LESS GOVERNMENT
The Commission headed by former Governor Joe Kernan and Chief Justice Randall Shepard has come out with its list of recommendations to streamline the more than 3000 units of local government in Indiana.
They include…
Counties
Establish a single-person county elected chief executive. Establish unified legislative body for county government. Transfer county administrative office duties (coroner, surveyor, auditor, etc) to the county executive. Put local assessments under a county executive. Create a countywide body to over see all public safety. Consolidate all emergency dispatch services.
Townships
Transfer all township duties to county government. Move small claims court in Marion County to the superior courts.
Local Governments
Give voters more power to force consolidation. Prohibit employees of a local government from serving as elected officials within the same local government unit. And only elected officials will be allowed to raise taxes.
Schools
Move school board elections to November in even years. Reorganize school districts to have a minimum population of 2000 students. Require school bonds be approved by the fiscal body containing the greatest proportion of assessed value in the district. Encourage joint purchasing.
Cities and Towns
Move all municipal elections to an even-year cycle. Transfer municipal health departments to the county health department.
Libraries and Special Districts
Reorganize library systems by county and provide permanent library service for all citizens. Require all bonds and budgets be approved by the fiscal body of the municipal or county government containing the greatest proportion of the assessed value in the unit seeking approval.
The State would also set up a system to monitor these recommendations.
I’ll have more later today.
