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Indianapolis voters approved a four-year school tax by 63% to 37%, directing nearly $95 million a year to district and charter schools. Indianapolis Public Schools is still expected to make $20 million in cuts, and the vote coincided with the defeat of state Rep. Robert Behning, a leading supporter of the law behind the tax arrangement.
Indianapolis voters approved a four-year school tax by 63% to 37%, creating the city’s first local tax revenue shared between district and charter schools. The measure is expected to generate about $95 million annually, though Indianapolis Public Schools still plans $20 million in budget cuts.
Under the measure, Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS) will receive $46.4 million for its 18,000 students, while about 60 charter schools will share $48.6 million for 18,850 students. The funding works out to nearly $2,600 per student, according to The 74, which reported the results and funding estimates. The tax replaces an existing district tax that is set to expire this year and is intended to support schools for four years.
The approval does not eliminate IPS’s budget gap. The district is still expected to make $20 million in cuts; it would have faced about $40 million more in cuts without the tax, according to the report. IPS CEO Aleesia Johnson said the school board would discuss possible reductions this month, including school closures or consolidations and changes to district support for Innovation Schools, many of which are charter schools operating in partnership with IPS.
The ballot measure was the first tax sought by the Indianapolis Public Education Corporation (IPEC) under a state law that shifted authority to request additional taxes away from the elected IPS board. The law also gave IPEC responsibilities involving student transportation and school buildings. Separately, state Rep. Robert Behning, a major backer of the law and other school-choice policies, lost his seat on Election Day.
The vote establishes a local funding stream that includes charter schools, which now enroll more than half of Indianapolis students, alongside the district. Charter advocates have sought a greater share of local public-school revenue for years; the result marks a major policy change in how this city tax is distributed.
For IPS, the tax reduces the scale of expected cuts but does not remove the need to balance its budget. The district is considering how to adjust support for Innovation Schools, which can receive services such as building use, maintenance, utilities, transportation and technology from IPS. The district is seeking to recover some of those costs from Innovation charter schools now that they will receive local tax funds.
Voters also accepted a tax increase that the report says will add about $106 a year for the average homeowner. Supporters framed the measure as funding for students across school types. The outcome matters beyond the immediate budget because it puts a new shared-revenue arrangement into practice while the district is managing financial pressure and changes to its oversight.
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The measure followed a state law that changed who could seek additional local school taxes in Indianapolis. It removed that authority from the elected IPS board and assigned it to the newly created IPEC, a board described in the report as charter-heavy. The corporation also received oversight roles related to transportation and school buildings. The approved referendum was its first tax proposal.
Earlier tax proposals that did not include charter schools had faced opposition from some local organizations, including the Greater Indianapolis Chamber of Commerce. The chamber supported this measure. Susan Preble, its vice president of state government affairs, said the prospect of major cuts and state intervention contributed to the vote, but said the IPS-charter coalition around a shared goal for students made the difference.
Behning’s defeat came alongside other Republican losses in Marion County and a broader Democratic showing, according to Behning. He attributed the result to a “blue wave” and cited straight-ticket voting. The report does not establish that voters rejected him because of the school tax or the law; the referendum and his election defeat were separate results on the same Election Day.
““The referendum passed easily.””
— State Rep. Robert Behning
Reasons Behind the Vote
The vote establishes that a majority supported the tax, but the available report does not show how much support reflected backing for shared funding, concern about larger cuts, or fears of state intervention. The district and charter advocates declined to say directly whether avoiding deeper cuts or including charter schools was decisive.
It is also not yet clear which specific IPS schools or programs will be affected by the planned $20 million in cuts, or how much the district will seek to recover from Innovation charter schools for services it provides. The report gives expected revenue and student counts, but does not provide a detailed allocation schedule or implementation timeline.
Behning and charter advocates linked his loss to broader partisan voting patterns. The election result alone does not establish why individual voters chose him or whether the referendum influenced that choice.
School Board Weighs Budget Cuts
The IPS school board is expected to discuss the district’s budget choices this month, including possible closures, consolidations and adjustments to support for Innovation Schools. Those discussions will clarify how the district plans to meet its remaining $20 million reduction target despite the new tax revenue.
School officials and IPEC will also need to put the shared funding arrangement into effect for the four-year period. Further details about how the money will be distributed and how district-provided services to Innovation charter schools will be paid for remain pending in the source report.
Key Questions
How did Indianapolis voters decide the school tax referendum?
Voters approved it by 63% to 37% on Election Day.
How much money is the tax expected to raise?
The measure is expected to provide about $95 million a year for four years: $46.4 million for IPS and $48.6 million for about 60 charter schools.
Will the tax prevent cuts to Indianapolis Public Schools?
No. IPS is still expected to make $20 million in cuts, although the report says the district would have faced about $40 million more in cuts without the tax.
Who is expected to receive the charter-school funding?
About 60 charter schools serving a reported 18,850 students are expected to share $48.6 million.
What remains unknown about the measure’s impact?
The report does not identify which IPS schools or programs will face reductions, how the district will recover costs for services to Innovation Schools, or which factors were most influential in voters’ decisions.
Source: the74million.org
