CollegeAvenueIndy.org spotted this gem in the September 20th IBJ. Since 2007, the city of Indianapolis has raised income taxes twice in order to hire new police officers. The first time, city leaders promised to add 100. The next, as many as 150. On September 1st the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department had 59 fewer officers than it did before the first tax hike took effect and the city is now spending 33 percent more on its police officers. When you do the math (taking into account rising personnel costs, inflation, and the city's plummeting revenues), the 2007 tax hike wasn't enough to pay for the officers the city already had, much less add more officers. Meanwhile, murders continue to rise. Indianapolis already has recorded 100 criminal homicides this year, putting it on pace to break 2014's record-setting 144. Nonfatal shootings are up more than 20 percent too. The city has less money, but is spending more of it on police. And Mayor Hogsett wants to hire more officers, but to stay competitive with other cities, he may have to spend more on pay raises just to keep the ones he already has. Council members have been perplexed and infuriated by the dwindling police ranks. And when contacted by IndyStar, few could articulate why taxpayers were shelling out more money for fewer officers. "I don't have the answer to that," said Councilman Aaron Freeman, a Republican. "But you're asking the right questions. "I believe fundamentally that we’re not allocating it to where it should be going," Freeman added. “We’re not adding to the ranks, if anything we’re just treading water.” CollegeAvenueIndy.org wonders how many new officers could be hired from IndyGo's Red Line budget. If passed, the upcoming November referendum alone would raise $56 million per year on an ongoing basis. That's 450 new officers per year (every year) based upon the data provided in the IBJ article. So, what's it gonna be Hoosiers? Electric buses or public safety? Click the link below for access to the full IBJ article.