Justice, Fairness, Inclusion, and Performance.
This is a repost from the Brookings Institute, written by John D. Ratliff. Read the original article here. Download the full report here.
Federal, state, and local policies profoundly affect nearly every aspect of American neighborhoods, including their economic vitality, their shape and form, their social fabric, and their forms of self-governance. These policies do not affect neighborhoods equally—they convey benefits on some and burdens on others. A clear result is the growing divergence between prosperous neighborhoods and those that struggle against social and economic barriers.
The crises of 2020 accelerated this divergence and offered a glimpse of what the future holds for the nation if policymakers fail to reconsider some of the long-standing policies that have created and reinforce these conditions. Fortunately, the crises also provided a moment of clarity for the many leaders who saw the costs and risks of remaining on the same path.
An increasing number of public, private, and civic leaders now recognize that new place-led policies and practices are essential to addressing the nation’s long-standing spatial divides. And as they continue to promote recovery, policymakers must use a finer grain of analysis so they can address the geography of inequality within and between regions, focusing on “places” as a unit of intervention.
When devising strategies to achieve these outcomes, it might be tempting to focus primarily on federal action because of the broad reach of federal policies, or on local action in order to customize interventions to the needs of a specific community. But state policies are also critical components of any comprehensive, place-focused strategy. States were instrumental in creating the conditions in places both before and during the pandemic, and will play decisive roles in shaping the recovery.
Notably, the scope of local authority is determined by state law, and states can expand or constrict the exercise of local power. Some states grant local governments the broad powers of self-governance through the operation of home rule, while others retain more power at the state level through the operation of the Dillon Rule.
States also provide a substantial amount of investment in places. These investments come from states’ own revenues and assets or federal resources that they manage. In 2020, more than 65% of state expenditures were from states’ own resources, and only 32.4% from federal funds. States spent nearly 70% of their budgets on health services, education, transportation, corrections, and public assistance. Every other program or activity that state governments support was funded from the remaining 30.7% of the budget. This includes programs that are critical to places, such as funding for economic development, environmental protection, parks and recreation, natural resources programs, housing, general aid to local governments, and public health programs.
As a share of state budgets, federal funds increased by more than 14% in 2020—the highest annual growth rate since the Great Recession. The increase is largely due to the additional federal aid states received in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including through the CARES Act and changes to Medicaid.
State leaders who are committed to place-based strategies that promote shared prosperity and economic inclusion are not focused only on the barriers that exist in their cities, towns, and regions, but on those that exist across the broad geographies of entire states. This can be a substantial challenge in an environment that is politically charged or where state leaders and the people they serve are deeply divided. In such an environment, a policy that is viewed by some as appropriately “empowering” local leaders may be viewed by others as “enabling” runaway local leaders.
To combat this divisiveness, states can invest in efforts to promote shared values and bridge gaps in understanding and perception among its diverse populations around the state. States can also support innovation to increase and diversify community engagement. With new technologies, states can use tools that engage communities in new ways, reach broader populations for input into decisionmaking, and leverage private funds for public projects.
Changes to state policy are critical to paving the way to a different future. As state leaders implement strategies for long-term recovery, they should exercise all of their authorities and focus their resources on building stronger neighborhoods. These efforts should combat economic isolation, promote opportunity, create flexible and healthy environments, strengthen community identity, and empower residents to exercise their voice. Many strategies to achieve these aims have already been implemented and tested by creative policymakers in other states. Those seeking solutions need only look to the successful models described in this report.
A new report suggests that states have four major roles that can dramatically affect the prospects of places:
These roles empower state policymakers to dramatically affect economic, social, environmental, and civic conditions in places.
By creating neighborhoods that are more connected, vibrant, and inclusive, state leaders will not only build stronger local communities, but stronger states and a stronger nation as well. It is a substantial but necessary investment in making the nation and all of its communities more resilient and prepared for the future shocks that are sure to come.
This is a repost from the Brookings Institute, written by John D. Ratliff. Read the original article here. Download the full report here.