Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg (D) has put out his 2024-2025 budget proposal for the city, which his administration says will help bolster public safety, affordable housing and tackle homelessness, invest in early education, and improve quality of life for Louisville residents overall.
We’re here to break down the budget, and see how Louisville tax dollars may be spent over the next year.
Affordable Housing and Homelessness Sees A Light Investment
The mayor’s proposed budget puts up $32 million (nearly 3%) out of the $1.1 billion towards “creating or preserving 15,000 units of affordable housing units across the city by 2027.”
Nearly half ($15 million) of the portion will go towards an investment in the Affordable Housing Trust Fund, which aims to give Louisvillians long-term housing.
“Every Louisvillian deserves the safety and security that comes with a roof over their head and a clean, comfortable place to call home,” said Greenberg in a statement. “Affordable housing helps our people thrive, and it also benefits our economy and the health of our community. From creating more quality homes to finding ways to end homelessness, we are taking a holistic approach to finding real solutions to our biggest challenges.”
$238,000 will go to the Louisville Metro Housing Authority to support its most “urgent issues,” with Greenberg stating his administration will continue to work with LMHA to secure more Section 8 vouchers for socioeconomically disadvantaged people throughout the city.
Public Safety Overhaul
Almost half ($448 million) of the entire proposed budget will go towards public safety, which includes funding for new equipment for Louisville police, fire department and emergency operations.
For the Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD), funding will support new license plate readers and MetroWatch Camera. Funding will also be used to fill vacancies at LMPD, increasing wages throughout the region to increase recruitment.
For the Louisville Fire Department, it will see new technical search and rescue gear.
The statement from Greenberg’s office states that the emergency operations center will see “upgrades,” with no clear definition yet. However, more funding will also be used to recruit more EMTs, which Greenberg’s office states is a dire need with the city’s lack of first responders.
“People who have skills also have choices. To make sure our families have a paramedic or other first responders available during their greatest moments of need, we need to pay these heroes what they deserve,” said Greenberg in a statement.
Early Education Investments
The mayor's "Thrive by 5" Louisville nonprofit could see a clear investment of $5 million to give free universal pre-K education to every 3- and 4-year-old in Louisville. In a statement, the mayor's office said the nonprofit will operate separately from Louisville Metro Government and JCPS, using public and philanthropic funds to recruit and retain its early learning workforce.
The facts are clear: children who attend high-quality preschool are more likely to graduate from high school, earn more money, live longer and healthier lives and are 70 percent less likely to be arrested for violent crimes,” said the mayor in a statement. “Our children are our greatest investment, and I am determined to support them early so we can all succeed together for generations to come.”
Quality of Life Improvements
Nearly $50 million will go towards improving various aspects of Louisville, including street paving, sidewalk repairs, guardrail replacements and more.
Over $7.1 million of that portion will go towards general repairs to parks all over the city, and more than $2 million towards raising salaries and funding operations for those in the Public Works sector, new library openings (with no clear timetable yet), a new Park Ranger program and the Baxter Community Center reopening.
You can find the complete Budget Address from Greenberg here.
