Gary’s budget season kicks into high gear on Monday with a week full of daily meetings and presentations as city departments, including the mayor’s office, go before the Common Council with their budget proposals for the 2025 fiscal year beginning in January.
Throughout the week, residents have a rare opportunity to see firsthand how their tax dollars are allocated across various departments, including public safety, infrastructure, and social services.
Here are a few things to look for:
First budget proposal from the Melton administration
From the day of his inauguration in January, Mayor Eddie Melton has been largely operating on the budget designed by his predecessor, Jerome Prince. Based on the most recent proposal, the 2025 budget is right on par with the 2024 budget, with no major increases or decreases in any department.
The administration has requested $3.4 million in ARPA funding for streetlight repairs from the council, which Capital B Gary reported earlier this year, along with approximately $1.2 million in grants for local nonprofits.
2025 Budget Proposal by Calvin Davis- Fire Department: $14,081,627
- Police Department: $12,444,596
- Employee Insurance: $10,645,000
- Consolidated Services: $10,839,350
American Rescue Plan Act Funds
Over the past four years, the spending of funds received through the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) has been a major focus of both the mayor’s office and the Common Council. The legislation, passed by Congress and signed by President Joe Biden in 2021 in response to the economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, delivered $80.3 million to the city.
One of the spending categories for ARPA funding is revenue loss, of which, according to City Controller Celita Green, $7 million remains. The Common Council, department heads, and the mayor’s office are now tasked with determining how to effectively allocate the remaining ARPA funds.
At a recent Ways and Means Committee meeting, Green proposed using a portion of the funds for an employee incentive pay program. However, Councilman Darren Washington advocated for a stronger focus on public safety.
“Since that ARPA money is for public safety, I know everyone works hard, but we need more code enforcement at night because that’s when a lot of nonsense happens in our city. So we would ask to go back to the table,” Washington said.
Council President Tai Adkins highlighted several ways neighboring municipalities have used their funds and expressed hope that Gary will do the same with the balance of funds remaining.
“Some of our colleagues are doing great work across the state of Indiana with their use of funds, mainly to impact the masses,” Adkins said.
She highlighted programs started by Fort Wayne, which broke its program up into four categories — healthy communities, strong neighborhoods, energized cities, and city operations — with the majority of funding going to strong neighborhoods.
The council has approved ARPA expenditures, including $10 million toward a $30 million match with the state of Indiana and the Dean and Barbara White Foundation to build a state-of-the-art YMCA at the current Boys & Girls Club Tolleston location, which is set to break ground early next year. $2.5 million of ARPA funds were dedicated to assist small-business owners during the Prince administration.
President Adkins says she looks forward to engaging in conversations with the administration over the next two weeks so that the Council is able to finalize the vote by October 1. “We look forward to the public watching and being able to see how their tax dollars are spent,” Adkins said.
Budget Schedule
Below is the schedule for when each city department representative will appear before the Gary Common Council Finance Committee to propose, explain, and forecast their financial needs for the upcoming year. The city’s final budget will be finalized in October.
Gary Budget Schedule by Calvin Davis*CEDIT = County Economic Development Tax
*CCI = Community Capital Improvement
*CCD = Cumulative Capital Development
Each budget hearing is open to the public and will be available to watch on the Gary Common Council Facebook page. The budget committee hearings are scheduled for Sept. 16, Sept. 18, and Sept. 19, from 5 to 8:30 p.m. at City Hall.
