Ald. Grover Talks Consolidation with State Task Force

Evanston 7th Ward Alderman Jane Grover testified before the state’s Local Government Consolidation and Unfunded Mandates Task Force on Monday on her experience with the dissolution of the Evanston Township in 2014.

Grover discussed the details of the local consolidation, which was only the third time in Illinois history voters chose to dissolve a township. She touched on the transferring of services to departments governed by the city of Evanston, including the general assistance and emergency programs being transferred to the Health & Human Services department.

The Illinois task force is headed by Lieutenant Governor Evelyn Sanguinetti, who stated Illinois currently has the most units of local government, at nearly 7,000 units, which is the highest in the country by more than 1,800 units. The mission of the Task Force is to “reduce the heavy burden on Illinois taxpayers by empowering citizens and government officials to streamline local government through consolidation and eliminating unnecessary state mandates.”