The Taxpayers' Action Network is backing up, taking a breath and regrouping.

According to TAN spokesman Elizabeth Cole, the group, which serves as a watchdog over how tax dollars are spent by local government, is looking at reorganizing to become more effective and attract new members.

"At this moment, TAN is going through a reorganization and will be pretty dormant until the end of the year," Cole said. "We think TAN is incredibly important for the community, not only in making sure their tax dollars are being used wisely and efficiently, but also to inform them on how their government works."

She said TAN is a non-partisan, unbiased group of concerned citizens. Some of the issues it will address in the coming year are expected to be the proposed Economic Development Income Tax, a countywide sewer system, a possible expansion of the Kosciusko County jail and a proposed juvenile detention system.

"Basically, we'll be looking at anything that will affect the tax base," Cole said.

Board member Don Miller said the recent resignations of the president, Joy Fair, and vice president, Ralph Prater, has left the group with a void at the top and that, combined with the holiday season approaching, necessitates the group suspending its functions until January.

"It's just a matter of officers," he said. "We had elections in September, but the president and vice president have since resigned, so we need to get them replaced. We're kind of in a state of limbo because of where the core people are right now.

"December is a busy time for families, so we thought it was best for us to come back after the first of the year and focus on restructuring," Miller said.

The need for the reorganization was recently highlighted when the TAN-sponsored candidates' forum between sheriff candidates Aaron Rovenstine and Jeff Bronsing was cancelled. The event was organized by TAN member Herschel Rainwater, Cole said.

She said Rovenstine declined to participate as early as August due to a scheduling conflict, Cole said. Rainwater's efforts were sanctioned by two TAN board members, she said, but they weren't approved by the full TAN board of directors.

"Aaron Rovenstine never agreed to participate in the debate, and it wasn't fair for him to be portrayed as pulling out of the debate," Cole said.

Board member John Bell said he supports the reorganization efforts of the citizens' group, and he hopes more, younger members can be brought into the fold.

"The people who have been running it have been doing it a long time, and they may have become a little burned out on it," he said. "And we need to look at what are the thoughts of the younger taxpayers in the county."

Miller said he's convinced the group will come back in 1999 a stronger, more effective citizens' group.

"We'll continue to be a political taxpayer advocacy group and will continue to focus on local and state issues affecting the local citizen," he said. "But it has to be an open, nonpartisan, non-prejudicial organization, and that hasn't always been the case." [[In-content Ad]]