Thursday, July 01, 1999
Deerfield happy to see township protection bill pass
BY KEVIN ALDRIDGE
The Cincinnati Enquirer
DEERFIELD TOWNSHIP — Townships will find it a little easier to protect themselves from being dissolved under a bill headed for Gov. Bob Taft's desk.
The Ohio Senate on Tuesday passed a bill that would end the 100-year-old practice of allowing county commissioners to vote an entire township out of existence. Instead, House Bill 91 would allow voters in unincorporated areas to decide whether their township should remain intact once reduced to less than 22 square miles.
Sponsoring Rep. George Terwilleger, R-Maineville, designed the bill to give townships more tools to keep them whole. The measure faced little opposition in the House of Representatives and the Senate.
“The great thing about this bill is that it puts the legislative process in the hands of the constituents, not just the few,” Mr. Terwilleger said. “It's best to let the electorate decide.”
Deerfield Township Trustee Larry Backus called the bill's passage “a victory” in the fight for townships' rights.
“We feel good about the effort we put forth to change this piece of legislation,” Mr. Backus said Wednesday. “Passing this bill removes a big threat to townships.”
Under Ohio law, a township that is smaller than 22 square miles without a municipality inside its limits can be annexed by county commissioners to a neighboring township or formed into a new township. The law has not been amended since 1953.
“The reason why this law was instituted initially has nothing to do with how it is being used today,” Mr. Backus said.
Deerfield Township Trustee Bill Morand said the law was originally meant to protect townships that were not economically viable because of their size. Now, he said, it is being used to extort them.
In May 1998, Warren County commissioners threatened to dissolve Deerfield Township, which stands at 19 square miles, if trustees failed to meet an ultimatum to save the
Mason-Deerfield Township Joint Fire District. Deerfield officials challenged the threat and county commissioners eventually backed off.
But Mr. Morand said that showed it was time for a change.
“This bill corrects a situation that should have been corrected a long time ago,” he said. “Now we will never have to deal with that kind of threat again.”
The law had never been used in any of Ohio's 88 counties to dissolve a township, said Michael Cochran, executive director of the Ohio Township Association. He said the situation involving Deerfield trustees and Warren County commissioners was the first case where he had seen the law used as a means of intimidation.
“We've had quite an interest in this bill and are pleased to see it pass the Senate,” Deerfield Township Trustees President Tom Raga said. “The township form of government is alive and well.”
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