Braun releases plan to boost ag, rural fortunes
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Republican gubernatorial nominee Mike Braun on Friday released a policy plan intended to benefit farmers and rural residents—highlighting ideas for tax relief, economic development and more.
“Hoosier family farms feed the world with millions of acres of crops, livestock, and poultry,” Braun said, “and as governor, I will protect our farms while giving rural communities the tools they need to grow and thrive.”
The campaign said it partnered with Hoosiers for Opportunity, Prosperity & Enterprise (HOPE), a Terre Haute-based nonprofit, to develop the proposals.
Full wallets
Hoosier famers, per HOPE’s white paper, “contend with razor-thin margins, rising input costs, and adverse weather.”
To ease the financial pain, the group proposed capping annual increases in farm property tax bills to 3% and tweaking the base rate formula used to value agricultural land.
The formula changes would include a higher maximum capitalization rate, removal of federal payments from operating income calculations and reviewing input costs for accuracy.
The organization also suggested creating a tax-advantaged “farm savings account,” and a tax credit for young and beginning farmers.
And it recommended referenda reforms: limiting the property tax increase requests to general elections, requiring language describing total levies instead of rates, and capping referendum property taxes to a 3% “growth throttle.”
U.S. Sen. Braun’s plan also touts economic development “targeted” to rural communities, echoing his past criticism that the state has focused too much on landing big deals in urban areas.
“Rural Hoosiers have watched their neighbors and children move away for job opportunities in metropolitan areas, and their communities continue to be passed over for basic amenities like child care and affordable healthcare,” the white paper notes.
The plan would direct the Indiana Economic Development Corp. to attract private investment into rural businesses and communities.
It would also impose new transparency measures on the IEDC. The quasi-public agency would have to analyze how its investments impact utility costs and resource availability, and mitigate any negative impacts.
The economic development plan includes child care as a priority. It says the state should empower local governments to partner with employers to create and sustain new facilities, supported by some state funding.
Customer service, broadband and land
HOPE said Indiana has a “web of agriculture agencies” that can be hard for farming families to navigate.
The group took inspiration from former President Donald Trump’s farmers.gov “one-stop shop.” It proposed centralizing information—on breaking into new markets, technical assistance, state funding opportunities, proposed regulations and public comments—into a single online state portal.
The white paper also encourages continued focus on broadband access, acknowledging recent efforts but noting, “there is still work to be done until every corner of the state has reliable internet access to the last mile and the last acre.”
It proposes a “community connectivity” program modeled after the popular Community Crossings road and bridge matching grant program. And it directs the state to cut off broadband developers who “make fallacious coverage claims.
Finally, Braun’s plan calls on the state to develop a plan for protecting farmland from “foreign adversaries” like China.
Lawmakers have recently enacted legislation cracking down on foreign ownership, but Braun would go further by requiring adversaries to divest of their land and mandate “all foreign agents” to register with the state.
It also directs the state to prioritize landowner rights and local control in decisions about siting renewable energy installations.
The Indiana Capital Chronicle is an independent, not-for-profit news organization that covers state government, policy and elections.