INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (WOWO): The state‘s program may not expand, but Indianapolis will likely forge ahead with a plan to provide preschool for low-income children.

The City-County Council approved the pre-K program itself in December. Tonight, the council will vote on a method of funding it for the first of a planned five years. The total cost of the program is expected to be around $40 million, with half coming from the City-County government and the other half from corporations and other donors.

The pre-K plan was originally proposed by Republican Mayor Greg Ballard and was initially rejected by the Democratic-controlled council over objections to the way he wanted to pay for it, by eliminating a homestead tax credit that would have resulted in property tax increases for about half the homeowners in Marion County. A compromise plan worked out largely between the mayor‘s office and Council vice president John Barth was approved after agreeing to use money that was already set aside.

The plan that was approved by a council committee last month would use more than $4 million from several sources – about half the money would come from the government‘s fiscal stability fund, while some would come from a change to the homestead tax credit.

Ballard and other supporters have promised that no money would come out of public safety to fund preschools, as some council members had threatened to withhold support if it did.

Five counties, including Marion, are part of the state‘s pilot pre-K program, which cost state taxpayers $10 million over two years. The program received the same amount of funding in the proposed two-year state budget that was passed by the House last week.