By Paul Minnis, The Republic
Columbus Mayor Fred Armstrong plans to take two police officers and two firefighters with him to Indianapolis this week to speak against tax caps with state decision makers.
He said he would speak after 10 a.m. today at the Statehouse, Room 404.
He plans to attend a conference meeting Wednesday and meet with legislators informally Thursday.
No more than a few Columbus police officers or firefighters would lose their jobs under a House bill that could mean $2.78 million in local government budget cuts, Mayor Fred Armstrong said.
School officials are unsure what kinds of cuts they would make with nearly $1 million less from taxpayers, and the county would be hard pressed to make up about a $443,000 tax loss.
The mayor said he met last week with police and firefighters to address their concerns that the public safety divisions would bear the brunt of cost-saving measures.
He assured them city officials would examine the entire budget, which is made up of expenses for multiple departments.
"Our police and firefighters are worried about supporting their families," he said. "We do have potential to lose one or two or three."
House Bill 1001, which Armstrong expected would take a little over a month to reach a vote, would cap property owners' property taxes, set property-tax limits, add a 1 percent sales tax and restructure government, all for the sake of lowering property taxes statewide.
The $2.78 million lost from tax caps would come from the taxpayer portion of the annual budget, which this year is about $24 million.
City government's only real option would be to cut personnel and services, Armstrong said, because the city budget essentially is void of "fat" to cut out first.
"Realistically, we probably could cut maybe $300,000 to $400,000 without cutting people," he said.
The tax cap also would affect local schools by cutting from Bartholomew Consolidated School Corp.'s budget, which this year totals just more than $100 million, an estimated $853,000 in 2009 and $929,000 in 2010. Flat Rock-Hawcreek School Corp. is expected to lose $2,800 in 2009 and $5,100 in 2010.
BCSC officials said they are unsure from which fund, or funds, the district would cut the $853,000 in 2009 and that the revenue loss would be crippling.
Superintendent John Quick said discussions that the state might volunteer to pay 100 percent of schools' General and Transportation funds makes him optimistic that the revenue loss would not equal teacher cuts.
But while the majority of the district's staff is paid from the General Fund, technology personnel, bus drivers and other support staff are paid through other funds.
"Even if the General Fund isn't cut, this is very concerning," he said.
Armstrong expressed concern at a Third House meeting. He plans to go to the public if necessary, by way of the newspaper, to find out what services or projects they would sacrifice.
"I hope we won't have to make any cuts at all, but I'm not very hopeful," Armstrong said.
He described as faulty the state's contention that communities could make back part of their money by implementing local-option income taxes.
Counties control those decisions, and Bartholomew County Council has opted against localoption income taxes.
Council President Sue Paris said county officials are considering no such tax for now, but they would if the tax caps become law.
"The county needs the extra money, too," she said. "I can tell you any cuts would really hurt us."
She said cutting services is not really an option; the county works on a tight budget year after year, and it cannot responsibly cut health and safety services.
Some expenses, particularly in law enforcement and courts, are state mandated, dictating salary amounts and sometimes personnel.
Paris said the County Council for years has resisted raising taxes or implementing new ones to protect cash-strapped taxpayers.
"We do a heck of a good job with the money," she said. "We prosecute and send away the bad guys.
"In the end, I don't think people will want to have their services cut."
County Council member Jewell Arthur said she would not decide about the need for a new tax until she knows all the information.
She said people already face high enough taxes, and the best solution might be to eliminate services.
Council member Joe Bill Whipker said he would not entertain any notion of starting a tax without seeing how things "shake out" in the Legislature.
"I'm not for raising taxes," he said. "I'm for trying to keep going with what we got.
"It's too soon to just jump."