The times are changing A small group of township trustees met with county assessor Doris McLeland and a DLGF representative to hear the plan about how to relinquish assessment duties to the county assessor's office by June 30. Township trustees will no longer be responsible for assessment duties as of July 1. Comet photo by Debbie Lowe Township trustees across the state will no longer do assessments as of July 1. The state legislature mandated that assessing duties will fall to county assessors.

Carroll County Assessor Doris McLeland called a Tuesday morning meeting with all trustees, plus invited county council members and commissioners, to discuss how the county office will begin to assume assessing duties.

The group learned from Indiana Department of Local Government Finance representative Jim Hemming at the meeting they are expected to relinquish office supplies and equipment purchased with assessing money to McLeland's office by June 30.

Trustees were unable to give McLeland a definite number of hours spent performing assessment duties. McLeland asked in order to determine how much time the extra assessing duties would require from the employees in her office.

"I have no idea," Jefferson Township Trustee Harold Erdsmann said. "You don't keep track of it."

He estimated between 60 to 80 hours per year.

Liberty Township Trustee Mark Justice said he thought he spent approximately 40 to 50 hours per year.

"I meet with almost every person," he said.

Council member Ron Slavens represented Adams Township. He said between 70 and 80 hours a year are spent on assessing duties.

"But it's not just the workload that will add to the county burden," he said. "It's the money the county will lose by not having a township assessor."

"Township assessors know the people and they know who has what," he concluded.

Hemming urged mobile homeowners with structures registered with the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles to relinquish those titles if their homes are no longer movable. He said relinquishing the registration would eliminate confusing paperwork and extra tax bills for two different types of taxable units.

McLeland said she would be forced to ask county council members for additional funding to pay part-time helpers to perform the extra work required to meet assessing deadlines for 2009. She said it was determined township assessors would receive the full appropriated salary for 2008, although they would no longer be doing the work after June 30.

"I want you all to know that I didn't vote to get rid of you," McLeland said at the conclusion of the meeting.

Taxpayer questions should be directed to McLeland's office at (765) 564-3444.