Indiana’s 2026 Laws That Hit Your Wallet

IStart the year with clarity, not confusion. Attorney Mark Nicholson walks through the Indiana laws that just went live in 2026 and shows exactly where they touch your money, your business, and your privacy. From a property tax remix to a statewide income tax cut, we separate real savings from hidden costs and give you a plan to navigate the changes with confidence.

We dig into the property tax overhaul: the standard deduction begins a gradual phase‑out, the supplemental homestead deduction increases, and a new credit offers either $300 or 10% of your bill. For homeowners, the outcome depends on your home value and eligibility, so we spell out who’s likely to save and who may see higher escrow payments. Business owners get relief as Indiana eliminates the tax floor on depreciated equipment, while new deductions support rental housing and farmland. To keep local spending honest, a transparency portal now reveals how each property tax dollar is used.

There’s straightforward good news too: the state income tax rate drops to 2.95%, putting more cash in paychecks and boosting Indiana’s competitiveness. On the digital front, the Indiana Consumer Data Protection Act empowers you to access, correct, delete, and opt out of targeted ads and data sales, with clear thresholds for which companies must comply. We also hit quick but important updates: electric motorcycles are exempt from EV fees, nonprofits face tighter limits on bingo and casino nights, insurers must disclose agent commissions, and schools must train staff in nonviolent crisis intervention.

If you want the bottom line without the legalese, this guide is your shortcut. Subscribe for more clear, practical breakdowns, share this with a neighbor who needs it, and leave a review to tell us which change helps or hurts you most.

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Chapters

• 0:00 Welcome To 2026 Indiana
• 0:26 Property Tax Shake‑Up Explained
• 1:45 New Credits And Business Relief
• 2:40 State Income Tax Cut
• 3:55 Your New Data Privacy Rights
• 5:18 EV Fees, Games, And Insurance
• 6:20 School Safety And Final Takeaways
• 7:17 Nicholson Nugget And Sign‑Off

Transcript

Speaker: 0:00

I'm Attorney Mark Nicholson from Law Office of Mark Nicholson. I'm going to talk about welcome to 2026 Indiana. While you were celebrating New Year's Eve, a whole bunch of new laws just kicked in that are going to hit your wallet, your business, and your daily life. Some of these changes will potentially save you money, others not so much. Here's what you need to know about the laws that just went live in 2026. Property tax changes the good, the bad, and the confusing. Let's start with the elephant in the room, property taxes. Indiana lawmakers have been busy tinkering with the system, and the result is a mixed bag that's going to affect every homeowner and business owner in the state. Standard deductions are getting phased out. Here's the bad news first. Indiana is starting to phase out the standard property tax deduction that homeowners have relied on for years. This isn't happening overnight. It's a gradual phase out that will continue over the next few years, but make no mistake, this is going to mean higher property tax bills for many homeowners. The lawmakers are essentially taking money out of your left pocket while putting some money back in your right pocket through other changes. Whether you come out ahead or not depends on your specific situation. Supplemental homestead deduction increases. The good news is that the supplemental homestead deduction is increasing. These deductions help offset property taxes for homeowners who live in their primary residence. The increase should provide some relief, but it might not fully compensate for the standard deduction phase out, especially for a higher value home. A new $300 property tax credit. Indiana's rolling out a new property tax credit that will give eligible homeowners either $300 or 10% of their property tax bill, whichever is less. This is actually a cashback, not just a deduction. For many homeowners, especially those with smaller tax bills, this could be significant relief. But here's the catch. You need to understand that this interacts with all the other changes to know if you're actually coming out ahead. Business equipment tax floor is eliminated. Businesses got some good news. Indiana eliminated the tax floor on business personal property, equipment, machinery, et cetera. Previously, even if your business equipment depreciated significantly, you still had to pay taxes on a minimum assessed value. That floor is gone now, which means real tax savings for businesses with older equipment. This is a win for small businesses and manufacturers who've been getting hammered by taxes on equipment that's worth a fraction of what they originally paid. New rental and farmland deductions. Property owners who rent out residential property and farmers get new deduction opportunities. The rental property deduction is designed to help offset some of the cost of maintaining rental properties, while the farmland deduction recognizes the unique challenges facing Indiana's agricultural sector. Property tax transparency portal. Indiana is launching a new online transparency portal where you can see exactly how your property tax dollars are being spent. This isn't going to save you money directly, but will give you the information you need to hold local officials accountable when they're spending your tax dollars, our tax dollars. State income tax drops to 2.95%. Here's some unambiguously good news. Indiana state income tax rate is dropping to 2.95%. This continues Indiana's trend for reducing the state income tax burden and it puts real money back in the working user's pocket. For family earning $60,000 a year, this tax cut translates to meaningful savings over the course of the year. Combined with Indiana's already competitive tax structure, this makes the state even more attractive for both individuals and businesses. Indiana's new data privacy law. Your digital rights just got stronger. One of the most significant new laws taking effect today is the Indiana Consumer Data Protection Act. If you're tired of companies collecting and selling your personal information without your knowledge or consent, this law gives you some new weapons to fight back. What rights do you have now? Well, under the new law, you have the right to access your data. You can demand to know what personal information companies have collected about you. Correct inaccurate information. If a company has wrong information about you, you can force them to fix it, delete your data. In many cases, you can demand that companies delete your personal information. Opt out of data sales. You can tell companies stop selling your personal information to third parties. Opt out of targeting advertisement. You can demand that companies stop using your data for targeted ad. Which companies have to follow these rules? The law applies to businesses that either process data from at least 100,000 Indiana residents or handle data from at least 25,000 residents while making more than half their money from selling personal data. Enforcement has teeth in this situation. Other notable change do you need to know electric vehicle fee exemption for motorcycles. Indiana has been charging electric vehicle fees to help offset lost gas tax revenue. But lawmakers recognize electric motorcycles use far less infrastructure than cars and trucks. So electric motorcycles are now exempt from the EV fee. Bingo and casino night restrictions. Organizations running bingo games and casino nights face new restrictions on how often they can hold these events. This affects churches, VFW posts, and other nonprofits that rely on these fundraising activities. The new limits are designed to prevent these activities from becoming too commercial. I think that's ridiculous, personally. Health insurance commission transparency. Health insurance companies now have to disclose how much they're paying in commissions to agents and brokers. This transparency requirement is designed to help consumers understand potential conflicts of interest when getting insurance advice. Crisis intervention training in schools. Schools are now required to provide nonviolent crisis intervention training to staff. This training focuses on de-escalation techniques and alternatives to present to and alternatives to physical restraint when dealing with student behavior issues. What this means for you, the bottom line is that these changes are going to affect your wallet and your daily life in ways both big and small. The property tax changes are particularly complex. Some homeowners will come out ahead and others will pay more. The income tax reduction helps everyone who pays state income tax. The data privacy law gives you new rights, but only if you're willing to exercise them. Don't expect companies to volunteer information about your rights. You'll need to be proactive in that situation. So that's kind of an update on some of the new laws that are gonna well that are in effect now. So that's your Nicholson nugget of the day. Please be sure to like and subscribe.