SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) — Downstate Senate Republicans are concerned with Gov. JB Pritzker's plan to consolidate townships in small communities. 

The proposal could eliminate the office of township assessor in counties with less than 5,000 people. Pritzker administration officials explained the legislation would enable community-led township consolidation and allow county boards to create referendums on the countywide elimination of township organization.

Still, Sen. Chapin Rose (R-Mahomet) told reporters in Springfield Thursday that merging townships will lead to massive tax hikes.

"We will be raising people's property taxes if Governor Pritzker's idea were to become law because the county simply cannot perform the same services at the level the townships are doing it when you've got staff already on retainer," Rose said.

Senate Republicans said they prefer a grassroots effort where the public would vote on referendums to consolidate any body of local government if it is not needed. Sen. Chris Balkema (R-Channahon) filed Senate Bill 1347 to allow voters to petition for a referendum to dissolve units of local government and transfer property, personnel, contractual obligations and liabilities to receiving units of local government.

"Let's work together to do a grassroots up approach," Balkema said. "Let's put language out there that reduces some of the bureaucracy that exists today. If you're a fire district and I'm a fire district and we want to consolidate, there's a bunch of red tape we need to go through. SB 1347 would remove that red tape." 

The Pritzker administration argued their legislation empowers taxpayers to reduce or eliminate duplicative taxing bodies and increases the efficiency of service to local communities. 

Senate Bill 2217 is currently assigned to the Senate Executive Committee. Although, the measure did not receive a hearing before the Senate committee deadline Thursday. 

Copyright 2025. WAND TV. All rights reserved.