Mandate report should embarrass state

 

"A new activity or service or an increase in the level of any activity or service beyond that required by existing law shall not be required by the legislature or any state agency of units of Local Government, unless a state appropriation is made and disbursed to pay the unit of Local Government for any necessary increased costs."

That's some of the key language of the Headlee Amendment, a constitutional change made by the voters 30 years ago to put controls on state government.
A new report by the Legislative Commission on Statutory Mandates, says not only is the state failing to abide by the Headlee directive, it has buried local schools and governments in at least $2.2 billion in unfunded mandates.

The actual figure could be even higher, as the commission's final report admitted: "The underfunding only for those mandates for which the Commission could deduce credible estimates is between $2.2 billion and $2.5 billion in 2009 alone" (emphasis original).

"The result of this chronic non-compliance," said the commission's interim report, "is that for over 30 years the State has systematically transferred to local governments the responsibility for various functions, some of which are worthy activities or services, but which the State has not wanted to pay for, in direct contravention of the Headlee Amendment."

The commission members conclude in their cover letter to the legislature:
“… after 24 Commission meetings, and countless additional hours of meetings, analysis, debate and complete consensus, the Commission’s greatest fear is that the State will miss the opportunity, in this time of fiscal crisis, to change course from 30 years of disregard for this key provision of the Headlee amendment. Implementation of our recommendations, will not only encourage compliance with the Headlee amendment prohibition on unfunded mandates, but will also foster more efficient government and greater, and badly needed, collaboration between the State and local units of government.”

View the report…

Read the full column…

Source: Lansing State Journal editorial, 1/19/2010