INDIANA — A decades-long debate over the efficiency of Indiana’s local government reached a potential turning point Tuesday as a House committee endorsed a compromise plan that could force the consolidation of hundreds of township governments.
The House Local Government Committee voted 11-2 in favor of a revised Senate Bill 270, which melds competing approaches from the House and Senate. The bill now heads to the full House for consideration ahead of the legislative session’s February 27 adjournment.
Unlike previous attempts at reform that focused strictly on population, the new proposal centers on a performance-based evaluation. Under the bill, the Department of Local Government Finance would assess Indiana’s 1,000+ townships using a points system. Townships would accumulate “points” (essentially dings against their record) based on several factors:
- Failure to provide emergency aid or fire protection.
- Late filing of financial reports and budgets.
- Lack of candidates in recent trustee elections.
Townships with low performance scores would be required to merge with higher-performing neighbors. Preliminary estimates from the Indiana Township Association suggest about 300 townships could face consolidation under this criteria, though earlier versions of the plan had estimated up to 650.
The legislation also introduces a pathway for municipal takeovers. If a township is located mostly within city limits—specifically if 80% of its territory and more than 50% of its population reside within the municipality—the city government could assume all township functions, provided the township does not operate its own fire department.
The compromise version includes a one-year delay to the implementation timeline, a move authored by Sen. Rick Niemeyer (R-Lowell) to encourage local control.
- June 30, 2027: Deadline for townships to initiate voluntary mergers under current state law to remain exempt from the new forced procedure.
- January 1, 2029: The date mandated mergers would officially take effect.
“They can do local meetings back home, decide what township, maybe, they want to merge with,” Niemeyer said. “I hope it happens a lot.”
Township reform has been a contentious issue in Indiana since the 2007 Kernan-Shepard report recommended the total elimination of the 19th-century system. While township officials argue they provide essential, localized services like poor relief and cemetery maintenance, critics maintain the layer of government is an outdated inefficiency.
The Indiana Township Association, which previously opposed more aggressive mandates, has signaled support for this compromise, prioritizing the “efficiencies of the units first” before reform is determined.
