David Reynolds, the city’s financial chief, sat before the House Ways and Means Committee on Tuesday afternoon, taking questions from blustery state lawmakers and wording his answers carefully. His goal: not to offend the man in the office two floors below, Gov. Mitch Daniels.

For roughly an hour, Reynolds gave what he later insisted was an endorsement of Daniels’ plan to deal with the city’s Capital Improvement Board deficit. But if you listened at all to what Reynolds was saying, it was clear Mayor Greg Ballard’s administration is worried about the governor’s proposal.

“Generally, we’re in support of the proposal,” Reynolds said at one point, adding a few minutes later: “The mayor has concerns.”

Daniels, you’ll recall, recently unveiled a plan calling for $27 million in annual budget cuts to the CIB, which operates the city’s sports and convention facilities. Ballard, who faces a distressing lack of friends at the Statehouse, long has swooned over the governor and has gone out of his way to appear grateful for Daniels’ assistance.

The mayor didn’t show up for Tuesday’s Statehouse meeting, sending more qualified aides in his place. And while those aides emphasized repeatedly how much they appreciated the governor’s help, they also poked holes in his plan.

Talking about the governor’s proposed yet undefined CIB cuts, which include $10 million in reductions already in the works, Reynolds said the city was “somewhat concerned about our ability to do it.” By not receiving adequate funding, he warned, the CIB could run out of money to run its facilities after 2011.

And that, he said, means “there’s a likelihood that we’re going to have to come back” to the Statehouse for another bailout in a few years.

That’s the last thing anybody wants. Because while there is little consensus on how to solve the CIB’s issues, there is widespread agreement on one thing: Everyone is sick of dealing with Marion County’s stadium problems. That much was certain when the committee pulled the CIB bill late Tuesday afternoon, the latest in a series of setbacks for the mayor.

A long-term solution would be nice. So it’s worth paying attention to the red flags Reynolds and others were subtly waving Tuesday.

“The mayor has been very open about wanting a protection of jobs within the city and wanting a permanent solution,” Reynolds said. “He’s supportive of the (governor’s) plan moving forward. (But) there are issues within this plan that don’t meet all of those bars.”

Outside the committee room, Paul Okeson, the mayor’s chief of staff, said he was “empathetic” to the “tough economic times” the governor faces. He worked hard to make clear the mayor’s office appreciates Daniels’ help. But he argued serious damage would be done by cutting spending on conventions and tourism efforts “to a very painful level.”

The city also made clear that studies Daniels has used to slam CIB spending do not tell the whole story. Those studies, aides said, vastly overstate the difference in spending between Indianapolis’ visitor facilities and those in other cities. In the end, Reynolds said, Daniels’ proposal is much better than the status quo, as it opens new revenue streams, but could be only a temporary solution.

“Our cash flow doesn’t show this is sustainable,” he said.

A few minutes later, after concluding his testimony, a weary-looking Reynolds stood in the hallway. I mentioned that he hadn’t seemed too thrilled with the governor’s plan.

“It was an endorsement,” he insisted. “Wasn’t it?”

Maybe. Maybe not. I have to admit: I’m really not sure.