Role of the Township Board

The Township Board of Trustees is the legislative branch of the Township government. Each single township has four Trustees and a Supervisor, which comprise the Board. Each board member is elected at large within the township and has one vote on all issues before the Township Board. The policies enacted by the Township Board are executed by the Supervisor and the Clerk. The Trustees may not establish policy for either the Township Assessor or Highway Commissioner. Trustees do, however, certify tax levies for the Township and Road District. For the Road District, the amount of the levy is determined by the Highway Commissioner.

In their capacity as Legislative Officers, Trustees adopt the Annual Town Budget and Appropriation Ordinance, the General Assistance budget and the Road District budget. Trustees also are responsible for approving all Township expenses and auditing bills submitted for payment by the Highway Commissioner.

The Trustees are obligated to approve all legally incurred bills, that is, those appropriated for expenditure. Trustees also must reject for payment all requests that are not debts which have been legally incurred by the Township. With few exceptions, the Supervisor may make no payments without approval of the Board of Trustees. There are exceptions: payments for General Assistance claims, and Township and Highway Department employees’ salaries.

Government

Algonquin Township is the largest Township in McHenry County with a population of over 87,000 residents covering 48 square miles.  The Township includes the communities of Algonquin, Barrington Hills, Cary, Crystal Lake, Fox River Grove, Lake in the Hills, Port Barrington, Lakewood, Oakwood Hills, and Trout Valley.  The Algonquin Township provides a high quality of life for its residents by providing road maintenance, General Assistance, and property assessment in a fiscally responsible manner.

Algonquin Township has elected positions of: Supervisor, Assessor, Highway Commissioner, Clerk, and 4 members serving on the Board of Trustees. In addition, The Supervisor’s office staffs 2 full time employees, the Assessor’s office employs 5 full time employees and 1 part time employee and the Road District staff includes 10 full time employees, 1-3 seasonal employees (varies with time of year) and 3 part-time employees.

By Law, Illinois townships are charged with three basic functions:

1. General Assistance for the indigent
2. The Assessment of real property for the basis of local taxation
3. The maintenance of all roads and bridges outside federal, state, and other local jurisdictions