approved third and final reading. The final roll-call for adoption recorded Councilor Adams and Councilor Tashane as opposed; Councilor Simpson, Councilor Holman and the Chair voted in favor, producing passage.

Councilors repeatedly noted the uncertainty in state policy and the ability to revisit local rates in future years: as one member put it, "this is status quo, dollars $25, that's what we've been paying for years," arguing for caution until legislative impacts are clearer. Several councilors said they would review the ordinance again next year once stabilized data are available.