Should all assessing be done at the county level?

This article is actually from several days ago, but really is worth pointing out. The Peru Tribune reports that a township trustee assessor in Miami County has apparently not turned in required reports to either county government or the state for some time.

IAR supported a bill in the last session of the General Assembly (SEA 308) that would allow counties to withhold the part of an assessor's salary that is associated with real property assessment unless certain certifications are obtained by the assessor. It also allows a county to take over the real property assessment in a township if a trustee assessor fails to meet the required certifications. This is a long way from consolidating assessment at the county level as has been recommended by the non-partisan Indiana Fiscal Policy Institute, but it is a step in the right direction.

By the way, here are some fun facts from the Legislative Services Agency on the number of assessing officials in Indiana and their certification levels:

As of January 2005, of the 1,008 townships in the state, 177 had elected assessors and 831 had trustee assessors. With respect to certification levels, 11 county assessors had obtained a Level I and 71 had obtained Level II. For elected township assessors, 16 had attained Level I and 107 had attained Level II. For township trustee-assessors, 68 had attained Level I and 63 had attained Level II.