In a significant move to streamline local governance, a new bill was introduced in the Illinois State Senate to amend the Township Code. The proposed legislation mandates that all townships with a population of less than 5,000 be dissolved, forcing them to either consolidate with adjacent townships or integrate into their respective counties.

Delavan Township, which has a population of 1,934 residents, is part of this initiative. Illinois State Senator Suzy Glowiak Hilton, D-Western Springs, introduced Senate Bill 2217 to eliminate redundant layers of local government. Illinois, which counts nearly 10,000 local government units, has the highest number of taxing bodies in the United States.

State Senator Chris Balkema, R-Channahon, also proposed a similar measure that aims to simplify the process for local government units to consolidate voluntarily by removing bureaucratic hurdles, though it doesn’t mandate their elimination.

Senate Bill 2217 is currently pending committee assignment as legislators weigh the bill's potential impact on local governance and community structure.

In related news, the Annual Delavan Town Meeting to consider the budget for the year will be held on Tuesday, April 8 at 7:00 PM at the Delavan Township Building, located at 1005 W. 4th Street.

LEGISLATIVE LANGUAGE

A BILL FOR
SB2217   LRB104 09882 RTM 19951 b
1		AN ACT concerning local government.
2		Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3		represented in the General Assembly:
4		Section 5. The Township Code is amended by adding Article
5		24.5 as follows:
6		(60 ILCS 1/Art. 24.5 heading new)
7		ARTICLE 24.5. DISSOLUTION OF TOWNSHIPS WITH A POPULATION LESS
8		THAN 5000
9		(60 ILCS 1/24.5-5 new)
10		Sec. 24.5-5. Dissolving townships with a population of
11		less than 500. All townships with a population less than 5000
12		are dissolved and must either consolidate with an adjacent
13		township or the county containing the geographic boundaries of
14		the dissolving township