Council approves 2016 Indianapolis budget

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – Next year’s budget for Indianapolis has been approved, but not before its critics made sure their voices were heard. Some of the people most critical were the councilors themselves.

The $1.1 billion budget passed 22-6, but just because it was approved by a wide margin doesn’t mean most of the councilors actually approve of it.

Regardless, the budget does address several areas of need in the city, specifically when it comes to public safety.

More than $250 million will go toward IMPD.

Only a fraction of that money will be spent on a highly publicized project, body cameras.

$250,000 will be spent on the equipment and storage for the video, but it’s not enough money to give each of IMPD’s 900 officers a camera.

Money will also go towards hiring 155 officers, buying new squad cars, and repairing a firearm training facility.

Some councilors were content with those items, but didn’t like other expenditures in the budget.

“There are a lot of safety issues that are out in our community that need to be funded for the protection of our community and for that purpose alone I think that this budget deserves a vote,” said republican Councilor Jack Sandlin.

“Pre-k is scheduled for $4.2 million to be spent next year while we don’t have the funds to properly staff police,” complained democratic Councilor Angela Mansfield. “So it doesn’t make sense to me that we’re spending $4.2 million on 3 to 4 year-olds when we don’t even have mandatory kindergarten in our state.”

Mansfield voted no on the budget while Sandlin voted yes.

Other councilors like democrat Zach Adamson felt too much money was being spent on the BlueIndy car share program and the World Sports Park, which hosts cricket tournaments, when that money should be going to public works or public safety.

Had the council not approved a budget for 2016 then the city would have been forced to use the 2015 budget.