TOWNSHIP TALES
There are a couple of interesting stories this morning out of the townships that are reflective of the current political climate here in Indiana.
A plan is being floated amongst the Indiana Assessor’s Association to consolidate (yes, you read that correctly) all the assessor offices across the state and put them under the Indiana Department of Revenue (IDOR). Under the plan IDOR would have an assessment administrator who would oversee assessments and the state would be divided into 10 assessment districts with roughly the same number of parcels. The Assessors say such a system would allow for greater consistency across the state, result in more fair and equitable assessments and remove politics from assessing. As big a critic as I am of township government, I have to give it to these guys for putting forward a thoughtful proposal and for deciding to get on the train as opposed to being under it.
I wish I could say the same thing for the Lawrence Township Board. The board voted Tuesday night 5-2 against consolidating the Lawrence Township fire department with the Indianapolis Fire Department. The vote was along party lines and opponents said they needed more time to study the plan. Lawrence Township Trustee Mike Hobbes says he doesn’t know what the board’s problem is as they were given all the consolidation information back in July and there have been two public hearings since then. The board says it wants another public hearing in late October. The township had to borrow $1.8 million in emergency loans to keep its fire department afloat and the Daniels administration has made it clear the days of emergency loans to keep township government afloat are pretty much over. I don’t know what is going through the township board’s thought process, but in an age where taxpayers are clamoring for less government, this might be the time to give the people what they want.
And you thought township government was outdated and boring. I agree it is outdated, but never boring.
