Columbus City Council President Shannon Hardin is moving to tighten how City Hall pays its bills, introducing legislation to restrict how Mayor Andrew Ginther’s administration budgets as council considers a smaller bond sale. The dispute was set for Monday, October 19, with a 9 a.m. hearing and a 5 p.m. meeting in Columbus.
At the evening meeting, council was scheduled to vote on one of Hardin’s proposals and take a first reading of the other. Hardin has accused the administration of mismanaging finances and using capital funds to cover payroll, while Ginther’s team says Columbus faces real pressures and is responsibly managing taxpayer dollars. Both are running for mayor in 2027.
The proposal up for a vote would direct the city auditor to estimate police and fire overtime expenses for 2027 to help inform the next operating budget. Under the city charter, the mayor must present a proposed operating budget by November 15, and Hardin wants independent overtime estimates before that debate begins.
The second proposal would update city code to curb how much the city can tap its Income Tax Set Aside, known as ITSA. The fund is meant to pay debt obligations on capital projects, but the administration has increasingly used it for operating costs. Hardin’s change would require Columbus to reduce its use of ITSA for qualifying non-debt expenses by 10 percent each year.
In 2026, Columbus is tapping about $50 million from ITSA for non-debt items to balance an operating budget of more than $1.2 billion. The city brought in nearly $920 million in income tax in 2025, with about $230 million going into the ITSA subfund. City Auditor Jacquelin Lewis has warned credit agencies are watching, and a downgrade from the city’s triple-A rating could make borrowing more expensive.
Overtime is adding to the pressure. Columbus budgeted about $9.5 million for Division of Fire overtime this year, but the division had spent nearly $17 million as of October 16, according to council’s Legislative Research Office, and the city is projected to exceed its police and fire overtime budget by at least $23 million. Personnel costs rose under 2024 collective bargaining agreements, after federal pandemic cash had to be spent by the end of 2024.
Ginther’s administration says it is already working to balance the budget, including not filling hundreds of vacant positions outside public safety, and Finance Director Chris Long has acknowledged tapping ITSA for operating expenses is not a long-term solution. Chief of staff Elon Simms told The Columbus Dispatch the restrictions would unnecessarily limit the city and could put essential services at risk.
Council was also set Monday to vote on a reduced bond sale for the 2025 capital budget, considering revised ordinances authorizing up to $381 million, down from about $518 million originally proposed. The sale was delayed in June, and Columbus remains about a year behind on bond sales after a pandemic-era delay. The votes will shape the November budget presentation and the choices facing residents next year.