Govenors Commission on Local Gov Reform

[txgho1911]

I know there are some bills in play now in the legislature. I have a source who is working to eliminate his own job in this process.
The report released on Tuesday is located here: http://indianalocalgovreform.iu.edu/
There seems to be a lot of sense in most of this but I have reservations about a few points. I knocked a few ideas around and hammered them them down and sent it out to the trustee I mentioned above. My biggest beef is eliminating the sheriff. That coupled with the rest of the report brewed this mess copied below. Read and discuss. These ideas are not complete by any estimate. Pose your own ideas. Maybe we can forward some good ideas while the mood is warm at the legislature.

[[My thoughts on Streamlining Local Government.
These would measures to include instead of or in addition to the current proposal by the commission.

Designate the Sheriff as an oversight to PD and all other LEO within the county.
Reformulate the delinquent tax recovery function of this office.
Place no minimum requirements for this office beyond a high school graduation and US citizenship. Let the candidates run on their experience and personnel records.


Form a county level First Responder service district. Include every LEO, EMS, and fire service unit. Provide the sheriff as the senior executive of this and include the County exec as a voting member who can veto decisions. This unit would be tasked with distribution of services and eliminate borders between the subunits and the county.
In addition to the transfer of trustee duties to the county exec the Maintenance of Abandoned Cemeteries and indigent burial fall under the first responder unit.

For Marion county eliminate the district seats currently in place and enjoin the replace them with the Township Trustee. Include on the city county council a seat and vote for the mayors of Indianapolis, Lawrence, Speedway, and Beech Grove. No change to the at large seats would be appropriate.


Cost savings and surpluses should not be written out of budgets and levies at the county lever when a debt service is also levied. All surpluses should be applied to paying down debts. Bonds and debts by government at all levels should be limited by statute and excesses require referendum approval.

Referendum is needed for legislative oversight where the legislation does not conflict with the state constitution. A process accessible to the citizens by petition or a minority of a legislative unit is long overdue. Legislation suspected of violating the state constitution by a minority of the legislative unit must be reviewed by the state courts.
By minority I would believe 25% would be correct. For a petition by constituents a total of not less than 10% of registered voters that have voted within the past 2 years.]]

[KSFreeman]

I am unsettled by the recommendation of a "County Chief Executive" who appoints the Recorder, Assessor, Sheriff, inter alia. Seems to fly in the face of our desire of a divided, limited government.

[txgho1911]

I know this subject is not producing a lot of response. I imagine there are many people worried by the ideas in this report. My post above is my first response and that includes some checks on the exec as well as checks on the sheriff.
Also included is a measure to assist in humbling the county LEO.
I think the governor may have originated a big piece of this in his lead to follow whatever the fed tells him to.

[singlestacksig]

I don't think removing elected posts is the answer to the tax problem.. the tax problem popped up when the courts removed the power from those elected persons..

[RF7126]

I don't necessarily have a huge problem with the sheriff being in charge of LE, but like others have said; to have him be appointed is a big problem for me. I've seen what political appointments do for LE agencies (I live in Terre Haute) and I'm not thrilled with it in any form.

[IronHorseman]

I`ve had it with this guy. His hairbrained idea to re-write the constitution so he could dismantle local government pushed me past my limit.
**And now in todays paper In read that he wants to put each county under the headship of a CEO that will appoint sheriff,auditor and other county offices.
**Daniels is obviously committed to destroying self government especially at the local level.
The last thing we need is a CEO answering to the state instead of locally elected officials answering to the people that elected them.
**It`s bad enough that I feel liked got raped today by my county government that voted to give a tax abatement to a Toyota spinoff company. Imagine how bad it could be with no local accountability and a CEO answering to Daniels.

Rant Mode Off

[fire1035]

I have a problem with the schools issue. Our schools in Speedway with 1,600 some students should be consolidated into the IPS system or Wayne Twp's? Come on now, if anything either of those should be consolidated into Speedway, We have higher test scores, higher graduation rates, and lower cost per tax payer than either of those systems. They have a lot they could learn from us. If that part goes through, we will be either moving out of the county, or our son will be going to Catholic school.

Our schools work under a very reasonable theory, demonstrate a need for what you are asking for. If you want a new sports field, then write yourself a grant. The taxpayers will not pay for lavish buildings, or sports arenas. Speedway's new sports complex, soccer field, FB practice field, varsity softball and baseball fields, and auxilliary gym were all paid for with grants, none of my money was used. Unlike in Franklin Twp where the school board used tax money to build a $4.5 million dollar football stadium, that Ball State or Indiana State would be happy to play in. Good thing we don't have enough firefighters to protect it though........

[rhino465]

I am unsettled by the recommendation of a "County Chief Executive" who appoints the Recorder, Assessor, Sheriff, inter alia. Seems to fly in the face of our desire of a divided, limited government.

Agreed. Consolidations of power (and this is what it really is, not a genuine cost-saving measure) always result in less freedom for the people. Always.

Another factor is that the concentrations of population in each county would be able to dominate the rest of the county even more than they do now. That increases the tyranny of the majority, which is a sin second only to the tryranny of a minority.

Is this an attempt at Indy-Gov'ing the rest of the state? Or is it a class example of suggesting ridiculously freedom-devouring measures, knowing that we'll think that what they really want seems "reasonable" by comparison?

I'm sure there are few elements of the plan that might reduce costs, but we should fight elimination of the key elected officials tooth and nail.

[indyg19]

The consolidation of local government will do nothing but put more power in the PEOPLE'S hands. No longer will we have 10 people to look at and not get answers when we see problems with how our counties are run. No longer will every person in the City County Building be able to point fingers in every direction. Instead, just like in every city in the state, we will have one person who is responsible for all of the executive power. We have one person to look to when the roads aren't plowed.
If anyone here can name all of the people that they voted or didnt vote for in the last election that are running thier county, i will buy them a beer but I dont know who half of them are.
This is not flying in the face of divided government. Divided government doenst mean that there is a ton of it like we have, it means that there are separate judicial, executive, and legislative branches. THIS WOULD NOT CHANGE UNDER THE PROPOSED LOCAL GOVT CONSOLIDATION.
Also, READ THE REPORT. The Gov doesnt have anything to do with who these county executives are. These people are elected executive office holders, just like a mayor.
If your city is going to hell, like mine (Indy) is, then you kick the bum out. right now, if your county is going to hell, nobody knows who to blame. Having one ELECTED official running the county will do nothing but encourage accoutnability and an accountable government wont pull the BS with raising your property taxes because they cant shift the blame.
I know Mitch and I know he wants us to be free of Government interference in all parts of out lives.
I end my rant with a quote from Grover Norquist that I heard Mitch say, "We need to shrink government down to the size where we can drown it in the bathtub."
And I'm spent. :faint:

[rhino465]

The consolidation of local government will do nothing but put more power in the PEOPLE'S hands.


Where could I even start with an opening line like that?

We're from two different planets apparently. On the one where I live, consolidating power always shifts more power to fewer people in the government.

[IronHorseman]

Where could I even start with an opening line like that?

We're from two different planets apparently. On the one where I live, consolidating power always shifts more power to fewer people in the government.


Consoldating power is a bad thing on my planet too. Good government must come up from the people not down from the government.
The consolodation of powers under a central head has the goal of the GOP since the days or should I say daze of Lincoln.

[indyg19]

Consoldating power is a bad thing on my planet too.
We arent talking about Castro. We are talking about a county executive. Is a city government a dictatorship?
How does having more people elected to run a small government do anything but reduce accountability?
If you can tell me that having all of these elected offices is working than you are the one who is from the different planet.
If there is one elected executive there is nowhere to hide when the county isnt working properly. I agree that this person shouldnt be all powerful but we arent talking about eliminating the courts or he county council or the elected procecutor but offices that dont work like the county surveyor and township assesors.
I am all for keeping the elected sheriff but seriously why keep the other offices? Do you really think that these are really important to democracy? If so, why not elect every public employee?

[IronHorseman]

We arent talking about Castro. We are talking about a county executive. Is a city government a dictatorship?
How does having more people elected to run a small government do anything but reduce accountability?
If you can tell me that having all of these elected offices is working than you are the one who is from the different planet.
If there is one elected executive there is nowhere to hide when the county isnt working properly. I agree that this person shouldnt be all powerful but we arent talking about eliminating the courts or he county council or the elected procecutor but offices that dont work like the county surveyor and township assesors.
I am all for keeping the elected sheriff but seriously why keep the other offices? Do you really think that these are really important to democracy? If so, why not elect every public employee?



The United States is not a democracy neither is the state of Indiana,they are republics. It is impossible to have representative government when the government gets to appoint the representatives.It`s like having the fox gaurd the chicken house.