Why can't the General Assembly stop playing parent to local governments? asks Indiana economist Morton Marcus. It's all about power:
"Power, and the misplaced belief that localities are not to be trusted, that the Legislature is more wise and more responsible than local governments," I answered. "The megalomaniacs at the State House believe they have a monopoly on virtue and good judgment. Hence, they impose taxes on localities for state responsibilities and prevent local governments from reorganizing their activities."
"What are you talking about?" Ralph asked.
"For one, city-county consolidations. Why do we have cities and towns as separate governments in the 21st century? It may have made sense in the 18th century when the nation was founded, but today we might do well to merge all governments in a single county into one government. The idea that urban areas are sufficiently different from rural areas is an obsolete fiction. Ninety-two local governments would be plenty for Indiana. And then, we could even consider reducing the number of counties we have.
County government won't ever improve -- or modernize, if you will -- as long as city residents feel they don't have a real stake in it. And while we fighting internally, other regions are beating our economic brains out.
Comments
Leo, allow me to take off my Party Chair hat for a minute to say this:
I agree. Very few city residents can tell you who their County Councilman is.
The problem here is consolidation- which I support. However, anytime you mention it, someone shouts out "UNIGOV".
I really do not fully understand all the issues of Marion County- but just because not everyone is happy with the way governmental units were merged there, does not mean it will not work elsewhere.
The point many people seem to miss is that our version of consoldiated government doesn't have to look like UNIGOV, or anybody else's plan, for that matter. The whole idea is for US at the local level to come up with a better plan for government, then put the plan before a voter referendum. The worst thing about UNIGOV is that it was pushed through from the top with no public input, so too many Hoosiers think that's always the way consoldiated government will happen.