Local Voices: Thornton Township’s proposed budget could be Tiffany Henyard’s biggest crime yet

Submitted by Paul Robertz

I believe that each township is required to allow the public to ask questions about the budget, and that residents have the ability to amend the budget before it is put up to vote by the trustees.

If you look at page 15 of the professional looking proposed budget below, you will see the five month long process of involving the public in the budget. I don’t believe any of this happened.

I do read that the budget mentions that “Thornton Township is committed to realizing Supervisor Henyard’s vision” and goes on to propose salary increases of 37% over last year and an increase of 49.87% in the General Fund while forecasting lower tax revenue and proposing further cuts to the Assessor’s office.

Earlier this week I tried calling the clerk’s office. On my third attempt someone picked up the phone. I asked only for the time and location of the public forum to discuss the proposed 2025 township budget. The woman answering put me on hold while she asked a co-worker, and instead of answering my question, transferred me directly to finance director Robert Hunt. He was cordial, and acted helpful. The meeting is scheduled concurrently with the regularly scheduled board meeting on May 28, 6 p.m. at headquarters.

When I asked him if it would be in the large room downstairs or in the small boardroom upstairs, he replied that it depends on public turnout. I told him that I expected a low turnout, since nothing has been posted on the township’s website, in our mailboxes, or in The Lansing Journal. He told me a couple of times that he posted notice of the meeting in three newspapers as required by law (NW Indiana Times, Daily Southtown, and The Shopper) but could not tell me why he did not use The Lansing Journal or the clerk’s office.

When I told him that I appreciate his efforts to increase transparency in this administration, he agreed with me, but said that every trustee will be able to ask all the questions they have about the budget to him or the Supervisor. He did not guarantee the residents’ right to do the same. Perhaps someone can point to a specific Illinois law concerning the public’s rights to question a township budget.

Yes, I know that budgets are considered boring by most people. Tiffany Henyard gets increased spending money if no one knows about the proposed budget, passed by her three rubber stamp trustees doing business as usual in a small room. Public dissent is anathema to her vision, as we saw at the last Annual Township Meeting, when no one could view the budget they were asked to vote on.

I am submitting this because The Lansing Journal sticks to factual local reporting even when you could get attention by focusing on the sensational cars, houses, furniture, and sex lives of Henyard supporters, as so many media outlets do. However, I see this proposed budget as an impending crime bigger than much of what gets reported about Thornton Township these days. I trust that The Lansing Journal and its reporters will handle this appropriately.

Paul Robertz

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The proposed 2025 budget is a 62-page PDF, available for viewing or download by clicking on the link below:

• Thornton-Township_2025-Tentative-Annual-Budget-compressed.pdf (File size: 15.5mb)