When our community is impacted in any fashion—including the latest and largest winter storm—everyone on our team is involved. Our teams from the City of Greensburg and Decatur County worked hand-in-hand to provide the best possible service. Our citizens are appreciative, but they expect that high level of service from our team and their elected officials at the local level.

That level of service is demanded not only during an emergency but on every Monday, Thursday, or any other day of the week. We are honored to provide it. However, that very level of service is being threatened. The City of Greensburg's ability to provide the quality of service residents expect will not remain feasible if there are no changes to current income tax laws. Last year, I spoke continuously on the impacts of Senate Enrolled Act One and the changes to our financial position. These changes directly affect our ability to maintain these service levels for our community.

This year, the Indiana General Assembly has an opportunity to soften the impacts and allow local cities to recover some of our lost revenue, ensuring our level of service remains at the standard our administration and City Council have supported. The language introduced in SB 238 could make a real difference for communities like ours. If passed, it would adjust the state’s new income tax system, making sure cities like ours are less vulnerable to unpredictable swings. It would also allow municipalities greater flexibility to collaborate on countywide services, helping ensure fairness for smaller towns that are often overlooked in these discussions. Perhaps most importantly, it would remove the requirement for the annual adoption of LIT rates, which currently increases our costs and negatively impacts our taxpayers when we are trying to plan for the long term.

When we discuss city services and the potential impact of funding reductions, here is a breakdown of how our General Fund is used. While this does not represent our entire budget, it is the area most affected:

  • 30% Greensburg Fire Department Operations and Staffing
  • 30% Greensburg Police Department Operations and Staffing
  • 10% Greensburg Street Department Operations
  • 10% City Contractual Services (Accounting, Legal, Maintenance Contracts)
  • 12% Insurance and Benefits
  • 8% Everything else, including general operations and the offices of the Mayor, Clerk-Treasurer, Building, Planning, Zoning, Project Management, City Council, Board of Works, and more.

When we speak about funding reductions, it affects all these departments. Whether it is the smallest department of one or the largest of 30, all will be impacted. This means less capacity for the Street Department to push snow, fewer police for patrol, less code enforcement, and less fire protection for community assistance. It means less of all the services that we have come to rely on and expect in Greensburg.

The necessary level of service was on full display last week. We estimate the final financial impacts of the snowstorm on the city alone to be between $75,000 and $100,000. The level of service provided was commended by numerous community members and was made possible only because we have adequately funded all of our departments. Without the current funding levels, our ability to respond to future needs may be inadequate. 

This past snowstorm demonstrated that every member of our team is needed to ensure that Greensburg is well served. I encourage residents to reach out to our legislators and let them know that the level of service Greensburg provides is what we expect and want to be able to fund. The current law does not allow for that.

It is always an honor to serve our community alongside so many dedicated individuals, and I am proud of the work they do to provide the best service we can to our residents and visitors. However, I now fear we are being forced to lower our standards because of legislation that prevents us from thriving at the local level.

###