Legislative Lines

from Winter 2016 County Lines

Collectors hold December meeting in Conway

NACo conference takeaways

In late February, it was warmer in Washington, D.C., than it was in the Natural State. That fact was certainly not what people participating in national fly-in season in the nation’s Capitol have come to expect every year. Every February countless entities from the private and public sectors descend upon Washington, D.C., generally as part as one of their respective national organizations’ annual meetings. However, securing face time with Congressional delegations while in town is a top priority for the majority of those who make the trip.

The National Association of Counties (NACo) hosted its annual legislative conference Feb. 20-24 this year. The governors and attorneys general from across the country were also holding meetings at this time, as well as Leadership Arkansas just to name a few. The NACo legislative conference offered a plethora of educational opportunities on various topics such as federal rule making, crisis response, criminal justice reform, rural poverty, highway funding and a multitude of federal legislative priorities.

As usual this NACo conference offered a fairly rare opportunity to network with a diverse collection of county officials from across the U.S. I always enjoy learning about other state’s county governments, especially when it comes to our differences, similarities and challenges and successes. There’s much to learn from our country’s 3,069 counties. The AAC and attending county officials met with most of our Congressional delegation face to face during our visit and were very appreciative to have the opportunity to build on our partnerships. The following is a list of national legislative priorities and accompanied data:

Achieve mental heath and criminal justice reform

Counties support programs and legislation to reduce mental illness in jails through diversion and provide appropriate treatment to those in custody. The Arkansas Sheriffs Association, County Judges Association of Arkansas and AAC have been engaged in hosting meetings about crisis stabilization units in Arkansas. We are hopeful for a pilot project in the state going forward. Many of our leaders have visited the very successful program in San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas. On a global perspective, we support measures that maintain funding for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) block grants. Quick facts: About 8.5 million adults have both a mental health and substance abuse disorder. Arkansas has a 48 percent recidivism rate and 64 percent of jail inmates have a mental illness.

Support Marketplace Fairness Act

Counties support legislation to permit the collection of existing sales and use taxes from remote sellers. The issue of taxing remote sales has escalated in recent years due to the Internet’s growth as a retail marketplace. As a result, state and local governments have lost billions in uncollected sales taxes and main street businesses find themselves at a significant competitive disadvantage to online merchants. Quick facts: Nationally, an estimated $26.1 billion is uncollected on these Internet transactions. We estimate $150 million a year in Arkansas. locating more funding for locally owned infrastructure, increasing local decision making authority, prioritizing investments that increase safety, as well as continuing to urge Congress to resolve the long-term solvency of the Highway Trust Fund. Quick facts: Counties own 45 percent of all public road miles and 38 percent of the nation’s bridge inventory. In Arkansas, a recent study found that out of the 4,307 county road bridges in the state, 1,196 are deemed obsolete and deficient. Replacement costs alone for those bridges are estimated at more than $480 million.

Support PILT and SRS

Counties support restoring full mandatory funding for the Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) program, which compensates counties for tax-exempt federal land within their boundaries. We also support extending the Secure Rural Schools (SRS) program as a transitional funding mechanism until the federal government fully implements a sustainable long-term forest management program with adequate revenue sharing for forest counties and schools. Quick facts: Sixty-two percent of the country’s counties have federal land within their boundaries. In 2013 in Arkansas, PILT funding totaled about $5.8 million.

Preserve county interests in Waters of the U.S. regulations

Counties believe that local streets, gutters and human-made ditches should be excluded from the definition of “Waters of the U.S.” (WOTUS) under the federal Clean Water Act. Counties call on Congress to require the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to withdraw the new WOTUS rule and rewrite it in consultation and collaboration with state and local governments.

In Arkansas, the Nature Conversancy and the AAC and CJAA have created an Unpaved Road Users Program focused on being proactive about best practices for rural roads and sedimentation. The effort was recognized with a Regional Director’s Award from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Combat overly broad critical habitat designations under the ESA Arkansas has more than 30 more aquatic species to be considered for critical habitat designations. We oppose the economic impact analysis threshold within the ESA of 1973 Our first experience with this ruling— Rabbitsfoot Mussel and Neosho Mucket — cost AAC and a statewide coalition considerable expense and resources to earn a 27 percent reduction in the suggested habitat areas. We know it is only a matter of time until the next overreach is upon us.

Protect municipal bonds

Counties support preserving the federal deductibility of local property and income taxes and the tax-exempt status of municipal bonds that provide critical funding for public facilities, infrastructure and development. Quick fact: Almost 75 percent of infrastructure projects are made possible through bond financing.