This
Valentine’s Day, let’s train Cupid’s Arrow at local governments in New York and
Massachusetts—a surefire way to streamline services and save taxpayer money.
New York
State has over 10,000 local governments—cities, towns, villages, counties,
special water districts, sewer districts, fire districts, etc. These
overlapping jurisdictions impose significant and unnecessary administrative and
operating costs on the public, leading the Empire State to have the highest
property taxes in the nation.
Governor Andrew
Cuomo has taken concrete steps to nudge municipalities to consolidate
services—or, perhaps more directly, to provide
an incentive for citizens to push for consolidation forcefully at the ballot
box.
The Governor
announced his latest consolidation initiative in his State of the State address
last month. The plan
creates a two-year freeze on property taxes for upstate municipalities that
have agreed to abide by a 2 percent property tax cap. In year one, homeowners
earning under $500,000 would receive a 2 percent tax rebate simply for living
in a community that respected the tax cap. In the second year, homeowners would
only qualify for the credit if their municipality submits a plan to consolidate
or share services with their neighbors that saves 1 percent of the levy a year for three years.
While the push for
consolidation has been opposed by unions representing municipal workers—who
understandably fear the loss of jobs that comes with greater efficiency—the
long term effects on the economy of upstate New York should be positive.
Instead of having individuals duplicate efforts town by town, those people will
gravitate toward more productive employment. Phasing in consolidation via
attrition may be one way to achieve a compromise with unions, while securing
long-term savings.
In addition to nudging local
governments toward consolidation, the
State should take steps to eliminate red tape that prevents counties from exploring
joint procurement of health insurance and other goods/services. As Stephen
Acquario, the executive director of the New York State Association of Counties,
told City
and State, “There is no reason why a county should not be
authorized to reach out to towns, villages, cities, school districts and
centralize procurement of health insurance for all of the local governments
within its jurisdiction.”
New York is perhaps the most
egregious example of the proliferation of government. However, Bay State is not
immune from this waste. While Massachusetts eliminated most county government between
1997-2000 (sheriffs and county courts remain vestiges of the old guard),
additional progress can and should be made.
To that end, Governor Deval
Patrick launched the Community Innovation Challenge (CIC) grant program in 2012,
designed to encourage sharing of services. In two years, the program has
invested $6.25 million in 49 projects in 197 municipalities across the
Commonwealth.
Last week, Hamilton and
Wenham—long partners in running the Hamilton-Wenham Regional School District—received
a CIC grant of $90,000 to continue their efforts in forming the State’s
first-ever combined Public Facilities and Infrastructure Department. This
continues a trend of shared service delivery by the two towns, which included
the opening of Massachusetts’ first joint
library in 2001.
All too often,
conservatives lead this type of streamlining. But the truth is that efficient
government is even more important for liberals, who believe that government
should play a central role in ensuring opportunity for all, investing in public
infrastructure, and enacting policy to protect the environment and strengthen
the middle class. After all, if we want the public to place its trust in
government's ability to invest their hard-earned money, we must do everything
we can to make every dollar count.
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