city county meeting August 11

The City council meeting was held Monday night Aug. 11. Many things were brought before the Council including the budget for next year by Mayor Ballard. While cutting spending I do not think this proposed budget cuts deep enough. We will still be funding one million dollars in the “arts” in Indianapolis. One thing that I like about this budget is that we do not have to borrow money to support this plan. It turns $26 million deficit in the operating budget into a $4.8 million surplus. I do not like to us the word surplus when the city is in debt. When you owe money that is putting extra tax money going for interest is not operating with a “surplus” within the picture as a whole.

Joanne Sanders protects Monroe Gray:
Councilwoman Virginia Cain asked the President before the meeting if she could give an update on the ethics committee report on Monroe Gray. She did not get into her report even three minutes until Sanders spoke up. This stopped the meeting until a ruling by the legal attorney could be presented. The last committee meetings the two democrats, William Oliver and Paul Bateman did not even show up. In my own opinion this “ethics” committee is nothing short of a political joke. A government body investigating its own members, two from each party, always spelled disaster or cover up by any means.

Republicans give in:
It was rumored that the republicans wanted five members to be appointed to the ethic committees in the future. But when the final ethic bill was passed, it has six members. This way neither party can stall like the democrats has on the Monroe Gray issue. With six members on the committee, 3 republicans, three democrats, it will still be a draw.

What can we do?
The only reason this committee has held sessions this year is from emails from the public. I suggest that you keep the emails going to the full city council. Be polite but to the point that the citizens are not going to stand by while this drags on for another year. It’s about time the democrats on our council stops protecting members of their own party when the public knows they have done something wrong or improper. You can file a compliant to the full council at:
http://www.indygov.org/eGov/Council/contactus.htm