Calumet Township, Griffith and DLGF meet in court

Contributed By:The 411 News

Griffith residents won’t have to set aside time on December 20 to vote on their secession from Calumet Township. Town Council President Rick Ryfa notified the Lake County Elections Board late last week of the town’s decision to postpone the election until the settlement of a lawsuit filed by Calumet Township Trustee Kim Robinson.

That lawsuit asked for a temporary injunction to stop the vote and claimed that the Town of Griffith and the Indiana Dept. of Local Government Finance improperly changed the rules of the state legislation that set in motion the town’s separation from Calumet Township.

Today, all sides met in the Lake County courtroom of Judge John Pera. With Griffith’s decision to set aside the December election, the court will only decide on the remaining issue of improper rule changes.

Atty. Tony Walker, representing Calumet Township, said the parties agreed to a summary judgment. The Office of the Indiana Attorney General appeared for the DLFG, and Barnes and Thornburg for Griffith. The judge will examine the facts as presented by each side and determine the issue of the rule changes.

“We had a status hearing today to determine scheduling for the case management conference,” Walker said. “Judge Pera set April 14 for the parties to respond. A decision should come in June or July.”

In 2013, the Indiana legislature passed HR 1585. The bill defined the condition that would allow a municipality to secede from a township and join a nearby township, one with which it shared borders. The condition that would trigger a secession: When a township’s assistance tax rate is 12 times the statewide average township assistance tax rate, an eligible municipality could vote to secede from the township. The bill also specified that the action could not be brought until 2015 at the earliest.

Griffith did not try for separation in 2015 because Calumet Township’s public assistance tax rate fell below the 12 times trigger. This year, Calumet Township claimed, the DLGF complied with Griffith’s request to recalculate the formula for the statewide average. By doing so, it gave Calumet Township a higher public assistance tax rate and in August, Griffith set December 20 for its election.

“When the DLGF changed the formula to recalculate the statewide average, it violated the Indiana Administrative Rules and Procedures Act, Indiana Code 4-22-2,” Walker said. “The DLGF must notify taxing districts of rules that would increase their tax rates. It didn’t do it.” Walker said the township and other taxing districts were notified on September 6, after DLGF changed the formula.

Story Posted:11/22/2016