One of the many unique aspects of Township government is how much direct participation the electors, or residents, have in the governing process. Next week on April 8th is the City of Champaign Township Annual Meeting. This meeting is mandated by statute and is different than any other Township meeting. At the annual meeting, the Chairman and Trustees do not participate in the meeting in their normal status, rather they are in the audience and make up one of the many electors we hope to participate in the meeting. The meeting is run by a moderator picked by the electors the night of the meeting. A mediator can be anyone but must be a resident of the City of Champaign Township. Business is handled by the moderator and the electors vote on such business.
This year we have very little in the way of business at the annual meeting. One area I’d like to touch on is the Supervisor’s Annual Financial Report. This item is also mandated by statute and is intended to give you, the electors, a clear picture of the Township’s finances. The statute states a statement of finances from the period of 4/1 through 3/31 should be provided to the electors and placed on record. This is the process that has been followed in Champaign for many years. The City of Champaign Township’s fiscal year runs from 7/1 through 6/30 of the following year. Based on this, a report from 4/1 through 3/31 wouldn’t give the electors a clear picture of a fiscal year’s finances because we would be looking at 1/3rd of one fiscal year and 2/3rds of another fiscal year.
After talking to our counsel as well as representatives from the Township Officials of Illinois, it was decided that because we are a coterminous township and our fiscal year is different as well as the fact the intent is transparency and clarity of our financial statements when providing the report, we will provide the annual report in a format that follows our fiscal year. Beginning this meeting, the Supervisor’s Annual Financial Report will reflect our last completed fiscal year of 13/14. Next annual meeting will provide a 14/15 report and we will continue that cycle. I hope this offers more clarity as to our finances and simplifies the process for not only our office but for the electors. Please contact me if you have any questions.
Lastly, I have added a power of electors sheet in an attachment below. Please review this prior to the meeting on April 8th. It will give a better understanding of the process you can expect to see.
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