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School referendum · Tuesday, November 3, 2026

IPS and charter schools operating referendum (IPEC)

Up to $0.372 per $100 and $95 million a year for 4 years for IPS and participating charter schools, as the 2018 IPS levy ($0.196) ends. Ballot: +$221 a year for a $150,000 home. On ballots in Indianapolis Public Education Corporation (IPEC), on behalf of Indianapolis Public Schools and participating charter schools.

Who votes on it: Registered voters living inside the Indianapolis Public Schools boundaries (the 'school city' of Indianapolis). Voters in Marion County's township school districts, Beech Grove and Speedway do not vote on this question.

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What a vote means

A yes vote
IPEC/IPS estimate about $105 a year more ($8.71 a month) for a $150,000 home in 2027, because the expiring $0.196 rate is already on bills.
A no vote
The 2018 levy still ends after 2026, so the referendum line leaves 2027 bills. IPS expects cuts of about $40-45 million, staffing freezes and program closures.

On the ballot

The question as it is printed, word for word.

Shall the Indianapolis Public Education Corporation increase property taxes paid to the Indianapolis Public Schools (“IPS”) and participating charter schools for no more than four (4) years for the purpose of funding teacher and staff retention, professional development, and advancing academic programs and opportunities by imposing a property tax rate that does not exceed $0.372 per $100 of assessed value and results in a maximum annual amount that does not exceed $95,000,000? If this operating referendum public question is approved by the voters, for a median residence of $150,000, the property's annual property tax bill would increase by $221 per year.

In full

This is the first tax question ever placed on the ballot by the Indianapolis Public Education Corporation, a mayor-appointed body the legislature created in 2026 that took over IPS's power to seek property tax referendums. It asks voters inside the IPS boundary to approve up to 37.2 cents per $100 of assessed value, up to $95 million a year, for four years (2027-2030). The money would be split by a formula in state law: about 48.9% (about $46.4 million) to IPS and the rest (about $48.6 million) to about 60 participating charter schools, based on how many students living in the IPS boundary each enrolls. It comes now because IPS's 2018 referendum ends in December 2026 and because 2025 law limits school referendums to even-year November elections [3][5][6][8].

What is being asked for

Most it could charge
$0.372 per $100 of assessed value [1]
Most it could raise a year
$95,000,000 [1]
For how long
4 years
What it replaces
IPS's 2018 operating referendum ($0.1960 per $100, approved Nov 6, 2018, levied 2019-2026), which expires Dec 31, 2026. The 2026 question is a new levy, not a renewal; it is written as an 'increase' because the law requires the ballot to compare against no referendum at all [2][3][5]
On a median home
$150,000 (Marion County Auditor certification) [1] — +$221 per year on the ballot (statutory figure, counted as if no referendum tax existed). Because the expiring 2018 rate of $0.196 is already on bills, IPEC/IPS estimate the actual change for a $150,000 home at about +$105 a year ($8.71 a month) in 2027 [5][6][7]

If it passes

  • Levy of up to $0.372 per $100 and $95 million a year for 2027-2030, replacing the expiring 2018 rate of $0.196 [1][3].
  • IPEC spending plan (annual): $32.3 million for staff retention and professional development; $62.7 million for 'advancing academic programs and opportunities' including special education and English learners. IPEC says these amounts 'include parity for all IPS and charter school students within the IPS boundary' [3].
  • Distribution is fixed by state law (IC 20-46-1-21): each charter's share equals its students who live in the IPS boundary (excluding virtual charters, adult high schools and students over 50% virtual) divided by IPS ADM plus those charter students. Innovation-network charters count separately from IPS. IPEC's executive director, Karega Rausch, said the board cannot change the split [3][7][22].
  • Projected 2027 split: IPS about $46.4 million (48.87%); about 60 charters about $48.6 million [3][8].
  • Charters receiving money must adopt and file a public budget by Oct 15/Nov 1 each year or their share is withheld and redistributed [22].
  • IPS says it would still cut about $20 million more for 2027-28, on top of $24 million already cut, over two to four years, possibly including school closures, consolidations and mergers; it would also need about $10 million in efficiencies, about $12 million reimbursed by innovation schools and state help on special education and English learners to break even [5][6].
  • In September 2026 IPS told the teachers union its 'current reduction plan does not include a district-wide reduction in force for educators', while individual schools may see staffing adjustments [20].
  • Cost: ballot figure $221 a year for a $150,000 median home; IPEC estimate about $105 a year more than the current 2018 rate. Referendum taxes are outside the 1/2/3% caps [1][6][13].
  • IPEC plans a public spending tracker for the money [5].

If it fails

  • The 2018 levy ($0.196) still ends Dec 31, 2026, so IPS-area property owners would see the referendum line disappear from 2027 bills [3][5].
  • IPS expects 'drastic cuts' of about $40 million to $45 million, staffing freezes and program closures [5][20].
  • Superintendent Aleesia Johnson: 'If it were not to pass, I would expect there would be some additional state intervention or oversight of our district.' Chalkbeat reports a failure could mean state takeover in which appointed managers handle district finances [5][7].
  • Charter schools would lose a newer, smaller revenue source; Chalkbeat reports failure would have less impact on charters, which rely mainly on state tuition support [5].
  • Next chance: operating referendums may appear only at a November general election, so the next opportunity would be November 2028 (the 2025 law limits questions to general elections) [23].

How it got on the ballot

  • HEA 1423-2026 (P.L.101-2026) created the Indianapolis Public Education Corporation (IC 20-25.3). After March 31, 2026, the elected IPS board may no longer act under the operating-referendum law; IPEC 'shall assume the powers and duties' of IPS for operating, safety and construction referendums, debt service levies and (from 2027 assessment dates) the Operations Fund levy [9].
  • The bill came from the Indianapolis Local Education Alliance, a state-mandated task force chaired by Mayor Joe Hogsett that voted 8-1 in December 2025 to recommend the new body. It passed the Senate 27-21 and the House 67-30 [10].
  • IPEC's nine members are all appointed by the mayor: three leaders of charter or innovation-network charter schools inside the IPS boundary, three members of the elected IPS board, and three people with management, facilities, transportation or logistics expertise or experience with vulnerable students; all must live inside the IPS boundary and serve unpaid four-year terms. The mayor names the chair and may remove members for cause [9].
  • Members who signed the referendum resolution: David Harris (chair), Deandra Thompson (vice chair), Patricia Castaneda (secretary), Ashley Thomas, Dexter Taylor, Edward Rangel, Hope Duke Star, Janet McNeal and John Hammond [3].
  • June 10, 2026: IPEC held a listening session; the board was considering rates from about 20 cents (the current IPS rate) up to 55 cents. Most of about 10 speakers were IPS educators seeking a higher rate; three spoke about the tax burden already on homeowners [11].
  • June 22, 2026: IPEC adopted Resolution 13-2026 unanimously. IPS board president Hope Duke Star moved for 42 cents; that motion failed. IPS administration had recommended a higher rate than 37.2 cents [3][6].
  • The board chose four years instead of the usual eight; Chalkbeat reports the board considered that enough time to stabilize finances and begin IPEC's transportation system and buildings plan [5].
  • DLGF received the resolution June 25, 2026 and approved the ballot language June 26, 2026 under IC 20-46-1-9.5, a ballot form written only for IPEC that expires July 1, 2027 [1][9].
  • Reasons stated in the resolution: reduced state distributions, loss of property tax revenue to the circuit-breaker credit (IC 6-1.1-20.6) and the loss of other federal, state and local revenue; it determines IPS 'cannot carry out its public educational duty' without the levy for 2027-2030 [3].

The district's own numbers

  • Enrollment (IDOE fall counts, IPS-run schools): 26,410 (2018-19), 22,930 (2020-21), 21,055 (2024-25), 19,774 (2025-26), down 25.1% since 2018-19 [17].
  • Students living in IPS (fall 2025): 48,869 state-funded students had legal settlement in IPS; 18,065 attended IPS; 25,598 transferred out (19,562 of them to charter schools), and 5,206 used Choice Scholarships (vouchers) [18].
  • About 42,000 students attend public schools inside the IPS boundary across IPS, innovation and independent charter schools; about 85% are students of color and about 30% English learners (WFYI, citing IPEC materials) [6].
  • The IPEC allocation table counts 36,868.68 students: 18,016 for IPS (48.87%) and the rest across about 60 charters; the largest charter shares are Christel House Academy South (954 students, about $2.46 million), Global Preparatory Academy (about $2.05 million) and KIPP Indy Unite Elementary (about $1.84 million) [3].
  • Referendum rate history (DLGF certified): $0.196 every year 2019-2026; certified referendum levy $34.1M (2022), $40.5M (2023), $41.8M (2024), $42.6M (2025), $48.5M (2026) [2][19].
  • Other 2026 IPS rates (DLGF certified): Operations $0.6114 ($113.6M), debt service $0.343 ($63.8M), capital referendum debt $0.0903 + $0.0867. Net assessed value rose from $13.07B (2022) to $18.59B (2026) [19].
  • Budget: IPS projected a roughly $40 million gap as the 2018 referendum ends; it has cut about $24 million ($17 million in central office in May 2026, eliminating 28 positions, and $7 million at schools in March, cutting 36 teachers and 23 classified staff) and left the Enroll Indy platform [5][20].
  • Special education: IPS and IPEC officials cite a roughly $24 million annual special-education deficit; IPS commissioner Ashley Thomas cited a roughly $50 million special education gap citywide, about $40 million at IPS [5][6].
  • SEA 1-2025 estimate (LSA, House-amended version): IPS net property tax levy -$4.96M (2026), -$3.97M (2027), -$4.99M (2028) versus prior law, about -2% a year [21].
  • IPEC also receives up to 3% of shared Operations Fund revenue for its own costs (board-set percentage), and from 2028-29 must run a unified transportation plan for IPS and all participating schools and control school buildings (charters may opt out of building management but then give up debt-service and construction-levy money) [9].
  • Teacher pay and cash balances for 2025-26 were not found in sources reviewed; see gaps.

What came before

  • Nov 6, 2018: IPS operating referendum, $0.1960 per $100 for 8 years (about $220 million over eight years) for teacher attraction/retention, academic programs and special-needs support. PASSED (DLGF certified). Election-night count with 540 of 600 precincts in: about 71% yes. DLGF estimated a 2019 levy of about $29.2 million; by 2026 it was raising about $48.5 million because assessed values rose [2][4][12][14].
  • Nov 6, 2018: IPS construction referendum, up to $52 million (+$0.0332 debt rate) for safety and modernization. PASSED (DLGF certified); about 75% yes in the election-night count [4][12][15].
  • May 2, 2023: IPS construction referendum ('Rebuilding Stronger'), $410 million over 30 years; ballot estimated +20.4% (residence) and +14.9% (business) on the IPS portion. PASSED (DLGF certified), about 59% yes in unofficial results [4][25][16].
  • 2023: IPS planned a separate operating referendum but dropped it. Charter school families, The Mind Trust and Stand for Children did not support it in part because IPS said it would not share with non-IPS-affiliated charters; the Indy Chamber also helped stop it [6][7].
  • 2008: IPS's previous tax increase before 2018 was a 2008 building referendum that passed (Chalkbeat) [12].
  • Before 2026, IPS shared some 2018 referendum money voluntarily with innovation-network partner charters: about $2,300 per student for IPS-run schools versus about $500 per in-district student at partner charters and nothing for independent charters, according to presentations to the IPEC board [6].
  • The 2026 question does not list a prior operating referendum on the ballot because IPS's last one (2018) was more than five years earlier [1].

What each side says

Other people's words and claims, not ours, each with the page it came from. Where we found no organised campaign on a side, the page says so rather than inventing one.

For

  • Vote Yes for Indianapolis Public Education Campaign (PAC launched Aug 25, 2026), a coalition of IPS leaders, charter leaders and groups such as The Mind Trust and Stand for Children; public finance filings were not yet available when WFYI reported the launch [7][8].
  • Superintendent Aleesia Johnson: the referendum is 'absolutely necessary for our district's financial survival' and 'isn't a luxury' [5][7].
  • IPEC executive director Karega Rausch: 'It is a rare gift to look out into this crowd and to see people supportive of IPS schools ... charter schools ... coming together, unified to pass this referendum' [8].
  • Former Mayor Bart Peterson: 'we're going to go backwards if we don't pass this referendum' [7].
  • The Indy Chamber's board chair called 37.2 cents 'a historic level of investment in public education' while pressing the district to keep cutting costs [6].
  • Indianapolis Education Association (teachers union): after first voting not to support it, members voted 'overwhelmingly' in September 2026 to support it after IPS said its cut plan did not include a district-wide educator layoff; its president said 'our concerns were heard' [20].

Against

  • No organized 'vote no' committee was found as of Oct 11, 2026.
  • Before reversing, the Indianapolis Education Association opposed the measure because IPS would still face cuts; a co-vice president of the union: 'It's hard to support something and say you're OK with being cut' [7].
  • Rep. Ed DeLaney (D-Indianapolis) argued an equal per-pupil split ignores higher costs for students with disabilities and transportation and urged IPEC to seek 'a more rational allocation' from the legislature [7].
  • At IPEC's June listening session, a homeowner said his taxes had risen from $4,000 to $13,500 over 23 years: 'We are being taxed out of our homes' [11].
  • IPEC member John Hammond said he considered voting no and would have preferred a lower rate or a two-year term, but voted yes [6].
  • Critics of the 2026 law, including IPS parents at legislative hearings, called an appointed board with taxing power 'taxation without representation' [10][24].

Questions worth asking

  • How much more would my own bill be in 2027 compared with 2026, given that the 2018 rate of 19.6 cents is ending?
  • How will each participating charter school publicly report how it spends its share?
  • What specific $20 million in IPS cuts are planned if the question passes, and which schools could close or merge?
  • Why four years instead of eight, and what would IPEC ask voters for in 2030?
  • How will IPEC's transportation and building plans (due to the legislature by Nov 30, 2027) change costs for IPS and charters?
  • What state action, if any, is expected on special education funding that IPS says creates a deficit?

What we could not find

  • Certified 2018 vote totals from the Marion County Election Board were not retrieved; only election-night percentages were found.
  • IPEC's 2027 advertised budget notice was not found on budgetnotices.in.gov (IPS's unit page shows no 2027 notice).
  • IPS cash balances and teacher salary schedule for 2025-26 were not located.
  • No DLGF or county estimate of the effect on rental, farm or business property was found for this question.
  • Campaign finance reports for the Vote Yes PAC were not reviewed.
  • Individual charter school spending plans for their shares were not reviewed.

Sources

Researched Sunday, October 11, 2026

  1. Findings and Final Determination on Proposed Question, No. 26-029-REF (IPEC) (Indiana DLGF)
  2. Estimated Referendum Levy, IPS operating (Nov 2018), and 2018 Findings and Final Determination (Indiana DLGF)
  3. IPEC Resolution 13-2026 with Exhibit A spending plan and Exhibit B charter allocation (scanned; read by OCR) (Indiana DLGF (filed by IPEC))
  4. Historic School Tax Levy Referenda and Historic Controlled Project Referenda (Indiana DLGF)
  5. 2026 IPS referendum guide: costs, tax impact, and what's at stake (Chalkbeat Indiana)
  6. Indianapolis voters will decide a four-year school tax that still forces $20M in IPS cuts (WFYI)
  7. Indianapolis is asking voters to approve a $95 million school tax. Why are some teachers opposed? (Chalkbeat Indiana)
  8. A rare coalition asks Indianapolis voters to fund $95M for IPS and charter schools together (WFYI)
  9. Indiana Code Title 20 (IC 20-25.3 Indianapolis Public Education Corporation; IC 20-46-1-0.5, -9.5) (Indiana General Assembly)
  10. Mayor-appointed board to assume control of Indianapolis school facilities, finances under new legislation (WFYI)
  11. Indianapolis homeowners and educators split over new property tax plan for IPS, charter schools (WFYI)
  12. Election 2018: In a sweeping victory for IPS, voters approve tax hikes to raise $272 million for schools (Chalkbeat)
  13. Referendum Information (referendum levies outside the property tax caps) (Indiana DLGF)
  14. Findings and Final Determination, IPS operating referendum (2018) (Indiana DLGF)
  15. Findings and Final Determination, IPS construction referendum (2018) (Indiana DLGF)
  16. Indianapolis primary election 2023: ballot questions, capital referendum results (Chalkbeat)
  17. Corporation Enrollment by Grade 2006-2026 (Indiana Department of Education)
  18. Fall 2025-2026 Public Corporation Transfer Report (Indiana Department of Education)
  19. Certified Budget, Levy, CNAV and Rate by Fund, 2022-2026 (Indiana DLGF)
  20. Indianapolis teachers union reverses course, votes to support proposed tax increase (Chalkbeat Indiana)
  21. SB 1 (2025) Net Levy Estimates with Changes from Baseline, by unit (LSA supplemental report, House 2nd reading version) (Indiana Legislative Services Agency)
  22. IC 20-46-1-21 (sharing of referendum revenue with charter schools in Lake, Marion, St. Joseph and Vanderburgh counties) (Indiana General Assembly)
  23. IC 3-10-9-3 (school referendums only at general elections; P.L.68-2025) (Indiana General Assembly)
  24. Indiana House Bill 1423 would create IPEC (committee hearing coverage) (WFYI)
  25. Findings and Final Determination, IPS construction referendum (2023) (Indiana DLGF)
What's included
the U.S. House, statewide offices, every Indiana House and Senate district on the ballot, Indiana's statewide public questions and judicial retention questions, and county, township, city, town and school board races from the Indiana Election Division's candidate list.
Everything else
Local races (county, city, school board, judges) and anything else on your ballot are on your official sample ballot: IndianaVoters.in.gov.
Candidate lists
As of Sunday, October 18, 2026.
At the polls
Indiana law lets you bring a list of candidates and public questions into the polling place, including one stored on your phone, as long as you don't electioneer. IC 3-11-8-18.5

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