Mayor Gahan shares comments on "MUST" before Statewide Conference begins

Mayor Gahan shares comments on "MUST" before Statewide Conference begins

This week, Accelerate Indiana Municipalities will bring leaders from across the state together for its annual Ideas Summit. As they discuss the future of local government, including the Municipal Unit Strategic Taskforce process known as MUST, I want New Albany’s experience to be part of that conversation.

MUST grew out of Senate Bill 1, a piece of state legislation that cut property taxes and changed how local income taxes will be distributed. The governor ran on cutting property taxes, and they were determined to get them through, no matter the cost to cities, towns, and schools across the state.

Property tax relief sounds good, but the state must be honest about what happens when it reduces the money local governments rely on to provide essential services and infrastructure. Police officers, firefighters, emergency medical workers, streets, and parks all are now in jeopardy. If the state cuts local resources and forces cities to reduce critical services like police officers and firefighters, then that is clearly a bad solution for residents.

Here in New Albany, we know what responsible local government looks like. For more than 15 years, we have kept our budgets balanced, maintained an A+ financial rating, and delivered improvements without raising taxes. We have invested in public safety facilities, strengthened city services, expanded our parks, and continued building the New Albany Shoreline. Our residents can see what their city government delivers.

That record is why we take proposals to combine city and county resources so seriously. Past shared service agreements with Floyd County have left the City paying more than its share. We also remain concerned about a nearly $45 million difference between Floyd County financial records identified in their most recent state audit.

No responsible person would enter into a financial entanglement with a group that has a $45 million discrepancy in their financial audits.

We knew at this point that we needed to participate so that the concerns and pocketbooks of New Albany residents would be protected. We participated in the MUST discussions to learn about the proposal and make sure New Albany had a voice. We appreciate the county officials who took the time to meet and communicate with us. After considering what was put forward, however, we voted no.

We voted no because New Albany residents depend on strong city services. We voted no because our police officers, firefighters, and emergency medical workers are essential to their safety. We voted no because our past experience tells us that merging city and county services would hurt city residents. And we voted no because we will not support a plan that pressures local officials to raise taxes to make up for poor decisions made at the Statehouse.

MUST agreements are currently nonbinding, and the new local income tax structure has been delayed until 2029. That gives state lawmakers time to listen to cities and towns and change course. We have shared our concerns with county and state officials, and we urge our statewide officials to not abandon the local services that residents count on.

It is not too late to stop this action in its tracks. I encourage you to reach out to your state-wide elected officials and let your thoughts on this be known.

In the meantime, New Albany will keep showing up for these discussions, and we will also keep standing up for the people of New Albany.