Central Indiana Democratic Socialists of America

Today, our coalition of education advocates, parents, and public school employees condemns the Indiana legislature’s advancement of SB1. 

SB1 contains only slightly modified language from SB518, the property tax sharing legislation that we and other advocates have been decrying since its introduction early this year. SB1 advanced on a party-line vote out of the House Ways and Means committee with no public comment. This bill will force public school districts to surrender millions in desperately needed property tax revenue to charter schools.

SB1 and the language integrated into it from SB518 represent a coordinated assault on public education disguised as charter school equity and property tax relief. This legislation is an attack on democratic principles, forcing taxpayers to fund schools that are not governed by elected school boards accountable to the community that run like private corporations, and that have closed at a rate of one in three since 2001.

In February, Indianapolis Public Schools Superintendent Aleesia Johnson testified that SB 518 would guarantee the closure of at least 20 schools and eliminate hundreds of jobs in the district. Prior to integration into SB1, SB518 was modified to remove debt service sharing language, reducing the estimated funding loss to public schools from an estimated $174 million to an estimated $96 million loss in funding by 2032 by gradually increasing the amount of district revenue subject to sharing annually.  

While SB518’s language has been softened, $96 million is still a staggering funding cut that public schools cannot absorb all while SB1 restricts property tax growth, further strangling public education funding.

All of this on behalf of $200 annual savings in property taxes, a savings which only 55% of Indiana property owners will even see in 2026. And furthermore, legislators agreed that these tax savings would simply be pushed to local taxes. It’s clear that this legislation isn’t about educational equity or taxpayer relief. This legislation is about systematically dismantling public education in the name of private control and making our governor look like a tax hero.

While the charter industry celebrates this windfall and cynical legislators trumpet tax savings for residents, the true beneficiary is the state itself, which stands to save at least $21.6 million annually by replacing state funding with local property taxes. This bill is a calculated budget maneuver to sacrifice public education on behalf of austerity and the governor’s personal brand.

Central Indiana DSA’s Fully Funded Fuly Public Campaign stands with Indianapolis Public Schools, its employees, students, and families in demanding an immediate rejection of the property tax sharing language from SB518 that has been amended into SB1. 

We will continue to stand on behalf of fully funded, fully public education in our state and city. Join us in our ongoing fight on behalf of public education and on behalf of a better world for all!