Guiding Communities
Through Change
Indiana's Government Modernization Act gives communities the power to shape their own future. Conrad Consulting is your trusted guide through the process.
⚑ Senate Bill 270 has passed. Townships that act under IC 36-1.5 before June 30, 2027 are exempt from mandatory state-directed mergers. The clock is running.
THE MOMENT IS NOW
Indiana's Local Government Landscape Is Changing
In early 2026, the Indiana General Assembly passed Senate Bill 270, now Public Law 134 — landmark legislation
that will require hundreds of Indiana's 1,000-plus townships to merge, either with neighboring
townships or with municipalities, based on a state-administered performance evaluation.
Townships that fail to accumulate sufficient points — assessed on factors such as whether they operate fire
departments, provide emergency financial assistance, file timely financial reports, and field candidates in
trustee elections — face mandatory consolidation on a state-determined timeline, with all mergers to take
effect no later than January 1, 2029.
"PL 134 is a signal, not a starting gun. The only question now is whether communities will shape that change themselves — or have it shaped for them." - Todd Burtron
That is precisely where Indiana's Government Modernization Act (IC 36-1.5) becomes a critical tool. PL 134
includes an important exemption: townships that take proactive steps toward reorganization under
existing state law by June 30, 2027 are shielded from the mandatory merger process. Communities that act
under IC 36-1.5 can define their own terms — their own structure, their own services, their own identity.
Conrad Consulting is a trusted partner for communities that choose to lead.
What Is the Indiana Government Modernization Act?
Indiana's Government Modernization Act (IC 36-1.5) gives local units of government — towns, townships,
cities, counties, and school corporations — the legal authority to consolidate their governments through a
citizen referendum. It is not a state mandate. It is an invitation: an opportunity for communities to take
control of their own destiny by choosing to reorganize on their own terms, rather than having those terms imposed from the outside.
The process is intentional by design. It requires local legislative bodies to form a reorganization committee,
develop a detailed plan of reorganization, conduct a thorough fiscal analysis, hold public meetings, and
ultimately submit the question directly to voters.
DONE WELL
A transparent, community-driven exercise in local democracy — with the community controlling its own structure, services, and identity.
DONE POORLY — OR NOT AT ALL
Communities remain exposed to state-directed mergers, county-driven development, and annexation pressure from neighboring municipalities.
WHO WE ARE
Conrad Consulting: Local Government Expertise, Local Values
Conrad Consulting is an Indiana-based consulting firm with deep understanding and experience in local
government operations, municipal finance, strategic planning, and community engagement. I specialize in
guiding communities through complex governmental processes, including reorganization under IC 36-1.5 — a process that demands both technical precision and genuine community trust.
My approach is rooted in a simple belief: the best reorganization plan is one that the community helped build and genuinely wants. We don't impose solutions from the outside. I listen. I analyze. I translate complex legal and fiscal requirements into clear, accessible information that residents and elected officials can act on.
I work beside clients every step of the way — through the difficult conversations, the public scrutiny, and ultimately, the vote.
A Recent Success Story: Town of Sheridan & Adams Township
On November 5, 2024, the residents of Sheridan and Adams Township in Hamilton County delivered a resounding answer to a question that had defined their community for years: Who should control our future?
73%
SHERIDAN VOTERS IN FAVOR
62%
ADAMS TOWNSHIP VOTERS IN FAVOR
3rd
INDIANA COMMUNITY TO REORGANIZE
The reorganization took effect January 1, 2025, making Sheridan only the third Indiana community to
successfully complete a government reorganization under the Government Modernization Act — following
Zionsville and Yorktown. Conrad Consulting was proud to serve as the consulting partner to the Town of Sheridan throughout this process.
The stakes were real. Adams Township — a 48-square-mile expanse in the northwest corner of Hamilton County — sat at the center of competing interests. Larger municipalities pressed at its edges. Hamilton County had acquired land for a large workforce housing development that many residents believed was out of step with the community's rural, agricultural identity. Without reorganization, Sheridan had no planning or zoning authority beyond its existing boundaries.
WHAT WAS ACHIEVED
The Reorganization Changed Everything
Under the plan Conrad Consulting helped develop and execute:
❖ Full planning and zoning authority gained
Sheridan now controls land use decisions over all of Adams Township, ending county jurisdiction over
unincorporated development in the area.
❖ Population grew from 3,100 to 5,200 residents
Reflecting the full community that depends on Sheridan's services and schools — and giving those residents a
true voice in local government.
❖ Town Council expanded from five to seven members
Ensuring proportional local representation for the newly unified community.
❖ Sheridan Community Schools protected
The reorganization prevents unplanned residential growth that could have overwhelmed school capacity.
❖ Annexation threat neutralized
Neighboring municipalities had been actively targeting Adams Township land. Reorganization closed that door
on the community's own terms.
❖ Township services continued without interruption
Adams Township Trustee transitioned into a new administrative role, preserving essential
assistance programs for residents in need.
None of this happened by accident. It happened because a committed group of local officials and community members had the courage to pursue reorganization — and because they had a consulting partner who understood the process, the community, and the complexity involved.
THE URGENCY
Why Reorganization — and Why Now?
■ KEY DEADLINE: JUNE 30, 2027
PL 134 Has Reset the Clock for Every Township in Indiana
Communities that wait risk losing the most valuable thing the Government Modernization Act offers:
choice. The proactive path under IC 36-1.5 allows a community to determine who it reorganizes with,
what the new government looks like, which services it provides, and how its identity is preserved in the process.
The mandatory path under PL 134 offers none of those guarantees.
Communities that act proactively under IC 36-1.5 retain control: control over the timeline, control
over the structure of the new government, control over the services provided, and control over the
values reflected in the plan. Communities that wait may find that control transferred to others.