Indiana appears headed toward a record-breaking school referendum year as districts try to offset funding losses caused by state policy changes.

Why it matters: Schools are feeling the effects of last year's property tax cuts and looking for ways to stay afloat without cutting staff or services, but asking voters to raise property taxes during tough economic times could prove a difficult sell.

• Without increased taxes, though, schools are facing tough choices — cuts to transportation services, larger class sizes, or fewer school resource officers.

State of play: Last night, Bartholomew Consolidated Schools in Columbus voted to renew its referendum and Mississinewa Community Schools voted to advance one for the first time.

• At least 11 districts statewide have officially voted to place a referendum on the November ballot.
• An Axios Indianapolis analysis of documents for school boards around the state identified at least a dozen more that are considering a referendum.
• Barr-Reeve and Beech Grove schools are expected to vote on theirs Tuesday night.

Context: State lawmakers made a number of changes driving the increase in school referendums this fall.

• The property tax cuts passed in 2025 are costing districts hundreds of millions in revenue annually.
• Lawmakers also changed referendum procedures.
• While districts used to be able to place questions on either the primary or general election ballots in any given year, those rules were changed so that a district may place a referendum only on the general election ballot in an even-numbered year.

What they're saying: "Our sense is that there's going to be somewhere in the neighborhood of 50 or so school districts around the state," Matthew Parkinson with Policy Analytics told the Pike Township Schools board during a recent meeting.

• Pike passed a referendum in May 2024, so it isn't considering a renewal this year, but leaders said they'll be watching the passage rates for this spate of referendums as they consider their own renewal in the next few years.

Stunning stat: The most referendums the state has seen in a single year so far is 20 in 2010, but that was split between the primary and general elections.

What we're watching: School districts have until Aug. 1 to approve a referendum question for the November ballot, so we're waiting to see just how many go for it this year.

At least 10 of those districts considering referendums this year are in Central Indiana — and most of them say the state has forced their hand.

The big picture: Anderson, Hamilton Southeastern, Noblesville, Sheridan, Washington Township, Westfield Washington and Zionsville schools have all approved ballot questions.

• Beech Grove, Carmel Clay and Indianapolis Public Schools are expected to vote soon.
• "We're trying to offset the damage caused by legislative changes," Tom Oestreich, superintendent of Carmel Clay Schools, explained during a recent referendum discussion with his board.

State of play: Nearly all of the school districts Axios Indianapolis examined in its analysis mentioned the 2025 property tax cuts and other state policies.

Zoom in: Here's what several Central Indiana districts are saying about their need for a property tax increase.

Laura Hammack, superintendent of Beech Grove City Schools, said at a meeting last month that "no amount of internal reductions alone can fully overcome" the deficits they're facing. The proposed referendum is needed, she said, "so we can continue existing services for students and families."

In Zionsville, the tax cuts are putting "long-term pressure on the district's ability to sustain current programming and staffing levels."

• The board voted last week to renew its referendum, which currently pays for one-third of the district's teachers.

Washington Township Schools says its very mission is at risk without a renewed referendum.

• Superintendent Sean Taylor says the state policy changes are "cutting our operations fund, reducing tax collections and increasing sharing with charter schools. At the same time, the cost to run our schools is rising."

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👮‍♂️ The Marion County Prosecutor's Office is dismissing a recent vote of no confidence by the Indiana Fraternal Order of Police as a political stunt timed to coincide with this weekend's Indiana Republican Party convention. (WRTV)

🤖 Boone County Commissioners have approved a one-year moratorium to block the development of data centers within unincorporated areas of the county. (IBJ)

👷 The Walmart Neighborhood Market at 3805 S. Keystone will close for four weeks starting July 6 for remodeling. (FOX59)

⚽ U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers in Indianapolis are urging local sports collectors to shop carefully after seizing more than 1,500 pieces of counterfeit World Cup 2026 merchandise. (WTHR)

Editor's note: The Walmart item has been corrected to say the store being temporarily closed for remodeling is located at 3805 S. Keystone Ave.

Artist and historian Aaron Coleman is honoring Westfield's ties to the Underground Railroad by transforming a place of confinement into a place of community.

Why it matters: His latest piece, called "Hold the Stars," is being installed during a time of rapid growth for the Hamilton County suburb and will help shape its identity amid the boom.

Zoom in: The sculpture is made of native white oak and shaped using steam-bending techniques commonly used in shipbuilding.

• It depicts two large wooden hands and the Big Dipper constellation, which was historically used to locate the North Star.

Yes, but: Coleman told Axios the meaning goes deeper than just following the drinking gourd.

• The initial inspiration was the hold of a transatlantic slave ship — specifically a historical account of enslaved people carving stars and moons into each other's hair while confined below deck.
• That communal act of self-care, and the hope it represented, became the emotional foundation of the piece.

What he's saying

Management and business professionals are most likely to own homes in the Indianapolis area, according to an analysis shared exclusively with Axios.

The big picture: High-earning STEM professionals used to be at the top but have lost ground as service and skilled trade workers have ticked up, per the National Association of Realtors' analysis of census data.

By the numbers: Management and business professionals now lead in Indy with roughly 77% owning homes in 2024, up 2 percentage points from 2014.

• Notably, a higher percentage of metro Indy service workers owned homes in 2024 (59%) than they did in 2014 (56%), and at a rate that exceeds the national average (43%).

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