Champaign & Cunningham Townships Annual Meeting

Help Make Government More Transparent
On Tuesday April 8, Illinois residents have a golden opportunity to ask local governments to be more transparent. All of us live in a township, and state law specifies that each township must have its annual meeting sometime after 6 pm on the second Tuesday in April, unless it conflicts with Passover.

Anyone registered to vote within the township at least 28 days before the annual meeting is considered an elector and can vote at the meeting to put an advisory referendum on the ballot at the next regularly scheduled election. We would like to persuade local government to be more transparent by introducing the following ballot question:

"Shall _____________ Township (and the City/Village of _______________) post all contracts and itemized expenses on their website(s) so that taxpayers can see how their money is being spent?"

Some townships have boundaries which are the same as those of a city or village, and the city council serves as the township board. For example, the City of Urbana is coterminous with Cunningham Township. In such a case, it makes sense to include the city or village in the question.

Champaign's meeting will be held at 6:55 pm in the Champaign City Building, 102 N. Neil St.

Cunningham Township will meet at 6 pm in the City Council Chambers in the Urbana City Building, 400 S. Vine St.

We'll be introducing this resolution at both meetings and encourage residents to come and vote for it.

Be sure to take some kind of identification which shows your address, to verify that you live in the township. A voter registration card or driver's license should be adequate.

We think voters of all political persuasions would be in favor of this idea. If you want your township to consider it, the first thing to do is find out the time and place of your annual meeting. Notice of the time, place and agenda is to be posted in three of the most public places in the township at least ten days before the meeting and by at least one publication in an English language newspaper published in the township. You can also call your township office and ask.

Then check to see where you would suggest additions to the agenda. State statute says that agenda items can be added only by a three-fifths majority vote of the electors at the meeting. Ask your friends and neighbors to attend and show their support for good government.

Also take copies of the referendum question, with the blanks filled in. One copy needs to be given to the clerk to put into the record. Other copies should be shared with the electors to help them understand the question. Be prepared to answer questions. Since state law only allows three advisory referenda for a political subdivision at the same election, there may be competing issues.

One possible objection is the question of cost and hassle. The simplest way to document expenses is to put the check register in a PDF file and allow it to be downloaded from the township or city?s website. By sharing contract and expense information, members of the public can suggest cheaper or better ways of accomplishing the same goal. The savings that these suggestions generate should be more than enough to offset the extra expense.

If the city or township already is using its money most efficiently, then posting this information shows taxpayers why tax increases might be necessary to cope with inflation or to increase the level of services.

Transparency helps citizens trust their government. It?s a win-win proposition. We hope that by increasing transparency at the local level, we can convince legislators to do the same at the state level. Greater sunshine will help Illinois outgrow its pattern of corruption and inefficiency.

If you have questions, please contact Mark, the organizer. I'll put you in touch with the right person.

If you would like to see the statutes pertaining to townships, please visit: http://www.ilga.gov/l...
If you would like to see the statutes pertaining to advisory referenda, please visit: http://www.ilga.gov/l...