Posted: | June 11, 2020 03:35 PM |
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From: | Representative Joe Ciresi |
To: | All House members |
Subject: | Establishing a Shared Services Grant for School Districts and Municipalities |
With strained budgets, local governments and school districts throughout our state are looking for ways to provide needed amenities without raising taxes. Sharing services with neighboring communities can offer a solution by saving money (and reducing property taxes), eliminating layers of bureaucracy, improving access, and fostering long-term sustainability – while maintaining local representation and community identity. Fortunately, we have it in our power as the state legislature to help municipalities and school districts in these efforts. This is why I am introducing a bill establishing a new shared services grant program for counties, cities, boroughs, towns, townships, and school districts. The Department of Community and Economic Development will administer this program with funding appropriated by the state legislature and will award grant money for shared services such as regionalization, consolidation, shared capacity, boundary change, and personnel sharing. This approach has been highlighted by the Joint State Government Commission as a way to encourage sharing resources and reducing costs, allowing local governments to benefit from economies of scale. Through this program, we would empower local governments to work together by providing state support to locally-driven cooperation initiatives, making sure more money is spent on providing services and less on administration. Join me in supporting this legislation to help enhance the capabilities of local governments and school districts throughout our state while increasing efficiency. |
Introduced as HB2760