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Media Contact:
Steve Campbell, [317] 327-3622 |
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Mayor urges Council to act on State mandates for child services, juvenile incarceration
INDIANAPOLIS - The City-County Council will hold a special meeting tonight at 7 p.m. to vote on a property tax increase to satisfy two mandates from the State of Indiana:
· Child welfare. The Indiana Department of Child Services provides services to children and families in Marion County and bills local government for all services. This year, that office overspent its budget and requested a $15.6 million loan from local officials for the rest of 2005.
Under a new state law passed this year, the State ordered the county to pay the overage by cutting services or borrowing money. Mayor Bart Peterson immediately asked the Indianapolis Bond Bank to borrow the amount necessary to cover the State’s bills. However, the Council must pass a property tax increase to allow the Bond Bank to transfer money so families can continue to receive services.
· Juvenile incarceration. The Indiana Department of Correction is billing Marion County for juvenile incarceration to the tune of $67 million for past years and $9 million a year in current charges. Under another new state law passed this year, the State can withhold property tax relief until the debt is paid.
The Council called a special meeting tonight to deal with both issues. If the Council fails to pass this tax increase tonight:
· Child welfare. Children and families in need of services - such as foster kids - could go without checks for food, clothing and shelter starting tomorrow.
· Juvenile incarceration. The county budget- which pays for the Sheriff’s Department, the County Jail, the Prosecutor’s office and the Courts - would have to be cut drastically to make up the debt.
"After six years of holding the line on property taxes, holding down city spending and running a fiscally conservative city hall, I am reluctant to support a property tax increase," Mayor Peterson said. "But the situation today is clear. The State has ordered us to pay these bills, and we must follow the law and comply.
"The only other options are false choices: let these families and children go without checks for food, clothing and shelter, or make deeper cuts in the county budget. Tonight’s plan is the only true alternative.
"It’s a tough thing to ask Councillors to vote for a tax increase to pay the State’s bills, but the law is the law, and we must follow it. That’s why my team has informed Councillors what the dire consequences of failing to act are, and that’s why I’m encouraging all Councillors to vote for this solution tonight.
"These are long-standing problems. But it’s time to stop ignoring them and pretending like they don’t exist. The time for action is now, and I encourage the Council to start the process off by doing the right thing, helping these families and solving a decade-old budget problem."
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