MOUNT VERNON — County township associations were formed to promote and preserve township government, but a lack of interest in Knox County’s association may jeopardize that purpose.
Ashland County formed the first county township association (CTA) in 1922. Mercer, Wood, Ashtabula, and Hardin counties followed.
Knox County, along with 40 others, established its CTA in 1928 in the wake of an 86th General Assembly report recommending the state abolish townships.
The CTAs formed a statewide organization to respond to the threat of abolition. As a result of their advocacy, the state legislature never introduced a bill to abolish the townships.
Heidi Fought, executive director of the Ohio Township Association, told Knox CTA members at its quarterly meeting on Tuesday that townships are facing a similar threat from the movement to abolish property taxes and House Bill 335.
“We were formed to fight these types of fights. So if your county township association goes away, who’s fighting that fight in Knox County?” Fought asked.
She noted that neither the county commissioners nor the auditor can fight the townships’ fight because they are fighting their own fights.
“Are you all going to go away? Are you going to become a big unified government, or are you going to all fall under Mount Vernon?
“I’m not trying to say things that are just to scare you. That’s the reality that we are looking at,” Fought said.
Fought said she wants a strong Knox County because it has 22 townships.
That means 88 elected officials, plus zoning commission and Board of Zoning Appeals members, road crews, and fire departments.
“Start adding all those people in, and you’re a vital piece to the makeup of Knox County,” she said. “So we don’t want the Knox County Township Association to go away.”
Dwindling participation
Tammy Faucett, fiscal officer for Harrison Township, has served as CTA treasurer for four years.
Allie Matheny, Morgan Township fiscal officer, has likewise served four years as secretary.
Both have resigned their positions after repeatedly asking others to step up.
Fought encouraged CTA members to brainstorm and figure out ways to fill those positions. That includes finding a way to engage younger people and long-established township officials.
“We’ve got to find a way to get them in here, because the value of the CTA to you as township officials is too important, especially at this critical time that we are facing at the General Assembly,” Fought said.
“The future of township government is at stake, and especially it’s the future of township government in the county.”
Heidi Fought, executive director of the ohio township association
Ideas include having each township fill the officer positions on a rotating basis for a year, having four townships fill the positions at a time, combining the secretary and treasurer positions, and adding a membership or speaker recruitment position to spread the responsibilities.
Other areas for improvement include communication, which townships could enhance by hiring a central communications person, developing an app, or establishing a county township association website.
Knox County’s association paid its OTA dues through June 2026. However, Knox will not be a member of the OTA if there is no county association.
That means benefits such as the Bureau of Workers’ Compensation and OTARMA (Ohio Township Association Risk Management Authority) disappear along with other benefits.
Faucett said 17 townships use OTARMA for liability insurance, and 19 use BWC.
Action items for the Sept. 16 township association meeting
Fought told the CTA members they have to “toot their own horn.”
“I know township officials, they don’t like to toot their own horn. They just want to do the job. You guys just keep plugging along because that’s what you do. You just take it on the chin every time,” she said.
“And that’s great because you guys are resilient, but at what point do you fight back? At what point do you need to say, no, we are 22 townships strong. We are important in this county. What we do is important.”
Fought will send a letter to township officials stressing the importance of attending the CTA’s Sept. 16 meeting at 6:30 p.m. at Knox Memorial.
“I like to call it the future of township government,” Fought said. “The future of township government is at stake, and especially it’s the future of township government in the county.”
Volunteers will also contact township officials about the meeting, and the officials present were encouraged to reach out to their neighboring trustees.
