July 23, 2014 at 2:10 p.m.
A move that may make sense (06/12/08)
Editorial
This probably isn't what the Indiana General Assembly had in mind, but it sounds like pretty good government just the same.
Earlier this year, scrambling to make changes in the property tax system, lawmakers instituted a new system for approval of construction projects that would be paid for with property tax revenues.
The way they envisioned it, local government officials - portrayed by the state legislature as the bad guys - would launch plans for a construction project. Then local citizens, with pitchforks and torches we suppose, would launch a simple petition drive, getting 100 signatures to put the project on the general election ballot for a referendum.
The whole dueling petition process, most recently witnessed in the South Adams school system, would be eliminated.
But what's happening now is something lawmakers probably never imagined.
Jay County officials - including not only the commissioners and members of the county council but the sheriff as well - are taking two steps simultaneously.
They're moving forward on a jail expansion project that could cost as much as $10 million when all is said and done, but they're also initiating the referendum petition themselves.
Commissioners have said for months that they want to hear from the public on the issue and they'll act accordingly.
By moving the project forward and simultaneously making sure it's on the ballot for the November election, the county removes any suggestion that the project is being forced on an unwilling public. Instead, this approach assures that the public will get a chance to weigh in.
It's an approach that combines leading with listening, and we think it makes sense.
The issues involved in the jail project are complex, and they're not going to go away.
But between now and November, local voters will have an abundance of time to educate themselves, debate the issues, weigh the costs, examine alternatives, and weigh the costs of inaction.
There's plenty of homework ahead. - J.R.[[In-content Ad]]
Earlier this year, scrambling to make changes in the property tax system, lawmakers instituted a new system for approval of construction projects that would be paid for with property tax revenues.
The way they envisioned it, local government officials - portrayed by the state legislature as the bad guys - would launch plans for a construction project. Then local citizens, with pitchforks and torches we suppose, would launch a simple petition drive, getting 100 signatures to put the project on the general election ballot for a referendum.
The whole dueling petition process, most recently witnessed in the South Adams school system, would be eliminated.
But what's happening now is something lawmakers probably never imagined.
Jay County officials - including not only the commissioners and members of the county council but the sheriff as well - are taking two steps simultaneously.
They're moving forward on a jail expansion project that could cost as much as $10 million when all is said and done, but they're also initiating the referendum petition themselves.
Commissioners have said for months that they want to hear from the public on the issue and they'll act accordingly.
By moving the project forward and simultaneously making sure it's on the ballot for the November election, the county removes any suggestion that the project is being forced on an unwilling public. Instead, this approach assures that the public will get a chance to weigh in.
It's an approach that combines leading with listening, and we think it makes sense.
The issues involved in the jail project are complex, and they're not going to go away.
But between now and November, local voters will have an abundance of time to educate themselves, debate the issues, weigh the costs, examine alternatives, and weigh the costs of inaction.
There's plenty of homework ahead. - J.R.[[In-content Ad]]
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