The Indianapolis City-County Council voted on Oct. 19 to approve Mayor Joe Hogsett's $1.9 billion budget for 2027. The plan passed in sections, largely along party lines, and now goes to the mayor.
The Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department will receive $400 million, about a quarter of the whole plan and an 11.5% increase over 2026. The amount funds 1,743 officer positions under the city's agreement with the police union — a staffing level the department has not reached — and Chief Tanya Terry has said the money can also cover overtime.
The Department of Public Works gets the largest increase of any department, rising about 30% to $335.3 million for road work and safety programs. Indy Parks will receive about $54 million, up 7%, including $2.5 million for pools and splash pads, and the budget includes $2.8 million to operate the city's low-barrier homeless shelter, which is expected to open in 2027 near Georgia and Shelby streets.
Several assistance programs were cut or reduced. The city eliminated the $100,000 FEEDINDY grocery-ride partnership, cut $260,000 from the program that helps people leaving jail outside business hours, left out a $1.5 million request to cover ankle-monitor and drug-testing fees, halved eviction-court legal aid to $750,000, and reduced Indy Achieves college-completion grants to $1.5 million.
The meeting drew protests over police spending and the police killing of Dalys Jett, and sheriff's deputies removed a handful of people from the chamber. Community advocates also pressed the council before the vote to redirect money for vacant police positions toward other public-safety programs.
