Why You Should Care About Vote on Consolidation
| By Rebuild Government on July 9th, 2010 | One Comment  |
Special to the Tri-State Defender
Darrell Cobbins is chairman of Rebuild Government, a nonprofit organization focused on educating and gathering input from Shelby County citizens around the new metro government charter process.
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Darrell
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In less than 130 days, voters will have a chance to participate in an historic vote – whether or not to consolidate the city and county government. We will all have a say in whether our community’s form of local government continues under the existing structure of two separate governments (City and County) we have now or streamlines into a Metropolitan form of government (one combined single government) like in our peer cities such as Nashville.
This vote will take place on two separate fronts, one vote within the Memphis city limits and one vote in those suburban areas lying outside of Memphis. It will take a majority vote in each of the separate, same-day elections for the measure to pass. The most important questions: What does this mean to the African-American community? And why should it matter to you?
Rebuild Government’s mission is to inform and educate the citizens of Shelby County on the work of the charter Commission and to gather public input for the body to deliberate on in making recommendations for the new charter. It is vital that all segments of the population understand the facts, undiluted by rhetoric and undistorted by political agendas. That said, here are some key issues to consider:
Economic development: Laser focus on higher-paying jobs
All public and contract agencies dealing with economic development will be coordinated in this office, where they support a shared vision that is tied to the strategic plan and plan of action aimed at jobs creation and business investment. The department also creates a “one stop shop” for marketing our community, accessing incentives and resources, and engaging private sector support. With African-American unemployment at almost 17 percent, growing more high-paying jobs provides the opportunity for families to improve their quality of life.
Taxing Districts: Fairness and equity for services.
As required by state law, there are three types of taxing districts: a “general” taxing district, which is the equivalent of today’s countywide taxing district, an “urban” taxing district, which is like today’s Memphis taxing district, and ”special” taxing districts, which are established to accommodate specific service needs of citizens in a particular area of the county. Parks, recreation, and museums; economic and job development; health and welfare; and roads and traffic are among the general services that are funded countywide. This method ensures fair and equitable contribution from all citizens for government services they receive and addresses the “double-taxation” issue that is continually debated between both governments today. For the elderly and struggling African-Americans, whose incomes are typically lower than their counterparts, they are most susceptible to being directly affected by the out of control tax burden that exists today, hampering the job growth prospects and net migration into Memphis from other parts of the U.S.
School Funding: State-mandated funding by countywide tax base.
Funding for schools will come from the countywide (or general services district) tax base, in keeping with the Tennessee constitutional requirement for county governments to provide school funding. This eliminates the funding dilemma that presents itself annually for Memphis City Schools’ budget and places the responsibility on the taxpayers of Shelby County to fund both Memphis City and Shelby County Schools systems. MCS is more than 90 percent African-American student population, thus it is in the best interest of the overall community to fully fund the school system through the proper governance channels, so it can plan and invest in the education of our children.
Office of Diversity and Small Business: Watchdog for more business with local minority and women-owned businesses.
This office will be a constant advocate and monitor to encourage the new government to do more business with minority and women-owned businesses in Shelby County. It will also work to create more entrepreneurs and start-up businesses, because they are sources of most new jobs today. This new office will seek to encourage minority entrepreneurial businesses access and growth opportunities through local government addressing the economic disparities that have persisted far too long in this community.
Planning and Community Development Department: Focus on neighborhoods and livable communities.
Planning and community development are merged into a single department that will focus on creating a neighborhood canvas that creates a better community focusing on neighborhood revitalization, sustainability and smart growth. There will also be a Neighborhoods Commission that will lead programs affecting the quality of life of our neighborhoods, including zoning, walk/bike issues, safety, and public investments. Inner-city communities are in desperate need of coordinated and strategic investment. This new structure allows for a coordinated set of strategies that encourage investment in the rebuilding of these communities that have historically been underserved.
The African-American community often laments finding out about these monumental decisions after the fact or at the last minute. You have a chance to let your voice be heard now. There are several opportunities for community input before the final draft of the charter commission is submitted in August. There are three public hearings scheduled during the month of July, including July 8 at the Memphis Botanic Garden, 750 Cherry Road; July 15, Southwind High School, 7900 East Shelby Drive; July 22, Ed Rice Community Center, 2907 N. Watkins Street.
The last vote on merging our two governments was nearly 40 years ago in 1971. But Mayor AC Wharton Jr., the Memphis City Council and the Shelby County Commission saw the need to revisit the issue today, realizing that a metropolitan form of government may be the beginning of a solution to some of the issues we face in making government more effective. In November of 2009, Wharton appointed the Memphis-Shelby County Metropolitan Government Charter Commission, which is comprised of 15 residents from all over Shelby County. Their charge has been to work to develop a new charter that would propose a new government structure, departments and policies that would position local government to effectively and efficiently serve current and future generations.
There are distinctive issues that impact local African-American communities disproportionately, where local government can have a direct impact. For Memphis and Shelby County’s African-American community, which is the majority population, this new charter process represents an opportunity to reposition local government to address issues that directly affect the quality of life for residents in the metro area. We want our children to have a better future. We want our children to want to stay in Memphis or return to Memphis. We want good paying jobs, quality public education, safe neighborhoods. And most importantly, we want, without question, a fair and equitable environment that supports our pursuit of the American Dream.
To date, the Charter Commission has made numerous decisions about the form and function of this new government. A summary of these decisions can be reviewed in their entirety at http://rebuildgovernment.org/.
It is estimated that within the next few decades, the Memphis metropolitan area will become the first majority minority region in the United States. The fate of this community is directly linked to the fate of the majority population. We should all make the commitment to know what’s being proposed and to make an informed decision on November 2nd about the future of Memphis and Shelby County.
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Loading ...Rebuild Government Proposals Bolster Diversity, Neighborhood Participation
| By bonnykinney on June 18th, 2010 | One Comment |
The community coalition Rebuild Government is making good on its promise to take public questions and concerns to the Memphis and Shelby County Metro Charter Commission, as commissioners continue to draft a new metro government charter. After hearing input from citizens, especially at Wednesday night’s Digital Community Forum, Rebuild Government has proposed to charter commissioners an Office of Diversity and Small Business and a Neighborhoods Commission established in the new charter.
The Office of Diversity and Small Business would encourage the metro government to buy more goods and services from locally owned small businesses, including those businesses owned by minorities and women, while still monitoring cost-saving measures. The office would also foster the start-up and growth of small businesses in the metro government area.
The Neighborhoods Commission would monitor a wide range of policies and programs affecting neighborhoods, including traffic, parking, recreation, street improvements, zoning, police protection and overall livability. The Commission would also make sure people who live in neighborhoods affected by government action are properly heard.
“One of the missions of Rebuild Government is to keep open the lines of communication between everyday citizens and the Metro Charter Commission. Our citizens want a community where their children can grow up safely. They want neighborhoods that will encourage their kids to stay in the area and plant their own roots. That is why we’re suggesting these ideas to commissioners,” said Rebuild Government Executive Director Brian Stephens.
The Metro Charter Commission approved the recommendations and will be working them into the new charter. Commissioners will present a draft summary of their policies to the Memphis City Council and the Shelby County Commission at 4 p.m. on Thursday, June 24, at The FedEx Institute at the University of Memphis. From there, commissioners will hold public hearings throughout July.
Those scheduled right now include:
July 8, 2010: Memphis Botanic Gardens, 5:30-7 p.m.
July 15, 2010: Southwind High School, 5:30-7 p.m.
July 22, 2010: Ed Rice Community Center, 5:30-7 p.m.
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...New Government Allows Reserve Area to Vote on Annexation
| By Rebuild Government on June 10th, 2010 | One Comment |
The Memphis and Shelby County Metro Charter Commission agreed today that annexation by the new metro government won’t take place in certain areas if people in those areas oppose it.
The vote, considered a centerpiece in the new metro charter, represents a major change in past annexations here, where citizens have been denied the right to vote on whether they are annexed by a city.
If the metro government were to be enacted, the growth plan for the next ten years would mean:
- The City of Memphis reserve areas become the “urban services district reserve areas.” This means people who live within these boundaries get to vote on whether they want to be annexed.
- All suburban cities will have their same annexation reserve areas. Residents in those cities will not get to vote, but will continue under the existing agreement and enjoy the same rights they do currently.
“We know that people who live in reserve areas of Memphis have worried for years about their neighborhoods being annexed by the city without their approval. With the new charter, we wanted to empower these citizens by giving them a chance to vote for or against annexation before it happens,” said Memphis and Shelby County Charter Commissioner Rufus Washington.
“Our goal is to create a better metro government, not one that stifles people,” Washington added.
“I like the idea of having more choice in deciding the future of my family and my neighborhood,” said Ryan Goble, a concerned citizen who lives in unincorporated Shelby County.
The Memphis and Shelby County Metro Charter Commission will file the new charter with the election commission by August 10, 2010. Memphis and Shelby County citizens will vote separately on the new charter November 2, 2010.
Contact: Bonny Kinney
Communications Director
Rebuild Government
(901) 275-5500
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Getting Taxes Right for a New Government
| By Rebuild Government on June 4th, 2010 | 2 Comments  |
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(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Videos about Better, Faster, Cheaper Government
| By Rebuild Government on May 27th, 2010 | No Comments  |
Former Indianapolis Mayor Stephen Goldsmith yesterday commended the Metro Charter Commission for its work so far in creating a government that is “better, faster, cheaper,” the qualities that he said are vital for governments to be effective.
In a presentation yesterday, he said innovations like metro government are needed to attack the “imbalance” caused by the cost of government outstripping the ability of the county to pay for the climbing costs. “There is a permanent structural imbalance between the cost of pensions, medical care, and services in every city in American that is not supported by enough revenues,” he said. It’s crucial to make government more efficient, because effective government produces economic development success, he said.
Mayor Goldsmith is taking a leave of absence from his post at Harvard University, where he heads up the innovations in government program, to become deputy city mayor in New York City under Mayor Bloomberg.
Rebuild Government asked Mayor Goldsmith some of your questions about efficiency, law enforcement, and 9-1-1, and the videos of his answers are posted here.
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Better, Faster, Cheaper Government
| By joydoss on May 26th, 2010 | One Comment |
Stephen Goldsmith, former mayor of Indianapolis, paid a second visit to Memphis. The presentation, simply captioned “Better, Faster, Cheaper” easily sums up the overarching goal of the Charter Commission. As he spoke to the packed room about the positive impact of efficient government structure and practices, one could best summarize the key to success as this: economic empowerment and engagement.
Effective government yields effective economic development strategy. That was his mantra.
Although he was not in office at the time Indianapolis became a metro government, he acknowledges that the merged city-county government allowed for him to employ the strategies that would eventually stimulate the local economy and make the necessary changes that would undergird this growth. He credited economic development as the single most important factor to unblocking the path to growth for his city.
As mayor, Mr. Goldsmith was responsible for savings of $400 million. He said a single government – and a single voice – will simplify business dealings in Shelby County, by eliminating barriers to entry for businesses that are looking to anchor themselves in Memphis. Heavy regulations and tax burdens tend to stunt economic growth, which translates to bigger businesses moving out of one region to another that is more user friendly producing an unemployment spike.
He said: “You can’t solve complex horizontal problems with vertical solutions or by accomplishing bureaucratic activities better.” In the end, there has to be a better structure that allows for better, faster, and cheaper government.
It’s not just simply about putting services together; they must be combined in the right way. He commended the Charter Commission for tackling this “right way” priority, because it’s about the cornerstone of high-performing government: efficiency. Mr. Goldsmith expressed an understanding that in Memphis, like many other American cities, there is “permanent structural imbalance” because cost of services exceeds the city’s revenues, and it plays out in ways like the difficult budget hearings in City Hall now.
He said public safety is an area that would benefit from a merger. It is a top priority of the Charter Commission given that is always the primary concern of the residents. He said benefits included better allocation of manpower and resources; unified vision and leadership; better information systems; better intelligence sharing; and a career path for public safety professionals.
It’s law enforcement officials that don’t cross various city lines, he said. The criminals do.
One major point of the morning presentation was Mayor Goldsmith’s grasp on the connectivity between the city and the county. Their futures are interwoven and if the urban area declined, ultimately, the entire region will do the same
The second major point was that people have to be given power over government by making it transparent. It gives citizens the ability to hold elected officials accountable. He praised Rebuild Government for pushing through stricter ethical regulations, and that complementing these is the development of measurement tools so that citizens knows exactly how well government is working.
Ideally, a streamlined metropolitan government symbolizes a movement from being a bureaucracy to one with the people at the center, he said. There are two groups that are important in any city — the underemployed and community organizations. Engaging the underemployed will convert citizens who are passively receiving services to active citizens who are productive and contributing to the local economy. Engaging community groups is also a not-so-secret weapon, because they are the heartbeat of the city. They are more often than not the connector between the people and the politicians. They are in the best position to educate and inform, from a more neutral place.
Mayor Goldsworthy said both the city and the suburbs would be beneficiaries of better government and a unified vision. “Urban stabilization and job creation help everyone in the community including the suburbs.”
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...More Jobs and Less Red Tape
| By Rebuild Government on May 21st, 2010 | No Comments |
The Metro Charter Commission has been dealing with economic development recently, and Memphis business leader Gary Shorb wrote an op-ed column in The Commercial Appeal praising their recommendations which you can read here.
Mr. Shorb wrote that from his work heading up the Memphis Regional Chamber and leading Memphis Fast Forward, he is certain that “if we are to create more and better jobs and give our children opportunities to stay here to live and work, it was clear that one of the highest hurdles is the need for more efficient, more effective and streamlined local government. It was equally clear that we will never achieve this goal as long as our government structure itself breeds duplication, cumbersome decision-making, needless red tape and erodes public confidence.”
In addition, he commended the Charter Commission’s “new way to direct economic development in our community — streamlining multiple government agencies into a single structure that is laser-focused on growing jobs.” To read his op-ed column, click here.
National Expert Stephen Goldsmith Speaks Tuesday
Economic growth will certainly be one of the issues on the agenda when Stephen Goldsmith, recently appointed deputy mayor of New York City and national expert on innovative government, speaks Tuesday, May 25 at Holiday Inn at University of Memphis, 3700 Central Avenue. We hope you can join us to hear his insights to making government more efficient, responsive, ethical, and effective.
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Speak Your Piece about Ethics in Government
| By Rebuild Government on May 2nd, 2010 | No Comments |
Citizens of our community tell us that they want iron-clad ethics rules in a new government.
We’re following up last week’s survey about ethics with another one about what you want to see in processes and policies.
We appreciate your taking time to share you opinions and encouraging everyone you know to join you. You can take the survey here.
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Ethics Set as Major Issue in Survey
| By Rebuild Government on May 2nd, 2010 | No Comments |
Authority to Write and Amend Ethics Policy:
76% of the respondents said ethical rules should be in the charter and only amended by a public vote. 20.5% of the respondents said ethics policies should not be included in the charter and should be written by the legislative body. 3.5% had no opinion.
Ethical Standards for Boards and Commissions:
89.7% of respondents said local boards and commissions should have ethical standards but not with the same level of penalties as elected officials. 7.9% of respondents said local boards and commission members are volunteers and don’t need the same ethical standards as elected officials. 2.4% had no opinion.
Ethical Standards for Elected Officials and Government Employees:
71.6% of respondents said elected officials and government employees should abide by the same level of ethical standards. 27.2% of respondents stated that there should be higher ethical standards for elected positions. .4% of respondents stated that there should be higher ethical standards for government employees. .8% had no opinion.
Anti-Nepotism Standards:
90.7% of respondents said the new government should have anti-nepotism policy. 5.8% of respondents stated that the metropolitan government should not have an anti-nepotism policy. 3.5% had no opinion on this issue.
Anti-Cronyism Standards:
81.2% of respondents said the metropolitan government should have an anti-cronyism policy. 15.3% of respondents said it should not have an anti-cronyism policy. 3.5% of respondents had no opinion. Recommendations included creation of a review board for appointees and the creation of a minimum qualifications standard for all appointees.
Anti-Fraternization Standards:
50% of respondents said Memphis and Shelby County Charter Commission should research and include an anti-fraternization policy in the charter. 41% stated that an anti-fraternization policy should not be included and 8.7% had no opinion.
Thank you for your continued interest in a new government and for your involvement with Rebuild Government.
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Goldsmith Joins New York City Leadership Team
| By Rebuild Government on April 30th, 2010 | No Comments |
Congratulations to Stephen Goldsmith, the national expert on government who has been writing articles on key issues for Rebuild Government. He has taken a leave from Harvard University to become deputy mayor of New York City. We are grateful to his insights into innovation government and the “politics of the possible.” We are pleased that he will allow us to continue to get his advice.
Here’s the news coverage of his appointment:
Goldsmith, 63, will be named Deputy Mayor for Operations on Friday morning, overseeing the NYPD, FDNY, the departments of transportation and sanitation, and many other agencies responsible for vital New York services.
Kennedy School of Government, where he teaches a course called “Leading Cities.”
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