Filed February 06, 2012 (merits-stage brief)
Armour v. City of Indianapolis – READ BRIEF HERE
Pro Bono Authors: Lowell Schiller, Quin Sorenson & John Meiser
A group of property owners brought an equal protection claim against the City of Indianapolis due to the City’s decision to provide tax relief only on a prospective basis. Prior to 2005, the City would finance sewer projects by apportioning the costs to property owners. The City allowed owners to pay in full or by installments (10, 20, 30 year options). At some point, the City decided to move away from this method of financing and moved to a completely different system and made the decision to forgive the remaining amounts owed under the old system. However, the affected owners had not all paid the same amount since some homeowners had paid in full while some had opted for the longest term financing possible.
IMLA has submitted a brief in this case to emphasize that the City’s actions meet the rational basis standard. City’s have reasonable, legitimate and even compelling reasons for differentiating between tax refunds and prospective tax relief. We invite you to read this excellent brief.
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