Local Government Reform

One of Indianas former Governors and the Chief Justice of the State Supreme Court introduced a report Tuesday to completely reform Indianas local government structure. If this report is to materialize, it could mean big changes headed your way. Indianas existing local government has been around for 150 years and Governor Daniels thinks its time for a change. Last July he put together a committee of seven. Their mission was to streamline local government. Chief Justice Randall Shepard and former Governor Joe Kernan introduced 27 proposals that they say will make local governments more efficient, more accountable and more cost effective. Township government would be done away with, shifting their responsibilities to the county. The county would also oversee the distribution of public services like EMS, Police, Fire, and dispatch. More consolidation would be seen among libraries and school districts. Another huge change is the amount of elected officials statewide would be reduced by more than half. Shepard says he can see people being uncomfortable with such drastic changes, but thinks taxpayers would be happy with the overall change. He expects the entire transition could take place in the next few years.