MUNCIE, Ind. — An ordinance was filed last week, sponsored by Muncie City Council President Jeff Green, that would require all police and fire vehicles in Muncie to be decorated with the slogan “In God We Trust.” The ordinance will be up for introduction on Monday, September 14, and would change city code to require the change.

The consideration of the ordinance comes as the city council is preparing to adopt a budget for 2027. Meetings for council’s three-person finance committee, consisting of Dale Basham, Jerry Dishman, and William McIntosh, have yet to be scheduled. Monday night’s meeting agenda will also include a resolution authorizing an investigation into the contract for former-acting mayor Jeff Howe, a resolution honoring and remembering City Controller Craig Wright who recently passed away, and a proposed amendment to Muncie’s Designated Outdoor Refreshment Areas (DORA) policies.

The ordinance justifies the use of the motto with the following: “the motto has withstood scrutiny under the First Amendment and courts have found that ‘through long historical use and repetition the [motto] has lost profound sectarian religious significance, [and] function[s] instead as a form of ceremonial deism that reflects national tradition and solemn heritage rather than active religious coercion;’ see New Doe Child #1 v. Congress of the United States, 891 F. 3d 578 (6h Cir. 2018), see also Town of Greece v. Galloway, 134 S. Ct. 1811 (2014).”

There have not been any public statements by secular or religious organizations about Jeff Green’s ordinance, however if introduced it would not be adopted until October 5 at the soonest.

Daisy Dale is the editor and publisher of The Muncie Post-Democrat, a commissioner for the Muncie Human Rights Commission, and a board member of Muncie Queer Alliance.