Stadium authority.

Indiana · 2026 session · senate

SB 27Stadium authority.

Status: Signed into law
Latest action: 2026-02-26 — Public Law 44
Primary sponsor: Ryan Mishler (Republican)

AGENCIES; Department of Transportation (INDOT)
AGENCIES; Finance Authority (IFA)
CITIES; Hammond
COUNTIES; Lake
COUNTIES; Marion
COUNTIES; Porter
GENERAL ASSEMBLY; Vehicle Bills and Vehicle Joint Resolutions
RECREATION AND ENTERTAINMENT
SPORTS AND ATHLETICS (Not Including Schools or Higher Education Athletics)
TAXES; Food and Beverage Taxes
TRANSPORTATION; Toll Roads and Bridges

Latest change summary

+172 / −353 words · LargeConfidence: high

This version-to-version change fundamentally gutted Senate Bill 27 by removing virtually all substantive provisions related to establishing a Northwest Indiana stadium authority with powers to finance and develop professional sports facilities in Hammond. The bill previously created comprehensive framework legislation authorizing a stadium authority to issue up to $1 billion in bonds, establish special taxing districts with admissions taxes (12%) and food/beverage taxes, enter public-private agreements for toll road and transportation projects, and allocate state tax revenues to stadium development. The changes eliminated the entire legislative findings justifying the stadium authority's creation, all operational provisions governing the authority's powers (including bidding requirements, bonding authority, and revenue allocation mechanisms), and the complete chapter creating a Northwest Indiana Professional Sports Development Area. What remains after these deletions is unclear, but the bill has been stripped of its core stadium financing and economic development framework.

Eliminated authority to issue up to $1 billion in bonds for innovation district projects and stadium facilities, removing the primary financing mechanism for professional sports venue development

Repealed entire Northwest Indiana Professional Sports Development Area chapter, eliminating the geographic framework and tax increment financing structure for stadium-related economic development

Removed all Hammond admissions tax provisions, including the 12% tax on events at facilities with 40,000+ seat capacity and associated revenue distribution to the stadium board

Deleted comprehensive toll road authority powers including ability to enter public-private agreements, set tolls, issue revenue bonds, and use proceeds for transportation projects in seven northern Indiana counties

Eliminated Indiana Sports Corporation funding redistribution requirements that would have allocated 20% of funds to northwest Indiana stadium authority events and reduced non-Marion/Lake County allocation from 30% to 20%

AI-assisted summary grounded in bill text — verify against official sources before relying on it for counsel work.

SB 27Stadium authority.

Latest change summary

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