Bloomington’s annexation plan effectively was killed early Saturday when the Indiana House approved a biennial budget bill that included language targeting the controversial proposal to absorb approximately 9,500 acres and nearly 15,000 people into the city.
The budget bill, approved by the House before adjourning for the year just prior to 1 a.m. Saturday, contained a section inserted during conference committee proceedings that terminates annexation ordinances under consideration by the Bloomington City Council and prohibits any further effort to annex that property until after June 20, 2022.
In remarks Saturday morning on the House floor, state Rep. Matt Pierce, D-Bloomington, said he was more concerned about the way the provision got into the bill — at the last minute — than the provision itself.
“The mayor and city council were working through the system laid down in the law. They were following the rules,” Pierce said. “It’s all done now. So much for democracy.”
State Rep. Jeff Ellington, R-Bloomington, offered a different perspective on the legislative maneuver that will shelve the annexation proposal once Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb signs the bill into law.
“It’s always appropriate when you take your citizens’ concerns and help them,” said Ellington, who would like to see Indiana become the 48th state in the nation to prohibit involuntary annexations by cities and towns. Ellington said he had heard from a number of local residents, businesses and local government officials who were concerned about the breadth and impact of the proposal initiated by the administration of Mayor John Hamilton.
For his part, Hamilton said Saturday he was frustrated by the Legislature’s action and added that other Indiana municipalities should take note.
“To the extent they did this to us here, they could do this to anyone else,” he said. “They could intervene ... and take over a local issue.”