Apparently, once the Mayor’s office recognized their problem–granting income tax credits to organizations that don’t pay such taxes-they scrambled to “explain” what they “really meant” –although the language of the press release was hard to spin. What they “really meant” was an incomprehensible (and if I understand what they are now saying, which I certainly may not) legally improbable credit to be extended to the EMPLOYEES of these tax-exempt organizations. The credit to the employees would encourage existing organizations to move to Indianapolis and somehow help these organizations improve education. To be charitable, this is nuts. An established organization is highly unlikely to pick up and move its operations and employees to Indianapolis in return for a promise that its employees will get a tax credit.
More disturbing than this desperate effort to spin what was an obvious gaffe, however, was the non-coverage of the issue by the Star. The paper simply printed the plan-as subsequently ‘spun’–pretty much without comment. Rather than fact-checking the assertions, or noting the discrepancies, it simply reported that there were two competing plans, Ballard’s and Kennedy’s, and the basic outlines of each, with no context, no analysis, and seemingly no recognition of issues raised by either plan.
Maybe the paper should have kept a couple of those senior reporters they laid off.
Like The Star was doing a good job of fact-checking BEFORE the lay-offs?
In a city that’s lucky to graduate half the kids in IPS in a good year, I’m glad the issue of diversion of TIF funds is being brought up.
I think the biggest culprits are our societal standards of parenting, and an electorate reelecting a school board that would likely stand behind Dr. White if he proposed raising turkeys in the cafeterias. But, I’m very disappointed in the Ballard administration and believe Ms. Kennedy is likewise not going to be some pristine escape from political influence.
Chris Bowen, Libertarian for Mayor.