Indiana township merger bill fails without legislative vote
The plan would have required consolidation by townships with fewer than 1,200 residents.
Township Government
Articles
Push for merging small Indiana townships nears House vote
Hundreds of Indiana’s least-populated townships face forced mergers with their neighbors in what would be the most significant overhaul of the local governments since a gubernatorial commission called for their elimination a decade ago.
County gets $59M as part of local road-funding package
The distribution is part of $505 million that county auditors have distributed to local government units statewide, $435 million of which can be used for transportation funding.
Eight cities, towns back Whitestown in legal fight with Zionsville
The communities have urged the state Supreme Court to hear Whitestown’s appeal of a controversial merger between Zionsville and Perry Township.
Appeals court: Whitestown can annex 620 acres of Perry Township
The hotly disputed annexation can go ahead, unless residents want to take the case to the Indiana Supreme Court. The acreage is a small portion of the township land that Zionsville is in the process of taking over.
Whitestown demands Zionsville ‘cease and desist’ over merger
The battle between the two towns over Perry Township has heated up, with Whitestown demanding that Zionsville roll back moves it made in response to an Indiana Court of Appeals decision this week.
Former Center Township CFO gets 18 months for theft
U.S. District Judge Sarah Evans Baker has sentenced former Center Township CFO Alan Mizen to 18 months in prison for stealing more than $340,000 in public funds.
State seeks greater damages from township embezzler
The former Center Township accountant who pleaded guilty to embezzling more than $340,000 also should pay the cost of investigating his wrongdoing, the Indiana State Board of Accounts says.
Center Township trustee used invalid police license plate
Center Township registered a police plate to a 2011 Dodge Charger driven by Trustee Eugene Akers, then used the plate for three years after the BMV declared it invalid.
Ex-Center Township Trustee official faces charges
U.S. Attorney Joe Hogsett has scheduled a Tuesday afternoon press conference to announce the arrest of a former public official from the Center Township Trustee’s Office.
City inviting proposals for new courts-jail complex
Marion County criminal-justice complex project could rival Indianapolis airport terminal in cost, entail public-private financing deal.
Indiana’s long fight for less government has politicians protecting own
Economists and politicians on both sides of the aisle have argued for years that streamlining government in Indiana could save millions of dollars, but vested interests and fear of change have stymied real reform.
Indy council Democrats pitch budget alternative
City-County Council Democrats are pitching a 2014 budget alternative that would close an $8-million gap left by the majority party's refusal to go along with Mayor Greg Ballard on eliminating the homestead tax credit.
Center Township trustee to list Mass Ave building
The township board in late May gave Trustee Eugene Akers permission to list the property, which has a five-story office building on 1-1/3 acres of land.
Pike Township audit focuses on misused gas card
A former secretary in the Pike Township trustee’s office could face criminal charges after an internal investigation and state audit found that she used a township credit card to fill up her own gas tank.
Tough times didn’t spur spike in poor relief
Heading into the 2008 recession, Center Township sat on $10.5 million in cash, but sky-high unemployment and rising poverty over the next four years failed to drain those funds, and the disconnect persists in several area townships.
As city budget tightens, Center Township trustee has money to burn
IBJ SPECIAL REPORT: Center Township lowered its bank balance in 2012, to $6.7 million, but the biggest checks Trustee Eugene Akers wrote weren’t for emergency needs like food or shelter, the township’s main mission.
Lawmaker cries foul over Fishers vote endorsement
A state lawmaker is taking issue with a group that backs a new "hybrid city" government in an Indianapolis suburb and says she never endorsed the plan.
City or town? Confusing ballot to determine fate of Fishers
A group of Fishers residents is crying foul over questions on the November ballot that will determine whether Fishers remains a town, becomes a “reorganized” city with a council and city manager, or a traditional city with an elected mayor.
Airport touts generating more than $56M in tax revenue
Property tax isn’t part of the equation, which irritates some Decatur Township residents.