Tully: Joe Hogsett, Indy’s fiscally frugal mayor

So it turns out that all that talk about smelly old sneakers wasn’t just campaign-speak.

You probably remember the sneakers — those stars of a much-discussed 2015 TV ad intended to highlight then-mayoral candidate Joe Hogsett’s fiscal frugality. Everyone seems to remember the ad, and the sneakers. But it seems like some have forgotten the fiscally conservative message behind them.

That’s understandable. After all, who puts much stock in what political campaign ads have to say?

But here we are, eight months into Mayor Hogsett’s administration, and a series of decisions and statements are making clear the Democrat wasn’t joking when he promised to be a miser whenever possible with city spending. Not everyone likes this strategy, but it’s the one Hogsett promised and, truth be told, it’s likely to pay off down the road when the administration looks at the painful steps that will likely be needed to address a fundamentally underwater fiscal situation.

Whatever you think of the mayor’s strategy, it can’t be an easy one to undertake. Not with so many glaring needs in the city, and not with so many people and groups almost begging for tax increases and additional spending to address critical issues.

Those folks aren’t wrong for advocating for those investments, not in a city with shameful infrastructure problems, too little recent spending on parks and other core issues, and a perpetual budget shortfall. But Hogsett’s message has been clear. As his chief of staff, Thomas Cook, told me, the mayor has said he isn’t going to ask Indy residents for a tax hike, “until I have met the burden of proof that every ounce of efficiency has been squeezed out of the taxes we are already collecting from you.”

In recent weeks, the campaign rhetoric has become real in a series of steps.

First, there was a budget proposal that reduced spending in most areas, though not public safety. The cuts led to complaints that great cities aren’t built on a lack of investment, and that’s a powerful argument. But here in year one of the Hogsett administration, the mayor seems to be crafting a longer-term plan, one that allows the city to better address big challenges in coming years by first cutting and trimming where possible.

Second, there is the ongoing debate over roughly $39 million in city tax payments recently released by the state. The legislature, in another sign of its negligent Big Brother mentality when it comes to Indiana’s cities and towns, restricted how the money could be spent, limiting locals to either pumping it into infrastructure or socking it away in their rainy day funds.

Over the objections of some council Republicans, Hogsett chose not to spend the windfall as soon as it arrived. His argument: Set the money aside until after the city’s budget debate this year and next year’s state budget debate, which will be infused with requests for fiscal relief from local governments that have been living under tight property tax caps for nearly a decade.

Third, the mayor has declined to offer a full-throated endorsement of a mass transit tax increase that voters will decide on in November. This might be a political decision, as the tax hike is almost certain to pass and Hogsett appears to be saving political capital that he will need in the future. Still, his reluctance to take the lead on the referendum fits into the message he sold in campaign ads and speeches.

It’s worth noting that Hogsett’s budget cuts have helped trim in half the city’s deficit this year, and that he is operating without the benefit of proceeds from the water company sale that allowed the previous administration to pump hundreds of millions into infrastructure projects. He is looking at city reserves that are within spitting distance of zeroing out, and he’s keeping in mind the fact that a bad winter or other emergency could quickly cut into that cash. He also understands the devastating impact a downgrade in the city’s credit rating or other fiscal crisis would have.

And he surely is looking at the future with the understanding that there is no realistic way for Indianapolis to fully address its dismal financial challenges without raising taxes. Before talking about that, though, Cook said the administration must “close the credibility gap” among residents who fear that government too often seeks tax increases but fails to fully live by the promises behind them.

The bottom line is this: Hogsett and his sneakers ran on a message of fiscal frugality in 2015, and he is governing here in 2016 with that message as a guiding principle. It might not be the easiest path forward. But if you’re looking long term, it’s probably the right one.

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You can reach me at matthew.tully@indystar.com or at Twitter.com/matthewltully.