Two competing bills could reduce the number of township governments in Indiana. One is supported by township leaders, but some see the other as an existential threat.
House Bill 1315 has the potential to save money for taxpayers, but it would also reduce the services townships can offer. It would eliminate any township with fewer than 6,700 people that doesn’t offer at least twice as much assistance as it spends on salaries and doesn’t run a fire department. That’s around 650 out of about 1,000 Indiana townships, according to the Legislative Services Agency.
Bloomington Township trustee Efrat Rosser was at the statehouse Thursday morning lobbying for a rival bill. Senate Bill 270 would force townships to merge with each other if they underperform.
Read more: Former Columbus Township trustee sentenced to 28 years in prison
Rosser said that could help improve services in rural areas.
“I think townships really reflect their local community, and for a rural community, the services that are expected of that township are going to differ vastly than what's expected in perhaps a place like Bloomington,” she said.
Read more: What's next for Ellettsville and Richland's reorganization plan
Townships occupy space in Indiana government outside county, state and city authority. Their responsibilities include caring for historic cemeteries, mediating property disputes and occasionally operating parks and fire departments.
Primarily, though, townships work a lot like social service agencies.
Bloomington Township offered almost $140,000 in direct assistance last year to help people pay for things like utilities and housing. The township’s food pantry helped almost 2,500 households.
“When I talk to our legislators about the difference these services make in a household's ability to stay healthy, whole, intact, housed, it's an easy thing to communicate,” Rosser said.
But Bloomington Township is a high-population area spanning town and country. Rural townships usually work with a lot less.
Regardless of the outcome, townships will lose revenue next year under last year’s changes to local tax law.
