The town of Griffith's vote to secede from Calumet Township, scheduled for Dec. 20, has been postponed indefinitely, according to a motion filed by the town in Lake Superior Court.

Court documents obtained by the Post-Tribune late Thursday show that the town on Wednesday filed a motion formally requesting to reschedule a Nov. 22 hearing on the relief complaint that Calumet Trustee Kim Robinson filed. The hearing on that complaint was originally set for Nov. 9, but Robinson filed to have it changed initially.

Griffith Town Council President Rick Ryfa said it was a matter of timing, as the hearing would be less than 30 days from the scheduled referendum vote.

“Our legal team believes it is best to hold off and make sure we have everything in order with the lawsuit filed by the township before moving forward,” he said. “We are disappointed the election is being delayed. We have been working at this for many years; a few months will not make a difference.”

Jim Wieser, Lake County election board attorney, said the board received an email at 4:18 p.m. Thursday from Ryfa saying the town would like to withdraw its request for a special election.

“We have considered the issues raised in the civil action. ... At this time the town wishes to withdraw the certification and request the election not be held,” Ryfa said in the email to Wieser.

Wieser said the election board acted Friday to cancel the special election.

Ryfa, R-3rd, approached the Lake County election board and “formerly requested that the special election scheduled for Dec. 20, 2016, be postponed indefinitely,” the motion states. The election board granted the postponement; as such, the emergency relief complaint was dismissed, and the town requested a continuance so “the parties have the time and opportunity to conduct discovery to explore the several issues raised by the plaintiff.”

In the complaint for relief, filed Oct. 31, Robinson asked the court to stop the Department of Local Government Finance from changing the tax rate calculation “without notice” and “without affording the affected municipalities and townships an opportunity to be heard or plan for the change.” It also asked the court to declare the town of Griffith ineligible for secession.

Griffith's argument to split from Calumet Township is that state law mandates townships keep spending within 12 times the state township average, and Calumet Township is above that mark, but the number is different depending on the interpretation of “average” in the state law. Township attorney Tony Walker wrote that an amendment to state code enacted in July 2015 requires the current year's township assistance tax rate to be compared with the previous year's when determining whether the township's tax rate exceeds the limit.

Since the Department of Local Government Finance's certification dates are February 2016 and February 2017, the township further reduced its budget after its original submission, Walker wrote.

As well, the DLGF in September changed its formula to the arithmetic mean from the weighted mean “in response to an opinion provided to (State) Representative Hal Slager by the Indiana Attorney General.” The change, however, was instituted without an appropriate rule-making process, which violates the Administrative Rules and Procedures Act, Walker wrote.

Walker wrote that Calumet Township's assistance rate “is not 12 times the 2015 statewide average township assistance rate the DLGF set in March 2015.” Additionally, because the 2017 tax rate has yet to be certified by the DLGF, there's no way to tell if the town will be eligible based on the 2017 rate compared with the DLGF's 2016 certified rate.

Walker also wrote the DLGF would not be harmed if it's unable to use the arithmetic mean, but other townships, such as Wayne Township and Center Township, could be harmed if Fort Wayne decided to leave Wayne Township and Muncie Center Township.

Robinson said Thursday night that she's pleased with the outcome — for now.

“I am sure this is far from over, but we will remain diligent in working on behalf of our constituency so that all are able to continue to receive relief as needed,” Robinson said. “I look forward to a better working relationship with the town of Griffith as their township trustee.”

Michelle L. Quinn is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.