A
proposal to expand the Indianapolis police taxing district was passed in
committee tonight and now will be considered by the full Indianapolis
City-County Council.
By
a 5-3 vote, the Administration and Finance Committee approved the measure being
pushed by Republican Mayor Greg Ballard. Democrats Joseph Simpson, Pamela
Hickman and Maggie Lewis voted against it, while Democrats Angela Mansfield and
Mary Moriarty Adams approved it, along with three Republicans.
Under
the proposal, the police taxing district would be enlarged so that county property
taxpayers, except those with properties in Lawrence, Speedway, Southport and
Beech Grove, would pay an extra assessment on their tax bills to help fund the
Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department’s daily operations.
The
district’s current boundaries, which still follow the former Indianapolis
Police Department coverage area, were not expanded in the 2007 police merger.
If
approved by the full council, some property owners in outlying suburban areas
of Marion County would pay the police tax rate for the first time. But those
who already are above the tax caps would see no net increase in their tax bills
from the new tax. The measure would result in a net boost of about $1.3 million
for IMPD next year.
Area
school districts also would be affected by the change. Indianapolis Public
Schools would receive an additional $3.4 million in the first year, but
suburban county districts would notice a drop of $4.1 million in revenue.
...
Mansfield,
the committee chair, said in a statement that she supported the measure because
it “is a simple matter of fairness and I am pleased to find some common ground
with the mayor on this issue.
“Budgets are simply about priorities — our
priorities continue to be to identify funds for more IMPD officers and to
protect the taxpayer by maintaining the homestead tax credit.”
