change the law. Eliminate Township Public Support, the taxpayer-funded fraud of the 1850s. Think taxpayers first, not township supervisors. By law, the Illinois Township Government Supervisor is responsible for only one of his functions: General Assistance, Assistance to the Poor. The GA was a program founded in 1850 when township government was born at a time when most townships had less than 50 inhabitants of his.
General Assistance is a state-law public assistance program for qualified individuals with very low or no income who are ineligible for any form of public benefit.
A snapshot view from the Freedom of Information survey results for 17 townships in McHenry County for 2020-2021. In the fiscal year, only 164 clients in 17 townships were eligible for assistance. Eight townships had no customers, but the supervisor made $192,920. Two townships had two eligible, one township had three and the other had five.
The amount of aid provided was only $4,704. But the supervisor pocketed $113,402. In 17 townships, the taxpayer puts his $1,361,301 of his hard-earned taxes into fund balances. They will also seek new levies of $382,326.
Illinois is the only state with general assistance for inefficient and wasteful townships.
Functions and Duties of Townships’ General assistance has been supplanted by many other forms of public assistance.
Call to Action: Contact your state’s Springfield legislator and tell them to support eliminating general aid in townships.
Bob Anderson
Wonder Lake
