McGauley Proposes Allen County Government Restructuring Plan Current structure delays progress, costs too much and is difficult to understand, McGauley says

(March 12, 2012) – County Government structure is outdated and expensive and should be replaced with one that is leaner, less burdensome to taxpayers and simpler to navigate, said John McGauley, Republican candidate for Allen County Commissioner.

But current county structure should only give way to an organizational chart that preserves the ability of citizens to choose their representatives, while at the same time building a government more suited to meeting the demands of the 21st Century, McGauley added.

“Every discussion of government reorganization tends to take an all-or-nothing approach to the problem,” McGauley said.  “Solutions either leave county government the way it is or take from citizens most of the important choices they get to make in who their leaders are.  I believe it’s possible to modernize local government while still preserving the role voters have in shaping their community.”

McGauley proposed reorganizing local government in a manner (specific steps follow this news release) that would require statutory changes and possibly changes to the Indiana Constitution to implement.

But the results would be dramatic: A streamlined organizational chart, cleaner lines of accountability and the elimination of up to 66 elected positions.  An actual change of up to 64 positions would occur, as the result of adding two positions to County Council in order to make districts smaller and easier to represent.

“This is the scope of change that I believe is necessary and long overdue,” McGauley said. “I will work toward a modern model for local government without the caveats placed in the way of change by current officeholders who promote it with their words and delay it endlessly with their actions.”

Most notable among the changes McGauley pledged to work toward is elimination of the three-member Board of Commissioners and creation of a single, elected County Executive.

“This is the single biggest step we could take in Allen County to restore faith in county government that has been undermined by decades of dysfunction,” McGauley said. “I want to endorse a wide-ranging design for badly needed reform by starting at the top.”

An immediate and sweeping overhaul of county government structure is needed for many reasons, including:

1.) County Government Is Often Incomprehensible: Citizens and business people are stymied every day by form that fails to fit function. Conducting simple transactions requires stopping in two or three different offices.  Services are not found in the logical places. Business dealings are complicated by the need to deal with multiple offices with inconsistent standards and lines of accountability.  Progress sometimes demands expediency and county government structure impedes timeliness.

2.) The Money Is Gone: County government has been forced to dramatically cut budgets year after year.  The 2012 general fund budget fell more than 11 percent from 2011.  Cutting budgets only in response to crisis, such an annexations and economic downturns that reduce tax revenue, will only work so long. Underlying organizational change is the only step that can position Allen County government for a future in which it maximizes its contribution to the community.

3.) A Three Commissioner System Disenfranchises Citizens: The current Commissioner system, spread across three districts and two separate election cycles, makes it nearly impossible for communities outside the City of Fort Wayne to compete for a voice in the executive branch of county government.  The inequity is later reflected in board appointments and other opportunities for civic involvement that further disenfranchise Allen County’s other communities.  The ability to focus resources, votes and interest on a single position, in a single election cycle, puts those communities on more even playing field.

Continuing to provide ample service and representation is why McGauley’s plan proposes to eliminate township boards, assigning their budgetary duties to the County Council and a newly created County Controller, while retaining township trustees.  The services provided by township trustees are vital, but the budgetary role of the township boards would be better placed in the hands of financial professionals.  Public access to township spending would also be improved by centralizing the boards’ budget duties.

“If Allen County taxpayers are to ever truly realize the value of their investment in government, we must refocus county government on its core duties and constituencies by transforming its outmoded organizational structure,” McGauley said. “The way we’ve always done it is holding our community back.”

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John McGauley’s Plan for Reorganizing Allen County Government:

1.) County Executive

Eliminates: Board of Commissioners

Among the county executive’s hires would be a “County Engineer” who would assume the combined duties of the County Surveyor and County Highway Director.

2.) County Council

Eliminates: Township Boards

Expands from 7 to 9 members.  6 Districts; 3 At-Large.  Acquires legislative responsibility of the Board of Commissioners and budgetary authority for the township trustees.

3.) County Clerk

Eliminates/Absorbs: County Recorder

Many states operate under a combined Clerk/Recorder system.  The positions are often confused with one another, causing confusion for taxpayers and for those seeking services.

4.) County Controller

Replaces/Combines: County Auditor, County Treasurer

Would specifically acquire responsibility for providing technical assistance to County Council and Township Trustees for management/accounting for township finances.

5.) County Assessor

Replaces/Absorbs: Remaining stand-alone township assessors (such as Wayne).

6.) County Sheriff

Absorbs: County Coroner

Law enforcement authority previously held by coroner under IC 35-33-1-3 transfers to Indiana State Police.  Sheriff appoints a Director of Medical Examination who must hold qualifications set forth under IC 36-2-14.

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In most cases, political advertising – especially TV and radio – is downright awful.  It’s negative, shrill and damages the desire of voters to participate in the process.  We tried to be different in both of my previous campaigns.  We tried to put together radio spots that were funny, sometimes a little self-deprecating and even a little informative.

The results were better than we ever hoped.  My 2006 radio ad (supporting my campaign for Allen County Recorder) was an attack ad spoof, making light of the particularly nasty tone of ads that year.  It was recognized statewide as being one of the best aired anywhere in Indiana that year.  To this day, five years after the last time it aired, I still hear about that ad on a weekly basis.

For your enjoyment, here are BOTH of my previous radio ads.  (To be honest, I think the 2003 ad was funnier…check them out!)

2006 McGauley for Recorder Radio Ad

2003 McGauley for City Clerk Radio Ad

The next event in support of my campaign for Allen County Commissioner is coming up on Thursday, March 22!

The event is sponsored by Eric Doden, Linn Braun, Paul Moss, Ozzie Mitson and others.

If you would like to attend or join our list of sponsors, contact us at RSVP@johnmcgauley.com!

The positive, results-oriented piece, entitled “Allen County Government that Delivers – Every Time,” details the highlight’s of John McGauley’s tenure as Allen County Recorder from 2007-present.  It offers a preview of the kind of innovative leadership the citizens of Allen County could expect should he be elected the next Allen County Commissioner.  The piece details how McGauley has, during his tenure as Recorder, delivered:

• A 72% cut in consumption of tax dollars by the County Recorder’s Office.
• Turnaround times reduced from two months to one day or less.
• Introduced paperless eRecording and other online innovations to Indiana.
• An award-winning Neighborhood Resource Center delivering vital information on community life more than 12,000 times each year.
• Forged partnerships with the Indiana Attorney General, State Police and others to proactively fight fraud against property owners.
• Industry leading customer service training and practices.
• Proposed and successfully lobbied for a county ordinance giving you unprecedented access to information about government spending.

Click here to download a PDF of the print piece.

Dear Friends:

Since 2007, you have trusted me with the privilege of serving as Allen County Recorder.  I have worked hard to repay that trust by delivering on bold commitments to build a Recorder’s Office that is faster, more customer-focused and far less costly to taxpayers.

The results speak for themselves:  A leaner office now providing service in hours instead of days or weeks.  A 73 percent drop in consumption of your tax dollars.  An array of new technologies that allow you to do anything with the Recorder’s Office without ever having to come downtown.  An award-winning portfolio of projects, many implemented for the first time in Allen County, which protect consumers and improve life in our community’s neighborhoods.

Much of what we have accomplished is unmatched anywhere in local government.  We have set the example for how county government can do its job in new and more effective ways, without controversy, delay or runaway cost.  This is an example I would like to put to work for Allen County Government as a whole.  That is why I have chosen to run for Allen County Commissioner in 2012.

I am running for Commissioner because I believe government’s most important job is to deliver services at the lowest cost to taxpayers.  To do that, we MUST streamline county government and recognize long-overdue needs for change.  We MUST be more proactive in our pursuit of economic development to attract the jobs our community wants and needs.  Most importantly, we MUST institute a culture of “Yes!” in county government that gives employees maximum flexibility to meet the needs of their customers -  the citizens and businesses of Allen County.

Allen County needs leaders willing to redesign and remake government when opportunities arise and the benefits are indisputable.  I am that kind of leader and I need your help.

Today I ask you to consider making a contribution to my 2012 campaign (you can donate online by clicking the button below), an investment that will help me realize the vision we all share for what Allen County Government can and should be.

If you are tired of the noise, the bickering, the waste of our shared resources and of government spending too much time thinking of itself and too little time concerned about the community, we can do something about it – together.

You can learn much more about my candidacy, my record and the ideas I intend to fight for online at www.johnmcgauley.com.  I hope you will take a few minutes to see why I am the best choice for Allen County Commissioner in 2012.

Sincerely,

John McGauley

Allen County Recorder and Candidate for Allen County Commissioner

“Why are you running?”  Here’s my answer, in case you’d like to know.

I am running for 1st District Allen County Commissioner because I believe government’s first and most important mission is to deliver services at the lowest cost to taxpayers.  It is not government’s mission to meddle in your life or tell you what to do.

I want to be County Commissioner because I believe government lets us down and falls short of its potential far too often.  For nearly a decade, I have made bold commitments to improve the way government works – and delivered on them every single time.

I am running for County Commissioner because I believe there is no shame in working with my political adversaries to deliver on what the community pays us to do.  It is not a sign of weakness to stand on common ground when we find it beneath our feet.  The shame comes when we waste opportunity in the name of winning a game nobody asked us to play.

I want to be your next Allen County Commissioner because I think you are tired of the noise, the bickering, the waste of our shared treasure and of government that spends too much time thinking of itself and too little time concerned about the community.  I know I sure am.

I am running for Commissioner in 2012 because I think I can do the job better.  Plain and simple.  That’s my answer, in case you’d like to know.

In 2008, John implemented a first-in-Indiana system for protecting Allen County citizens and their families from property fraud, a new and onerous form of identity theft. This new and onerous form of identity theft, which inordinately preys upon the elderly and those who have invested great equity in their homes, has appeared all over the United States.  Today, more than 8,000 Allen County residents receive FREE protection from property fraud thanks to the service implemented under John’s leadership.

He also spearheaded a statewide partnership between recorders and the Indiana Attorney General’s Office to promote awareness of property fraud and steps property owners could take to protect themselves.  It was the second such partnership John led.  In 2007, he organized a statewide effort between recorders and the Attorney General to protect consumers against commercial appeals offering to sell property records at exorbitant prices.

Under his leadership, the Allen County Recorder’s Office transformed from a process-driven office with a 6-8 week turnaround into a customer-driven office with a one-day turnaround.  Today, customers of the recorder’s office have an unprecedented variety of options by which they can transact important business with government, ranging from the purchase of homes to the filing of documents that give veterans access to important benefits.

At the same time, John implemented changes that reduced staffing by 25 percent and cut his office’s consumption of tax dollars by nearly 73 percent.

In 2008, he implemented a one-of-a kind online Neighborhood Resource Center that provides citizens with free access to neighborhood covenants, meeting information, association president listings and a countywide collection of subdivision maps.  This is the kind of information that promotes awareness, allows citizens to use their property with more ease and reduces preventable conflicts with between neighbors.

He also proposed and successfully lobbied for the passage of a ordinance requiring county government to place information about spending online.  Citizens now have an unprecedented ability to keep track of where their tax dollars are being spent.

In addition, the recorder’s office, under John’s leadership, made more than 40 years worth of property records available online, reducing the need for citizens to come downtown for information about their deeds, mortgages and other records.

But far more importantly, you will find answers to the question “Why should I elect John McGauley as my next County Commissioner?”

My goals in government have been simple and consistent.  I proven time and time again the ability to deliver government services in new, innovative ways that have made it easier to understand our community and to do business in Allen County.

Wherever I have promised to make an improvement, I have delivered.  Every time.

At the same time, I have found and implemented ways to make government to become smaller and less costly to you.  How many Allen County offices have slashed their consumption of tax dollars, led the state in innovation and achieved a customer focus that’s second-to-none?  One.  That is the record I have achieved as Allen County Recorder.

It’s a record of leadership through innovation that I would like to take to the Allen County Commissioners Office.  I look forward to proving why I’m worthy of your trust.