Indiana Senate Bill 343 (Prior Session Legislation)

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Completed Legislative Action
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: Passed on May 13 2013 - 100% progression
Action: 2013-05-13 - Public Law 202
Text: Latest bill text (Enrolled) [HTML]

Eliminates the requirement that a reorganization committee must be appointed to prepare the reorganization plan as part of a proposed local government reorganization, effective January 1, 2014. Provides that the legislative bodies of the reorganizing political subdivisions (rather than a reorganization committee) shall prepare the reorganization plan that must be adopted by the legislative bodies before the proposed reorganization is placed on the ballot. Requires that a reorganization plan must include a fiscal impact analysis. Specifies the required contents of the fiscal impact analysis. Provides that the fiscal impact analysis must specify any estimated effects on political subdivisions in the county that are not participating in the reorganization and on taxpayers located in those political subdivisions. Requires that the fiscal impact analysis must be submitted to the department of local government finance (DLGF) at least six months before the election in which the public question will be on the ballot. Requires the DLGF to do the following within a reasonable time, but not later than 30 days before the election on the public question: (1) Review the fiscal impact analysis. (2) Make any comments concerning the fiscal impact analysis that the DLGF considers appropriate. (3) Provide comments to the legislative body of the reorganizing political subdivisions and post the comments on the DLGF's Internet web site. Requires the reorganizing political subdivisions to pay the expenses incurred by the DLGF in carrying out the review and preparing the comments. Requires that a brief description of the reorganized political subdivision that will succeed the reorganizing political subdivisions must be placed on the ballot containing the public question. Provides that for a public question voted on by voters after June 30, 2013, the county election board shall submit the language to the DLGF for review. Requires the DLGF to review the language of the public question to: (1) evaluate whether the description of the reorganized political subdivision is accurate and not biased; and (2) approve or make binding recommendations to the county election board regarding the ballot language. Requires the county election board to take final action to approve the ballot language. Provides that certification of a public question on a proposed local government reorganization must occur as required for other public questions under the election law. Provides that in the case of a proposed reorganization between a municipality and a township that is voted on by voters after December 31, 2013: (1) the voters residing within the municipality shall be included only in the tally of votes for the municipality and shall not be included in the tally of votes for the township; and (2) the voters who reside within the township but do not reside within the municipality shall be included only in the tally of votes for the township and shall not be included in the tally of votes for the municipality. Requires (rather than allows) the use of an "approval threshold" in the case of a proposed local government reorganization involving: (1) a county and a municipality; or (2) a municipality and a township; for reorganizations voted on after December 31, 2013. (Under current law, "rejection thresholds" are optional and may be used only in a reorganization between a county and a municipality.) Provides that for a reorganization that is voted on after December 31, 2013, between a county and a municipality to be approved, the number of voters voting to approve the reorganization must equal or exceed the approval thresholds set in the reorganization plan: (1) for the municipality; (2) for the area of the county outside the municipality; and (3) countywide. Provides that the approval threshold for the municipality and area of the county outside the municipality must be greater than 50% but not more than 55%. (Under current law the approval percentage for the countywide vote must be greater than 50%.) Specifies that in order for a reorganization that is voted on after December 31, 2013, between a municipality and a township to be approved, the number of voters voting to approve the reorganization must equal or exceed the approval thresholds set in the reorganization plan: (1) for the municipality; (2) for the area of the township outside the municipality; and (3) for the combined area of the township and the municipality. Provides that the approval threshold for the municipality and the area of the township outside the municipality must be greater than 50% but not more than 55%. Provides that the approval percentage for the combined area of the municipality and the township must be greater than 50%. Allows the legislative body of a reorganizing political subdivision to adopt a resolution rescinding the plan of reorganization previously adopted and certified by the legislative body. Requires the resolution to be certified not later than July 15 to the clerk of each reorganizing political subdivision, and to the county fiscal officer and county recorder of each county in which a reorganizing political subdivision is located. Provides that a petition filed by voters after December 31, 2013 to: (1) initiate a reorganization; or (2) conduct a public question on a plan of reorganization that was not adopted by the political subdivisions; must contain each petitioner's signature, printed name, and residence mailing address. Provides that if a political subdivision is located in whole or in part within one or more other political subdivisions that reorganize and the first political subdivision does not participate in or does not approve the reorganization: (1) the reorganization does not affect the rights, powers, and duties of the first political subdivision; and (2) the reorganized political subdivision may not exercise within the first political subdivision any right, power, or duty unless that right, power, or duty was exercised within the first political subdivision before the reorganization by at least one of the reorganizing political subdivisions. Provides that a plan of reorganization may establish within a reorganized political subdivision territories or districts: (1) in which specified services provided by the reorganized political subdivision will be provided at different levels, quantities, or amounts; and (2) in which the fees, charges, or taxes imposed by the reorganized political subdivision will vary depending on the level, quantity, or amount of the services. Requires a reorganized political subdivision to continue to carry out the duties imposed by Indiana law on the reorganizing political subdivisions that combined to form the reorganized political subdivision. Specifies that a reorganized political subdivision created from two or more townships and at least one municipality that have reorganized: (1) may exercise park and recreation powers and establish a park and recreation board if the reorganized political subdivision's plan of reorganization authorizes the reorganized political subdivision to exercise those powers; and (2) may exercise planning and zoning power if the reorganized political subdivision's plan of reorganization authorizes the reorganized political subdivision to exercise those powers. Provides that such a reorganized political subdivision shall, by resolution or in the plan of reorganization, determine the number of members to be appointed to the reorganized political subdivision's park and recreation board, advisory plan commission, and board of zoning appeals. Provides that a political subdivision may not take certain actions within a reorganizing political subdivision after the date on which a plan of reorganization is finally adopted by all reorganizing political subdivisions unless one of the following occurs: (1) All reorganizing political subdivisions agree to allow the action by adopting identical resolutions. (2) The plan is rejected by voters in a referendum. (3) The plan is approved by voters and one of the following occurs: (A) The plan is implemented. (B) One year elapses from the date on which the plan was approved. Requires a town legislative body to adopt a resolution not later than 30 days after a petition is filed for a referendum on changing the town into a city. Provides that the date of the referendum must not be later than the date of the next general election or the date of the next municipal election, whichever is earlier, at which the question can be placed on the ballot. If the referendum passes, requires the first election of city officers to be held on the date of the next general election or municipal election, whichever is earlier, following the date of the referendum. Provides that notwithstanding the statute setting out the classification of municipalities, for purposes of local government administration a municipality reorganized under the local government reorganization statutes may, subject to the approval of the department of local government finance: (1) be classified and described as set forth in the reorganization plan; and (2) maintain characteristics of any of the reorganizing political subdivisions. Provides that during the period beginning with the date the final plan of reorganization is approved or considered to be approved and continuing through the day on which the public question on the reorganization is submitted to the voters, the political subdivision may not promote a position on the public question by taking certain actions. Provides that a person or an organization that has a contract or arrangement (whether formal or informal) with a political subdivision to provide goods or services to the political subdivision: (1) may not spend any money to promote a position on the public question regarding reorganization; and (2) commits a Class A infraction for a violation of (1).

Local government reorganization.

Sen. Randall Head [R]

Sen. Richard Young [D]

Sen. Mark Stoops [D]

Sen. Travis Holdman [R]

2013-04-15 - Senate - Senate - Senate concurred in House amendments (Y: 48 N: 1 NV: 0 Abs: 1) [PASS]
2013-04-02 - House - House - Third reading: passed (Y: 94 N: 1 NV: 1 Abs: 4) [PASS]
2013-04-02 - House - House - Third reading: passed (Y: 94 N: 1 NV: 1 Abs: 4) [PASS]
2013-02-07 - Senate - Senate - Third reading: passed (Y: 46 N: 3 NV: 0 Abs: 1) [PASS]

Date	Chamber	Action
2013-05-13	House	Public Law 202
2013-05-08	Senate	Signed by the Governor
2013-05-01	Senate	Signed by the President of the Senate
2013-04-26	House	Signed by the Speaker
2013-04-26	Senate	Signed by the President Pro Tempore
2013-04-15	Senate	Senate concurred in House amendments; Roll Call 475: yeas 48, nays 1
2013-04-09	Senate	Motion to concur in House amendments filed
2013-04-02	House	Returned to the Senate with amendments
2013-04-02	House	Third reading: passed; Roll Call 387: yeas 94, nays 1
2013-04-01	House	Amendment 1 (Thompson), withdrawn
2013-04-01	House	Second reading: ordered engrossed
2013-03-28	House	Committee report: amend do pass, adopted
2013-03-25	House	Representative Riecken added as cosponsor
2013-02-26	House	First reading: referred to Committee on Government and Regulatory Reform
2013-02-07	Senate	Senator Holdman added as coauthor
2013-02-07	Senate	Cosponsor: Rep. Cherry
2013-02-07	Senate	House sponsor: Rep. Richardson
2013-02-07	Senate	Referred to the House
2013-02-07	Senate	Third reading: passed; Roll Call 84: yeas 46 and nays 3
2013-02-05	Senate	Senator Stoops added as coauthor
2013-02-05	Senate	Amendment 1 (Head), prevailed; voice vote
2013-02-05	Senate	Second reading: amended, ordered engrossed
2013-01-31	Senate	Senator R. Young added as coauthor
2013-01-31	Senate	Committee report: amend do pass, adopted
2013-01-08	Senate	First reading: referred to Committee on Local Government
2013-01-08	Senate	Authored by Senator Head

Type	Source
Summary	http://www.in.gov/apps/lsa/session/billwatch/billinfo?year=2013&session=1&request=getBill&doctype=SB&docno=0343
Text	http://www.in.gov/legislative/bills/2013/IN/IN0343.1.html
Text	http://www.in.gov/legislative/bills/2013/SB/SB0343.1.html
Text	http://www.in.gov/legislative/bills/2013/SB/SB0343.2.html
Text	http://www.in.gov/legislative/bills/2013/ES/ES0343.1.html
Text	http://www.in.gov/legislative/bills/2013/SE/SE0343.1.html
Roll Call	http://www.in.gov/legislative/bills/2013/PDF/Srollcal/0084.PDF.pdf
Roll Call	http://www.in.gov/legislative/bills/2013/PDF/Hrollcal/0387.PDF.pdf
Roll Call	http://www.in.gov/legislative/bills/2013/PDF/Srollcal/0475.PDF.pdf