The bill that would require county property tax assessment boards of appeal members to live in Indiana was amended and passed out of the Senate Local Government committee Thursday.

Senate Bill 187, authored by State Sen. Dan Dernulc, states the term of anyone serving on a county property tax assessment board of appeals who isn’t an Indiana resident will expire July 1. The fiscal body, which is the council in Lake County, would then be required to appoint a new member to finish out the member’s term.

The bill maintains Indiana’s current PTABOA law that states a member has to be at least 18 years old and be “knowledgeable in the valuation of property.” The bill also maintains that a majority of the members must have the certification of a level two or level three assessor-appraiser.

The bill was amended to include strengthened language Sen. Greg Taylor, D-Indianapolis, proposed last week to ensure that the PTABOA member lives in Indiana throughout his or her four-year term.

“Thank you to my colleagues for bringing up a clarification that needed to be addressed. I am happy with the bill as amended from committee,” Dernulc said in a statement. “This bill will ensure the members of a PTABOA are Indiana residents to help ensure we have equal and fair property tax assessments for those who have chosen to call Indiana their primary home.”

Dernulc, R-Highland, said he drafted the bill after learning about Lake County PTABOA member Samantha Steele, who is also a Cook County Board of Review commissioner and was arrested for driving under the influence in Chicago late last year.

Taylor proposed last week tightening the language in the bill to make it clearer that the PTABOA member would have to live in Indiana throughout his or her term. That way, Taylor said, a member couldn’t get appointed while an Indiana resident and move within the term.

The committee members voiced support for changing the language in the bill to reflect that the member has to live in Indiana throughout his or her term.

“If you want to make sure that their whole term that they live in Indiana, I would put that in there specifically. I wouldn’t leave it open to interpretation,” Taylor previously said.

State Sen. Mike Bohacek, R-Michiana Shores, said last week that in his district counties have had difficulties finding qualified members to appoint to the PTABOA. Bohacek suggested the bill be further amended to state that if someone owns property in Indiana and has the proper qualifications he or she could serve on the PTABOA.

“I just don’t want to see PTABOA hearings be delayed. I’ve seen how messy that could get, they get stacked up,” Bohacek previously said. “To have those not be able to convene because we don’t have proper representation would be a problem.”

Dernulc said Thursday that Bohacek was going to offer an amendment to the bill to allow for someone to own property in Indiana and serve on a PTABOA. But after they talked, Dernulc said Bohacek agreed to pull the amendment.

In Lake County, Dernulc said he reached out to council members about the bill. The council member he talked to, Dernulc said, expressed interest in the bill.

Lake County Council President Christine Cid, D-East Chicago, said she told Dernulc she supports the bill. Cid said the county uses a state website to find level two and level three assessors, so it would be easy to find qualified people who live in the county or state that could serve on the PTABOA.

“I believe there are plenty of qualified people here, not just in Lake County but in Indiana, that could serve,” Cid said.

Lake County Board of Commissioners Michael Repay, D-3rd, previously said Lake County officials want to appoint the most qualified people to the PTABOA.

“There are like 101 more important things that could positively impact the citizens of Indiana and the citizens in Senator Dan Dernulc’s district than a fully qualified individual who doesn’t live in the county,” Repay previously said.

The bill will now advance to the Senate floor. If it passes the Senate, it will advance to a House committee and, if passed there, to the House.

akukulka@post-trib.com