INDIANAPOLIS -- Marion County's township assessors are in a fight over their jobs in the Nov. 4 election, and they contend those waging war to take their jobs away aren't fighting fair.

As debate rages over whether to keep township assessors or consolidate their positions at the county level, the signs urging voters to vote yes to consolidation are at the center of controversy, not because of content but because of placement, 6News' Rick Hightower reported.

A city ordinance prohibits putting signs, political or otherwise, in public right of ways, including the median.

Township assessors said the signs that advocate a yes vote on question 1, paid for by the Chamber of Commerce, are being put in improper places in large numbers.

"They're breaking the law. The township assessors have never done that," said Wayne Township Assessor Mike McCormack. "My question is, you want to do away with us, you have the money to actually do it legally and yet you want to overstep the bounds and actually break the law to do it."

The Indianapolis Chamber of Commerce sent a statement to 6News concerning the signs.

"We are certain to have impassioned members eager to spread the word," the statement read. "That said, we have some overzealous coalition members who are putting signs in the right of way."

Aside from placement in medians, many of the signs are on commercial property. In at least one case, the owner of the property said permission was not granted to put the sign there.

The city's Department of Compliance has picked up about 600 political, advertising and other signs in the right of ways in just the past few days.

Since July, more than 15,000 improperly placed signs have been plucked from the ground and discarded.

"We've got the sign ordinance there for a reason and we're going to enforce it. It doesn't matter what the message is or where it comes from, if it's illegal and in the public right of way where it shouldn't be, it's going to be picked up," said John Bartholomew, spokesman for the city.

The Chamber of Commerce promised to ask coalition members to put signs in proper places.

The assessors' organization has also organized an effort to put out "Vote No" signs.