We’ve sung the praises of MySmartGov before, but just want to reiterate the importance of the Township Assessor question by referencing the site, which outlines why this is such an important subject for taxpayers:

Until recently, property in Indiana was assessed by 1,008 township assessors in 1,008 different ways. Some assessors’ work may have been impeccable, but the taxpayers in their townships still may have been paying more than their fair share of taxes because of the less competent job by an assessor down the road.

In fact, a 2005 study by the Indiana Fiscal Policy Institute found that 80 percent of the townships did not meet international standards for uniformity. The assessments were well outside the accepted error rate of plus or minus 15 percent – that is, international standards say it is acceptable for a $100,000 house to be assessed anywhere from $85,000 to $115,000.

Our advice: You want to vote "Yes" on the ballot question, "Should the assessing duties of the elected township assessor in the township be transferred to the county assessor?"

But will you even be able to vote on this important initiative? Check here to see if your township will be voting on the matter.

As we approach the last Election Day on November 4, here is a list of key numbers and percentages that have greatly influenced this election.

• 91% – Percentage of the national population that rates the economic conditions as “only fair" or “poor,” according to Gallup
• 40% – Key percentage to look for in Indiana is if Obama can win 40% or more of the white vote. If Obama goes north of this number, he likely wins Indiana
• I 30-49 – Independent 30-49 year old middle age voters are critical in deciding who will win Indiana’s eleven electoral votes
• 26 – MINIMUM number of new legislators that will show up for the 2009 Indiana General Assembly. This number is likely to go up following the defeat of incumbents
• 76 – Number of IBRG Endorsed legislative candidates in 2008
• 1 – Number of truly competitive Senate races on IBRG’s radar screen
• 8 – Number of competitive House races IBRG is playing in today
• 13 – House races that are either lean or toss-up
• +2 R / +3 D – This is the likely range for party change in the Indiana House
• 345,582 - Newly registered voters in 2008 alone (8.4% of voters)
• 525,264 – Newly registered voters since 2006 General Election. That means that 12.7% of voters are newly registered since 2006. This is a huge NEW voting block that did not exist two years ago.
• 455,035 – Absentee ballots cast as of last night. This is already 11% of total registered voters (4,135,301 active voters).

Finally, the last number that may matter most to all of us – 4; there are only four days left to vote.