This past weekend was the Virginia Municipal League convention in Hampton. This is the third one I’ve been to and not the worst one but not the best. The information was good this year but there wasn’t a whole lot of new info. Yes, the economy still stinks. No, it’s not as bad but we already knew that.
There was a very long presentation about the Governor’s “government reform panel” and the long and the short of that appears to be that he’s going to “reform” government by selling the liquor stores and eliminating local option taxes. I’ll cover each at some length in separate posts but safe to say I’m not real impressed with his results so far in that arena.
The other great part is networking with other local elected folks. You learn a fair amount by chatting with other locals. Manassas has it better than a lot of places – I’d say that we’re above average with those that I spoke with. Safe to say that most of us in local government aren’t having a lot of fun…:)
Lots of interesting tidbits of info but one that struck me was that it is estimated that local governments will cut 500,000 jobs over the next couple of years. Like I said, I’ll follow up with longer posts on each topic over the next few days.
October 5, 2010 at 9:47 pm
Hi Andy,
Is the general focus at VML on how to maintain the “basic knitting” of local government such as schools, police and fire protection during these difficult times?
Is there a sense that local governments, perhaps now more than any time in recent memory, cannot afford to get side-tracked and must especially focus on and return to basic knitting issues? (That the alternative is an unaffordable extravgance?)
Do local VA government issues seem split along party lines or do most localities seem to find themselves in the same or similar boat regardless of local party dominance or council composition?
Not expecting specific answers, just questions to get your thoughts flowing as though over a beer.
October 6, 2010 at 7:45 am
@Rich:
VML does a couple of things. It does provide some level of “basic Knitting” but attending a conference like that also gives you a bit of a wider worldview. They tailor their content to try to help that along. It helps you to see what others are doing. I would argue that most local governments never get too far from basic knitting. Manassas Next was pure basic knitting.
VML also gives you a chance to see what’s going on at the state level which can significantly impact your city/town/county. Most local elected folks don’t have the time to delve into that stuff on their own nor do they have the staff to do it. More on that later.
Local government issues are somewhat split by party but not as much as the state or feds. I think that the nature of local government precludes the sort of silliness (not entirely of course) that you see at other levels. Manassas is somewhat unique in this as we don’t have districts so you don’t see any of that dynamic. However, the problems that locals deal with are not abstract: we educate kids and police streets. These things cost money and we have nobody else to look to for that kind of stuff. The state and feds help pay for education (and a dwindling amount for police) but little, if any, of that money comes without significant obligations.
October 6, 2010 at 8:32 am
Isn’t the conference also a showcase for what’s working well in other jurisdictions, like case studies, that you can bring back and put to work here?
Isn’t it a chance for Manassas to shine and show what we are doing well? Has anyone from Manassas ever presented a workshop? Has there been an article in the VML monthly magazine about Manassas in the past, say, five years? I know there was one on broadband over powerlines, but that was in the earlier part of this decade.
Also, just a plug — the City Utility Dept is having their annual Open House this Saturday from 10 to 2 at the Public Works Facility, corner of Breeden and Portner. They have all sorts of displays and demonstrations, pull out all the equipment so the kids can explore, even bucket truck demos. Learn about your electricity, water & sewer, and how to conserve and save money. Free food grilled out, and hayrides. The city employees always make this a fun event.
October 6, 2010 at 9:20 am
Cindy:
In some respects it is a showcase of what’s working well. This year there was less of that and more of nuts and bolts and state stuff.
When I went two years ago there was a ton of really great stuff concerning incentives, art districts, etc. With the downturn in the economy you saw less of that. I think VML does a good job of making their content relevant.
I have presented at VML and so has Mark Wolfe. Beyond that, I don’t know. I’m unsure that presenting at VML is a real priority right now. Just attending the conference takes 3 days and that’s about as much time as I can donate right now. I’ve gotta earn a living and the City salary doesn’t go very far…:)
Also, with the 150th and budget time coming up, we’ve got our priorities for the next 12 months.
October 6, 2010 at 1:24 pm
VML also has a lot of public information provided on their website as to their advocacy and positions on major issues. Those provide a common, united approach to them and I particularly like the 2011 Position Statement on Human Services and Education.
Personally, I like VML site better than VACo (Virgina Assoc of Counties). At least VML puts up a lot of information for free to access without a password 🙂
October 6, 2010 at 1:44 pm
Yeah, VML does some great stuff. They are really banging the drum on the possible elimination of BPOL and M&T.
Evidently the Gov. was invited but didn’t attend…..
October 6, 2010 at 2:06 pm
FYI — The Virginia Municipal League has focused
on “basic knitting” since it was founded in 1905.
It is a voluntary, non-partisan, non-profit organization
designed to promote the interest of local
governments through investigation, discussion,
cooperative effort and as a legislative advocate.
Numerous Manassas officials have served in a
VML leadership capacity including as President:
Mayor Harry Davis (1932-33) and Mayor Harry J.
Parrish (1970-71).
Among VML achievement awards won by
our community in the past were for progress in
Georgetown South and Old Town Manassas.
It is a great organization and a valued friend
of the Citizens of Manassas.
October 6, 2010 at 2:35 pm
Andy,
Someone needs to beat the drum about the
possible elimination of BPOL and the M&T Tax.
These are local taxes – NOT state taxes.
What happened to the concept of “the
government closer to the people is the best
government”?
The elimation of these will create a 5-6 million
dollar hole in the Manassas FY 2011-12 budget
and have a negative impact on every city function,
including schools and public safety.
October 6, 2010 at 7:37 pm
Steve and Andy,
Interesting point you made Steve about someone beating the drum about the possible elimination of those two taxes. I personally see the danger in it; not only for our City, but over in Big Brother County. Loss of local revenue means further reduction in services, and being the COA guy, I have watched too much of that the last four years since appointment. That said, here’s a tidbit from the last BOC Session yesterday –
There was a presentation by Steve Griffin in PWC Planning about Urban Development Planning Grant from the State. This is in relation to H. 3202 enacted in 2007, and amended on April 11. 2010.
The recent amendment, in addition to changing several administration items, also changed the development rules for what homes could be located on one acre. In 2007, 4 single family detached houses could be built on 1 acre; amendment changed that to 8 homes. Addtional requirements for schools, roads, etc. The agenda item paperwork has a great set of slides comparing the differences and can be found at:
http://www.pwcgov.org/documents/bocs/agendas/2010/1005/11-A.pdf
When occured at the end of the presentation was fascinating! Chairman Stewart was getting ticked along with several of the other Supervisors. He directed Staff to put up on the overhead at their meeting next week the names of ALL the local GA folks who voted for the changes. Chairman wants the people in PWC to see who it was that is responsible for the changes which will not be good for local/regional development & coordination.
Then it got even better!!!!
He directed a notice be sent to the Delegates and Senators requesting they come to the next meeting and explain to the people of PWC why they voted the way they did. Needless to say, I went “WOW!”
Talk about beating a drum! I made a call today over to McCoart and asked about their take on BPOL and the M&T issue. The BOCS financial retreat is coming up in another week, and it will be addressed then.
I am still saying “wow! what a concept!” Tell the people what their representatives are doing and make them explain themselves.
By the way, for a drum beater, should I use a snare, bass or just get a 55-gallon drum and pound that with a shovel?
October 6, 2010 at 8:16 pm
I’d go for the drum and shovel….:)
No idea that Mr. Stewart had done all of that. Good for him. Some pretty strange stuff gets passed. The GA passed a bill last year that, for the first time, allowed title loans in VA. It was the same bill that was supposed to scale back payday lending…..
October 6, 2010 at 8:27 pm
@Steve re:M&T, I’m working on it as best I can. I’ll catch up with you over the next couple of days to bring you up to speed.
October 6, 2010 at 11:17 pm
Beware of false prophets. What you see isn’t always what you get.
October 7, 2010 at 8:27 am
Yes, the GA does do strange things. Last year, there was further reduction for Alcohol & Substance Abuse Treatment….and at the same time, it was approved to open 10 new ABC stores and add 20 employees.