Budget Season

It's time to create, publish, and adopt the 2026 budget. This will be my sixth budget creation process since becoming mayor. We've had challenging years before, but this year takes the cake.

Thanks to the disastrous effects caused by the Indiana General Assembly's adoption of Senate Enrolled Act 1 (SEA1), Charlestown suffers a $1.2 million loss for 2026.

Navigating around this loss in the middle of a growth spurt has been about as easy as nailing Jell-O to the wall.

Teamwork with our Council and Clerk Treasurer will see the task through, I'm confident of that. Nevertheless, things would be smoother if Governor Braun and our State Representatives had listened to the people who deal with local government funding daily and offered actual property tax relief instead of just passing the dirty work to the cities, towns, and counties. The fact is, we won't see real relief, nor will we see collaboration between the state and local governments, as long as we have the current administration in office. Rather than take a few months after being sworn in to determine what works, check in with constituents, and listen to the qualified staff members who have been doing the actual work, Governor Braun started an expensive remodeling of our state government and encouraged the systematic defunding of our local governments in his first month in office (followed up by 11 helicopter rides from his home over the next six months). These actions set the tone for where we're going in the next four years.

This week, on Wednesday, September 3rd, I'll present an official draft budget to our Council and residents. We'll have a state-of-the-city update, and I'll explain the challenges we face moving forward. Charlestown is not the only local unit of government making tough calls. Regardless of where you live in Indiana, your locals are stressed out about how to fund critical public services like police, fire, and road departments. Thank you to the news outlets that have been helping us get the word out about the challenges ahead. Click below for one of our local stories: https://www.wdrb.com/news/politics/charlestown-mayor-concerned-about-impact-of-property-tax-bill-on-city-funding/article_a95f9657-7373-47b8-a962-e297e31123ff.html