The (Columbus) Republic newspaper today published several stories on important races and issues facing local voters this fall.
One of the stories was on the Columbus Township Trustee race, of which I am one of the contestants. I am unable to post the entire article here, but you can read it by clicking here. I will, however, provide what I sent to The Republic for the article. There were a few minor editing changes made to it, but for all intents and purposes, below is what I had to say.
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Paul Hoffman
AGE: 63
JOB: President, PathBinder Publishing LLC
EDUCATION: University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee, bachelor’s in mass communications (radio/TV sequence).
FAMILY: Wife, Kimberly Hoffman, four children, two stepchildren, and a granddaughter.
PAST POLITICAL EXPERIENCE: Candidate for city council and county council, precinct chair.
OTHER MEMBERSHIPS: Bartholomew County Historical Society, Friends of the Bartholomew County Public library, First Presbyterian Church.
What is your background?
A resident of Columbus for 17 years and south-central Indiana for more than 30 years, I am an author, book publisher, actor in community theater, and former career journalist.
I’ve written three nonfiction books, including Wicked Columbus, Indiana, and 200 Years of First Presbyterian Church Columbus, Indiana. My 34-year journalism career included work as a sports editor, news editor, and special publications editor.
I raised my daughters in Columbus, and my wife is a lifelong resident of the city.
What are the biggest issues facing your township?
Corruption is number one. At least six trustees in the past 13 years were investigated for misuse/theft of township funds in Bartholomew County, including at least four who were charged with felonies. The worst case was the last person elected Columbus Township Trustee, Ben Jackson, who is now in prison for stealing $1.12 million in taxpayer dollars that were earmarked to help with poor relief and Columbus Township Fire & Rescue. Jackson’s predecessor was forced to resign for forging an email to try to cover for his own mistake and was under investigation for misuse of township funds when he passed away.
The corruption in this township over the last decade that advisors failed to report was one of the reasons the township denied one-third of the requests it received for help in 2024. That was the highest denial rate among townships in Bartholomew County that received more than 10 requests and nearly triple the next highest rate. Meanwhile, the U.S. Census Bureau estimates that Columbus Township has the third highest poverty rate among the 12 townships in the county, suggesting the potential for an elevated need for assistance.
The corruption also led to the underfunding of such great organizations as Love Chapel, and United Way, which could not help as many people as they would have otherwise. It also prevented the fire department from acquiring necessary equipment.
Another issue is getting people the help they need quicker. We need to work with our partners and the courts to streamline that process.
Communities across the state are tightening their financial belts after last year’s SEA 1 overhauled the state’s tax system. How would you promote fiscal responsibility?
Cutting taxes always sounds great on the surface. But we all want clean water, safe food, great public schools, well-equipped and well-trained fire and police protection, well-maintained parks, etc. Those are paid through taxes. Nobody wants their house or business to burn down because we chose to gut the fire department’s funding.
I’m certainly not for raising taxes nor overtaxing folks, and I understand what the financial stress we’re under here. But the problem isn’t that we’re taxed too much; it’s that fuel, food, vehicles and health care costs too much, and we make too little.
Not only is SEA 1 hurting communities and their public-school systems, but the small amount we’ll save on property taxes is nothing compared to what we will lose due to the cost of everything else. It’s the “everything else” that needs to change.
Therefore, I’d first promote fiscal responsibility by voting out the state and national Republicans who chose to do this to hard-working Hoosiers and Americans. We need a change, so you and I can afford to care for our families, and our service providers can afford to care for all of us.
Meanwhile, I’ll be looking at ways the township can increase income and decrease expenses without hindering services or negatively impacting township employees. For one thing, we’ll look into the financial impact of potentially selling the township trustee building and moving into the Doug Otto (United Way) Building, where so many service providers are located.
Townships have been in the spotlight recently, particularly Columbus Township following the scandal involving ex-trustee Ben Jackson, who stole and misused $1.12 million in public funds over an eight-year period. What would you do to restore trust in the office and prevent something like that from happening again?
All the trustees investigated for misuse of township funds over the past 13 years here were Republicans. All the members of the advisory boards who turned the other way and failed to stop Ben Jackson were all Republicans; two of whom are on your ballot again this year … seriously! If you want to end corruption, you need to end the one-party rule that has had a stranglehold on our county government for 40 years and on Columbus Township for decades. That’s what you can do.
The first thing I can do is hire an outside firm to conduct an annual audit. The corruption has come inside the trustees’ offices, so to assure the public that we are serious about ending corruption, we can’t hire the safeguard to work inside the office. The safeguard must come from outside the office.
We need to make the “good ol’ boy” culture vanish for good; checks and balances need to be restored; and people both inside and outside the office need to feel comfortable asking questions, making suggestions; and raising concerns.
State lawmakers have been pushing for years to do away with townships. What is the value of still having township government in the 21st century?
It’s said that township government is the purest form of government. It’s hyper local (in many cases, trustees know the people coming to their offices), and according to the Indiana Township Association, is the largest unhoused prevention system in Indiana, and when crisis hits, is often one of the first and last lines of defense.
In some areas, perhaps the duties of township government could be included in county or municipal governments. But in many cases, transportation is already an issue for people who come to the trustee. I wouldn’t want to unnecessarily place an extra burden on those people.
There’s been a push for either mergers or elimination of townships. Some counties have merged townships (Johnson County, a notable example). I would study those to see how they are working.
How are you qualified for office?
I have an extensive background in gathering facts, communications, leadership, and service to the community.
I spent 34 years in journalism, the great bulk of that in positions that required managing people and resources. Included in that was a stint as Group Special Publications Editor with AIM Media Indiana and its predecessor, Home News Enterprises, based in Columbus.
I’m a graduate and former co-liaison committee chair, Leadership Johnson County and serve as Clerk of Session and Elder at First Presbyterian Church, Columbus, where I have served as a member of social justice and housing committees.
The great bulk of what we do on the social justice committee is the same as what the trustee does. People and organizations come to us with a need. We examine the need, find out where else the applicant is getting aid, and determine how best we can help. Sometimes that’s with direct aid, sometimes by referring them to an agency that’s a better fit.
Our work on the housing committee has led to the approval of Columbus’ first permanent supportive housing project, Hutchins Crossing.
I have also served as a youth soccer coach and Cub Scout Cubmaster.
What can voters expect from you if elected?
I will listen to the professionals who direct other service organizations to understand how the trustees office can better help them help their clients. I will make sure we serve our neighbors, protect our communities, and prevent crises by focusing on emergency assistance and poor relief, as well as supporting our township fire department.
I’ll do it through collaboration with the advisory board, township employees, and service providers. We will all do it with honesty, compassion, hard work, creativity, accountability, and transparency.
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