INDIANAPOLIS — The Indianapolis City-County Council held its final public hearing Monday on a proposed $1.9 billion budget for 2027, the last opportunity for residents to weigh in on the spending plan.
Much of the public testimony focused on the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department’s $400 million allocation. The funding includes technology such as Flock automated license plate readers, which have faced scrutiny following reports of officer misconduct.
One attendee said, “They can expect taxpayers to pay money to them so they can buy equipment to watch us. That’s just creepy. Their policies are absurd. It’s police, policing police.”
Mayor Joe Hogsett’s budget proposal designates the $400 million for IMPD to cover operations and new technology.
“I’m so disgusted with the abuse of power,” one attendee said. “I’m all for law enforcement that do their jobs, but 5 IMPD officers have been caught abusing the flock system, and now it’s national news.”
City-County Council President Maggie Lewis, a Democrat, said the council will proceed with the IMPD budget vote despite the concerns. She noted that the council will announce specific “guardrails” for the camera system after the budget passes.
“Those cameras are important to our community. We recognized just on Sunday those cameras were utilized to help identify the individual who actually killed a 9-year-old child. So I think we can do things at the same time. Have the technology and find the opportunity to put guardrails on those cameras,” Lewis said.
Other residents raised concerns about U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations at the Indianapolis International Airport. Lewis said the council lacks the authority to alter the airport’s relationship with federal agencies.
The 2027 budget also allocates $335 million for the Department of Public Works for road and greenway improvements, and $72 million for Housing and Social Services. The latter includes funding for initiatives such as “Streets to Home Indy.”
The council will hold its final vote on the budget at 7 p.m. Oct. 19 in the City-County Building’s public assembly room.
