The Vanderburgh County Commissioners are engaged in something of a dust-up with the Human Relations Commission over communications between the two local government bodies. County Commissioners are recommending nearly $10,000 of contributions they make to the agency be cut from next year's budget. The proposed budget cut of $9,485 is 20 percent of the $47,425 the HRC is budgeted to receive this year from county taxpayers.
The three county commissioners are upset that the HRC said it is not accountable to the county panel, even though it contributes considerably to the Human Relations Commissions budget.
The decision on whether the cut will actually be made will be up to the County council.
With that all said, here's the part of this story that seems to us to be relevant to the current debate over whether or not to consolidate Evansville and Vanderburgh County governments. A referendum is scheduled for Nov. 6.
The Human Relations Commission receives about 13 percent of its budget from the county, while the city of Evansville pays the remaining 87 percent.
So, city of Evansville taxpayers are paying 87 percent of the budget for this office. At the same time, Vanderburgh County taxpayers, including all those who live inside the city limits, are paying the other 13 percent of the HRC budget. In other words, city residents are paying twice, once as city residents and again as county residents.
But if city and county governments were to consolidate into one layer of local government instead of two layers, the responsibility for this department would be spread evenly and fairly to all taxpayers, countywide, one time.
As for the issue at hand, Commissioners Joe Kiefer and Steve Melcher said in an article by Courier & Press staff writer Jared Council that they have received complaints about HRC investigators allegedly advocating for complainants by pressuring business owners accused of discrimination into cash settlements.
Kiefer said he asked HRC Executive Director Diane Clements to look into it and he said she told him they don't report to the County Commissioners, that they report to the city. Clements told the Courier & Press that perhaps her comments were taken out of context.
Obviously, if Vanderburgh County government is helping fund the HRC, it deserves an open line of communications with the agency. However, it makes even more sense to handle it with one countywide government and each taxpayer having to pay only one time.