Regional Planning and Intergovernmental Cooperation

To accomplish effective consolidation of service and merger of governments, let's change our tactics and do it correctly. It is time to have communities modestly exchange, contract, lease, and purchase services from one another.  Small steps will lead to trusting relationships, which will result in additional successes.

America's cities and counties are littered with failed mergers, from Miami and Dade County, Florida, to Los Angeles. Part of the problem is that liberals are loath to engage a broader coalition in the larger geographic area, least their agenda be watered down. Conservatives, particularly from suburban and rural areas, ignore the fact that their economic health is tied to the central city. All sides forget that economic and cultural development does not have to be a rivalry but that in fact, 'a rising tide lifts all ships.' 

There are political problems where municipal officials and county officials may have to make uncomfortable demands on state officials who have a different political agenda and base. Occasionally special districts are established which are inherently undemocratic:

An Airport Special District for Milwaukee- Another Bad Idea

The problem with special districts are many.  First they do not balance public priorities for the electorate.  The city council decides how to allocate limited resources between the fire and police departments, sanitation and parks.  The state government balances the need for state highway construction, the university systems, and other statewide needs.

But a more serious problem with special districts is that they are a convoluted system of managing a public function that distances the people who spend the money from those who pay the taxes.

Whether it is merger, consolidation, or special districts, there is a propensity for failure.  The failure is accompanied by ill will and that sets back consolidation efforts further. It is time to start with single services: water, fire protection, or tax collections, rather than entire governments. The current merger of the Dane County and City of Madison Health Departments is one example.

Ideally, one government contracts with another that does not have the service or provides it on a limited basis.  If there is a merger of service, then there must be careful selection of the program based on the compatibility of the culture of the organizations, the purpose of the service, and the agreement as to the level of service.  The government agency should ensure that it does not use its new authority to 'profit' by receiving compensation and not delivering value.