Porter County Council members who opted to withdraw the county from the Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority have retained an Indianapolis law firm for legal representation.

By the same 4-3 vote as when they voted to withdraw from the RDA, the council on Tuesday retained the Bose McKinney & Evans firm of Indianapolis for legal guidance in the RDA dispute. Council members originally offered the job to another law firm, Hall Render, which was the firm that assisted the county attorneys in the sale of Porter Hospital.

Council member Dan Whitten, D-at large, said council members met with both firms and decided that Bose McKinney & Evans was a better fit because of its experience in local government matters.

Whether the council was within its legal rights to withdraw from the RDA has not been resolved. The RDA has asked the Indiana Attorney General to issue a legal opinion, but that opinion has not been given yet.

Council members did not stipulate a maximum that will be paid. The firm’s hourly rate is between $315 and $335. Whitten said that’s a “negligible cost” compared to the $3.5 million annually that Porter County has paid to the RDA.

The four council members who supported getting out of the RDA wanted to retain an independent law firm, rather than use council attorney Scott McClure due to a possible conflict. McClure is also an attorney for the city of Portage, which has received RDA funds and whose mayor has advocated staying in the RDA.

Those voting to retain the law firm were Whitten, Laura Blaney, D-at large; Sylvia Graham, D-at large; and Rita Stevenson, D-2nd. Those voting against the legal work were Michael Bucko, D-4th; Karen Conover, R-3rd; and Council President Robert Poparad, D-1st. The approval was contingent upon the county commissioners’ approval of a contract.

It’s not yet decided where the funding will come from to pay for the legal work, but some options include the council’s budgeted line item for consultants and the casino funds. The consultant line item was budgeted at $150,000, and the casino fund has more than $661,000 available.

However, the casino fund was reduced by $160,000 Tuesday, when the council voted 6-1 to grant the first half of the longevity pay bonuses to county employees. The only one who voted no was Poparad.