EDITORIAL: Eliminate townships completely, not just township assessors

Times of Northwest Indiana

Legislation to eliminate township assessors has advanced to the floor of the Indiana Senate. Senate Bill 16 deserves support. It's a good start.

North Township Assessor John Matonovich unwittingly provided excellent evidence of the need for this bill last week.

The assessor's mistake in entering the ArcelorMittal steel plant data twice will result in an estimated $11.5 million reduction in East Chicago's tax revenue.

This is not to say the mistake might not have occurred had the county assessor's office done the work, as SB 16 would require. But centralizing the assessing process would tighten controls and lessen the opportunity for error. There are 1,008 elected township assessors and 92 county assessors.

Sen. Sue Landske, R-Cedar Lake, voted against the bill in the Senate Local Government and Elections Committee.

"Changing or eliminating the assessors isn't going to change the system. We still have the same laws and rules in place to do the work," Landske said. "I think, for the most part, it's not going to save money, either."

Saving money is why SB 16 is merely a start toward what needs to be done.

Eliminate township assessors, and you've reduced the number of elected officials by 1,008. Eliminate townships completely, and we're talking big savings and big efficiency improvements.

It's a recommendation made last month by the Indiana Commission on Local Government Reform.

Townships not only have assessors but also trustees and three-member advisory boards. In many cases, the assessor is also the trustee.

But at the very least, thousands of elected positions would be eliminated. And the trustees' responsibilities could be handled elsewhere in government.

Indiana already has a state welfare agency. Why have a separate layer of government to administer financial assistance to needy people who don't qualify for existing programs? Give the state that responsibility, and the citizen has a streamlined application process. That would greatly reduce overhead costs.

Support SB 16 to get rid of township assessors. But remember, that's only a start. Abolish townships completely to make government more efficient and less expensive.