Indianapolis budget 2027: How the city plans to spend $1.9M

Whether a city pool stays open. How quickly a pothole gets filled. How long you’re on hold with the Mayor’s Action Center.

All of these, at least in part, are decided by the city budget. Every August, the mayor’s officer releases a budget book outlining how the city proposes to spend our money the following year.

It’s a hefty tome — this year’s is 178 pages — so it can be a bit intimidating. That’s why we’re breaking down some budget basics to make it easier to understand and participate in the process.

Timeline for 2027 city budget

Aug. 10, 2026: Mayor presents proposed budget to council

Aug. 11-Oct. 1: Council committee meetings *

Sept. 25: Budget document posted online for public

Oct. 5: Public hearing on budget *

Oct. 19: Council votes on whether to approve budget

* Opportunity for public comment

What’s in the budget? What’s not?

Just like your household budget, the city’s budget is a plan that estimates how much money the city will take in and how it will be spent. The proposed budget is outlined in the city-county budget book, which goes into detail for almost every local agency in Marion County.

You’ll notice a handful of agencies are absent from the city’s budget. That’s because the county’s municipal corporations, including IndyGo, the Health & Hospital Corporation and the Indianapolis Airport Authority, go through a separate budgeting process.

Where does the money come from?

The short version? Us. City residents contribute more than half of the city’s revenue through local property and income taxes. Another 28% comes from intergovernmental sources such as reimbursements for federal grants and gas tax distributions from the state.

The remaining 15% comes from a mixture of other sources, including other taxes (such as the wheel tax), fines, fees for licenses and permits, charges for services and investment earnings.

How much does the budget change year to year?

Since Mayor Joe Hogsett took office in 2016, the city’s budget has typically increased between 2%-3% every year. This year, though, we saw a significant increase — 11% over last year’s proposed budget.

While there is not usually a huge swing in the overall proposed budget, any given department can see a much larger difference in their budget year to year. Animal Care Services, for example, would get a 27% bump in its budget next year, which will mostly go towards paying salaries, benefits and other labor costs.

But the change from last year’s adopted to this year’s proposed budgets does not tell the whole story. There will be another round of budget talks, called the spring fiscal, in the first half of 2027. That’s when the city gets another bucket of tax money from the state to distribute.

How do you think the city should spend its money?

If you have thoughts about how the city should be spending money on roads, parks or police, you can share your feedback in a few ways.

Go to a council committee meeting

These meetings, from August to October, are your chance to comment on budgets for specific departments. You can check the 2027 budget presentation schedule to see when the meetings are. They’re sorted by council committees, such as the Education Committee or Public Safety & Criminal Justice Committee.

The schedule includes two types of meetings: committee hearings and review and analysis meetings. Committee hearings are where agencies present their budgets to the councils’ committees. Review and analysis meetings are where committee members vote on whether to send their part of the budget to the full council. You can give public comment at both types of meetings.

Attend the public hearing

A public hearing on the budget will be held at the Oct. 5 City-County Council meeting. You can go and give comments in front of the council. City-County Council meetings start at 7 p.m. at the City-County Building, 200 E. Washington St. Head up the elevators to the public assembly room on the second floor.

If you want to prepare your feedback ahead of time, you can read the updated budget document once it’s posted on Sept. 25, 10 days before the meeting.

You’ll see these terms in the budget. Here’s what they mean.

Appropriations: The permission to spend money from a fund. Appropriations in the budget are what agencies or departments are allowed to spend in the upcoming year.
Balanced budget: A budget is balanced when the city does not spend more than it makes.
Capital assets: For people, assets are the things you own that have value, such as a car or a home. It’s similar for governments. Capital assets include land, equipment, vehicles, buildings and infrastructure such as roads or bridges.
Expenditures: This is how much money is actually spent, out of the money that was appropriated.
Fees: One way the city makes money is from fees, which are charged for a service. This can include the fees you pay to adopt a pet from the shelter, rent a picnic area at a park or for a permit to do construction work, such as redoing your HVAC system or adding a pool in your backyard.
Fines: The city also makes money from fines it charges people for a rule they violate, such as the money you pay for a traffic ticket or a court fine.
Revenue: The money the city brings in each year. This comes from local taxes and money from fines, licenses, investment earnings and more.
Spring Fiscal: The spring fiscal is tax income the city receives from the state each spring, separate from what has already been approved in that year’s budget. Usually, it’s between $20 and $40 million. This money was part of the city’s discussion this year about road funding and the wheel tax. The city also receives income tax funding from the state in the fall.

Save these dates to follow along with the budget process

Aug. 10 – Mayor Joe Hogsett presented the initial budget proposal for 2027 to City-County Council
Aug. 11-Oct. 1 — Council committee meetings, where councilors and members of the public will give feedback on the budgets for specific departments and agencies. Check the committee meeting schedule to see which agencies are presenting.
Oct. 5 — A public hearing for the budget at 7 p.m. at the City-County Council meeting. This is where you can give public comments. Want to learn how? See how three of your neighbors prepared.
Oct. 19 — City-County Council meeting where councilors are expected to vote on whether to approve the 2027 budget. At least 13 members of the 25-person Council must vote yes to approve the budget.
Nov. 1 — The city has to send the budget to the state of Indiana for review.