NACo News
Number of state ballot questions is way down this year
Citizen activism may be taking a bit of a holi- day this year: Tere are just 43 citizen initiatives that qualified for this year’s Nov. 2 ballots. Te number usually hovers around 100, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL).
Te issues run the gamut — from measures to legalize medical marijuana in Arizona and South Dakota, to laws that prohibit mandatory participation in any health care system. Overall, 150 measures qualified for the November ballot in 35 states, which include legislatively referred questions, citizen initiatives and constitutional amendments. (Te final number may be lower as some questions faced legal challenges.) Of greatest concern to counties are the bal- lot measures that directly affect county purse strings or local authority such as property tax- related questions. In Indiana, Question 1 would add property tax caps to the Indiana Constitution. Te cap is already in effect by statute; it limits tax bills to 1 percent of assessed value for homeowners, 2 percent on agricultural land and 3 percent for commercial property. Tose limits can be ex- ceeded only with voter approval. However, a simple majority of voters could enshrine the statute in the state’s constitution, according to David Bottorf, executive director of the Association of Indiana Counties. And polls show that’s likely to happen. “Most if not all counties will lose property
tax revenue because of this property tax cap,” he said, “And our biggest concern about it is that it’s going into the constitution, and it really hasn’t had the opportunity to be in effect long
enough to ascertain whether it’s a good public policy. “It’s a really specific policy, and usually the constitutions are saved for more general policy,” he added.
– Charles Taylor County News Senior Staff Writer
Counties struggling to maintain level of service
Many counties are struggling to maintain
the level of public services in the face of declin- ing revenues and increased costs. At the same time, many counties are on the cutting edge of emerging green economies and information technology advances to operate smarter and more cost-effectively. A recent NACo survey indicated that coun-
ties are responding to significant budget short- falls with spending reductions in all aspects of their budgets. Te leading areas of cuts were employee pay freezes (67 percent), capital in- vestment delays (66 percent), hiring freezes (64 percent), purchase and repair delays (64 percent), layoffs (37 percent), and furloughs (23 percent). Many counties reported layoffs of hundreds of employees since 2008. Two coun- ties reported having more than 1,000 fewer em- ployees today than in 2008. County service areas receiving the most fur- loughs, layoffs and cutbacks are administration (44 percent); sheriff, police and fire and rescue (37 percent); roads, highways and transporta- tion (35 percent); jails and corrections (28 per- cent) and health (25 percent). Tis is despite 85 percent of counties reporting that they have received, or expect to receive, funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment and Act (ARRA).
Hotels with adult movies off-limits in Minnesota Winona County, Minnesota now prohibits
any of its employees from staying at hotels that offer adult movies. Te Winona County Commissioners just ap-
proved a new “clean hotel” policy that forbids employees from staying at such properties. Te commissioners said pornography leads to sexual and domestic violence, and that they hope to pressure hotels to drop these services. Te county commissioners believe Winona is the first county in the country to pass such a regulation.
“I think it just sends a message that ‘no’ this is not OK,” Commissioner Mena R. Kaehler told ABC News. “Te way you send a message to businesses is through their bottom dollar.”
Palm Beach panel looks at part-timer restrictions
In Florida, the Palm Beach County Commis- sion on Ethics has recommended that county commissioners lift the restriction on county employees working part-time at companies that have contracts with the county, as long as their bosses agree that the job does not pose a conflict of interests. Tey also would be required to seek a formal conflict of interests opinion from the ethics commission. Te way the regulations are written, said
Alan Johnson, the ethic panel’s executive direc- tor, there was no way for an employee to ask the ethics commission for permission to work a part-time job with a company that does busi- ness with the county, the Palm Beach Post re- ported.
County says Lustful Court name needs to change
In Georgia, Bibb county commissioners will
ask residents of Lustful Court to consider a peti- tion to change the road’s name. Commissioner Lonzy Edwards, a minister
who represents the area, said he’s gotten several complaints about the road name. “Lots of im- proper behavior occurs all over, everywhere, but to encourage it, seem to condone it with a name like that?” he said.
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