“The government closest to the people
serves the people best.”
-Thomas Jefferson
Township government has been under attack since the release of a 2003 Brookings Institution report claiming that bigger government is better.
The facts, however, don't support that claim.
Scroll down to learn more about the governance debate in Pennsylvania and why the government closest to the people is also the most effective and efficient.
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This 2005 report by government consolidation expert Wendell Cox uses facts and figures to show why smaller government is better. One interesting fact notes that in Pennsylvania, per capita spending is lowest in smaller municipalities and highest in the big cities.
Click here for details.
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This September 2005 issue of the Pennsylvania Township News focuses on the government structure report from consolidation expert Wendell Cox (see above). Pennsylvania has its demons, Cox says, but local government isn't one of them, and residents rather like their system of local governance.
Click here for details.
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Recommendations in a 2006 report from the State Planning Board could change the way townships do business.
See the report here or read about it in the Pennsylvania Township News. |
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Three reports released in 2007 by the Campaign to Renew Pennsylvania and the Brookings Institution, the PA Economy League, and the Penn State Cooperative Extension Service address the long-term future of Pennsylvania's communities, and each predicts further economic decline unless local governments are strengthened and state laws changed.
PSATS welcomes the opportunity for discussions about how to improve policies that facilitate effective local government but maintains that any changes must first and foremost consider residents’ needs.
Committing to Prosperity: Moving Forward on the Agenda to Renew Pennsylvania (by The Brookings Institution Metropolitan Policy Program for the Campaign to Renew Pennsylvania, 2007)
- Full Report - Executive Summary
Structuring Healthy Communities, Part 1: Revenue Generation and Fiscal Health (by The Pennsylvania Economy League, Inc., 2007)
- Full Report - Executive Summary
Strengthening Rural Pennsylvania, A Rural Policy Agenda for the Commonwealth (by the Penn State University, 2007 |
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