The Baker-Polito administration may function a mannequin for the way state governments can work with their native governments to resolve issues, in line with a short introduced on the Harvard Kennedy School of Business.
“The Baker-Polito administration’s approach suggests several underlying principles other state leaders can apply to build strong local relationships and strengthen localities’ capacity to deliver,” wrote Danielle Cerny, a joint Visiting Fellow at Harvard Kennedy School’s Taubman Center for State and Local Government and the Rappaport Institute for Greater Boston.
According to Cerny, Gov. Charlie Baker and Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito demonstrated that state governments can and generally should do extra than simply make legal guidelines at a distance.
“By the end of two terms, the Baker-Polito administration’s new approach both improved localities’ abilities to deliver for their residents and built strong relationships and trust that enabled rapid state-local collaboration in response to crises such as COVID-19,” she mentioned within the temporary, titled “Empowering Cities And Towns: The Baker-Polito Approach To Local Collaboration And Capacity Building.”
The Baker-Polito administration started the method with an govt order by Baker, his first as governor, which made Polito the purpose individual for native governments to work together with the chief department. It additionally established the Community Compact Cabinet.
All 351 cities and cities finally joined within the compacts, Cerny mentioned, which aimed toward making the method for securing state funding for wanted enhancements extra streamlined — and considerably much less burdensome for smaller communities — leading to actual, measurable change.
“As a result of these Compacts, communities across the state now have stronger foundations upon which to manage themselves – from financial policies to a forecasting model to assess the impact of a policy choice, from wage and classification plans to HR policies and procedures, from IT master plans to cybersecurity assessments, from economic development strategies to master plans,” she mentioned.
“These are things that would not exist for many municipalities if not for the Community Compact Program. For many municipalities, these initial improvements catalyzed larger advances,” Cerny mentioned.
The Town of Topsfield can now boast a AAA bond score, for instance, whereas Auburn received a brand new financial growth plan and coordinator.
“If you drove through Auburn now, you’d see the construction, the progress,” Auburn Town Manager Julie Jacobson says within the temporary. Polito was key, Jacobson mentioned.
“It was clear from day one that the Lieutenant Governor was the face, eyes and ears of all things municipal,” she says within the temporary. “She was the one to go to and we all knew that.”
Baker spoke forward of the temporary’s presentation.
“There were a lot of municipal folks all over our administration early on,” he mentioned. “That wasn’t an accident. We’re big believers that state government, if it’s working well, it’s enabling cities and towns to succeed.”
Source: www.bostonherald.com”