John Tuohy

john.tuohy@indystar.com

If Indianapolis voters approve a mass transit referendum in November, it will be without Mayor Joe Hogsett's encouragement.

While Hogsett says he has been a consistent supporter of improving the transit system, he has declined to ask voters to push the "yes" button for a referendum to raise personal income taxes for an expansion. Instead, the mayor is urging voters to "educate" themselves and make their own choice.

"Why have a referendum if the public is to be strong armed?" Hogsett asked. "The appropriate role of the elected officials should be to help and inform voters."

Hogsett said determining whether higher taxes should pay for the improvements "should be a community decision," which the ballot initiative represents.

"I am sensitive to the fact that some people oppose it," Hogsett said.

Hogsett's reserved position comes as the Indy Chamber, a fierce advocate of an upgraded bus system, prepares to roll out a publicity campaign to urge voters to pass the initiative in the Nov. 8 election.

The proponents on Thursday will announce the program, called Transit Drives Indy, in which a coalition of business and community organizations will sponsor educational gatherings and provide speakers and experts about the initiative. Some backers said if the city's highest-ranking elected official led the charge for its passage it would increase the referendum's chances of succeeding.

The lukewarm approach by Hogsett, a Democrat, is in stark contrast to that of former Mayor Greg Ballard, a Republican who for years led coalitions to the Indiana Statehouse to lobby for transit and testified before the legislature. Indy Chamber Vice President Mark Fisher said Ballard has told the chamber he would support their efforts but how he would be used is not yet determined.

In an email to IndyStar, Ballard said, "I'm for the Red Line, and I'm ready to help," but was not available to answer follow-up questions.

Fisher declined to say whether the chamber sought more direct advocacy from Hogsett or if chamber officials think it would help the measure get passed. He said officials were generally satisfied with Hogsett's position so far.

"I've seen the mayor be very positive about it," Fisher said. "But this isn't about what elected officials tell you to do. This will be a grass-roots level effort, with neighbors talking to neighbors."

Selling the $56 million transit tax hike

The referendum would hike income taxes one quarter for every $100 earned to provide $56 million a year for IndyGo, the city bus service. The extra cash would allow IndyGo to modernize and improve service, with more buses running longer hours and more frequently, and would help pay for operations of three planned bus rapid transit (BRT) lines.

The first of those BRT routes, the Red Line, is in the final planning stages and awaits a $75 million allocation from Congress this fall. Transportation and business leaders said a better bus system would help residents get to jobs, reduce employee absenteeism, spur development along the rapid bus routes and cut down on pollution and traffic.

Hogsett said he had not been pressed by chamber officials to come out stronger for the referendum and declined to speculate on whether a mayor elected with 62 percent of the vote could sway voters. "That's a hypothetical," he said, but added, "I can see where it might."

Hogsett isn't alone among transit-supporting elected officials who are taking a neutral position on the referendum.

City County President Maggie Lewis said she is staying away from an outright endorsement of the referendum because the council is still involved in the legislative process. If the referendum passes, the council must draft an ordinance and vote on it. The council can also tinker with the tax rate, setting it lower than 0.25 percent but not higher.

Hogsett would then need to approve what the council has voted for.

"At this point I am not saying go out and vote for the referendum," said Lewis, a Democrat who still described herself as a "strong advocate" of it. "I don't want people to think I am steering the process so I am laying low. The council still as a lot of flexibility in this, and I am trying to be as fair as I can be."

Council Attorney Fred Biesecker said there is no law that prohibits councilors or the mayor from pushing for the referendum, but they can't use government funds to do so, such as sending out written materials on city letterhead.

Though Lewis was being cautious, she said a strong endorsement from Hogsett would improve the referendum's chances.

"I think (Hogsett's support) would move the needle because he is a very popular and influential individual and his voice means a lot to the community." Lewis said.

But she added that the mayor's priorities are on public safety, poverty and neighborhoods and keeping city spending in check.

Hogsett said a good transit system has the potential to help spur improvements in all those areas, but voters have to decide if it's worth raising taxes.

Officials with IndyGo and the Central Indiana Regional Transportation Authority said they were prohibited from advocating for the transit referendum and declined to comment on whether more forceful backing by the mayor would help the cause.Their jobs are to implement whatever legislators authorize them to do, the officials said.

If the referendum fails, the council can put it back on the ballot in 2018. But if it doesn't succeed in 2018, it can't be placed on the ballot again for seven more years. Without the income tax hike, IndyGo could still build the Red Line, but the rest of the buses would continue running on the same schedules that most transit officials, lawmakers and passengers agree is insufficient now.

Because of caps on property taxes in Indiana, income taxes are increasingly used to pay for increases in city budgets, which have been stagnant or declined since the Great Recession of 2008. And usually lawmakers choose to let the voters decide through referenda, most often for school funding.

Voters often choose higher taxes for transit, schools

Rank-and-file councilors who support better transit said, to varying degrees, they, too, are stopping short of telling voters to tax themselves.

Democratic Westside Councilman Jared Evans said he was educating people on the ballot measure but not telling them how they should vote. Republican Councilwoman Colleen Fanning on the north side said she doesn't "see my role as advocating."

"That's why the council put it on the ballot, so the voters could decide for themselves," Fanning said.

The council voted 18-6 in March to that action.

Republican Councilman Jeff Miller said he tells constituents why he is voting for it, but doesn't directly tell them to vote "yes."

"I can't look at someone and say, 'You have to vote for this,'" Miller said. "I don't want to badger them. I don't even tell them to vote for me. I tell them I believe this, this and that, and hope they vote for me."

But Miller said he thought Hogsett could take a firmer stand.

"I think he should feel comfortable saying that this is the right decision or that city needs this. I'd love it, if he comes out stronger as Election Day gets closer."

Charlie Davis, who is on the board of a faith-based group called IndyCan that's supporting the referendum, said politicians who support improving transit should encourage voters to pass the referendum.

“I think that all those who are in favor of it should promote it,” he said. “I think the voters would listen to the mayor. They elected him and what he said carries weight, as well as the council members who were elected.”

Hogsett said if the referendum fails, he would consider increasing IndyGo's budget with existing city funds, but not by proposing a tax increase.

"The easy way is to raise taxes first and ask questions later," he said. "But we should use the money we already have effectively before we dig deeper into your pockets. Anything less would be irresponsible."

Andy Downs, director of the Mike Downs Center for Indiana Politics at Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne, said he thought Hogsett was making the politically wise move because it's always risky for a politician to ask voters to raise their own taxes.

"It is a good play for where he is and for where people in Indiana stand on mass transportation," Downs said. "It makes him look like he is in favor of doing what the people ask him to do."

"This is not some cheap thrill. This is to raise millions of dollars for a service not fully supported by everyone," Downs said.

Call IndyStar reporter John Tuohy at (317) 444-6418. Follow him Twitter: @john_tuohy.