Data Needs (see also Under Specific Subjects Social Welfare, Urban Development) The President should establish a computerized system to retrieve information essential for the administration of grants-in-aid, formulation of Federal-State-local fiscal policies and other purposes. Congress should establish such a system for review of grant-in-aid programs. This data should be available to State and local government. (Report A-31, 1967) [Partially implemented by Intergovernmental Cooperation Act of 1968, PL 90-577, through OMB Circular A-98.] The Executive Office of the President should develop means to improve measurement of relative State fiscal capacity and tax effort on a government-wide basis and collect and tabulate it. (Report A-19, 1964) An ad hoc committee of Federal and State officials should be established to analyze State-by-State information available in State and local governmental records potentially useful in the administration of Federal taxes. The Council of State Governments should survey the adequacy of legislative authority in the States for exchange of tax information and draft appropriate enabling legislation. (Report A-7, 1961) (See also Taxation, General Administration) [Largely implemented by administrative action at Federal and local levels.] Congress should authorize the Internal Revenue Service to perform statistical and related services for the States on a reimbursement basis (Report A-7, 1961), and the Internal Revenue Service should expand its reporting of income statistics for SMSAS to provide data for the units of general local government within these areas. (Report A-31, 1967) [Statistical service implemented by 1962 amendments to Internal Revenue Code, PL 87-870; expansion of statistics implemented by administrative action of the Internal Revenue Service, by tabulating adjusted gross income of individuals by postal zip code.] Administration III. MAJOR GOVERNMENTAL PROGRAMS EDUCATION State educational agencies should make available on a multidistrict basis a specialized educational capability-including special personnel to the children of the district. The States should provide appropriate financial incentives for the creation of such multi-district facilities. The Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 should be amended to provide Federal incentives. (Report A-31, 1967) Finance 43 States are responsible for reducing fiscal disparities among school districts within their boundaries. (Report A-40, 1973) 43 Fountain dissent. States should adopt as a long-range objective, assumption of substantially all fiscal responsibility for financing local schools with opportunity for financial enrichment at the local level. Localities should be assured retention of appropriate policymaking authority. (Report A-34, 1969) 44 [Proposed State Financing of Public School Costs Act (to amend Elementary and Secondary Education Act) would provide Federal incentives for State takeover of public education costs.] States that have not assumed substantially full responsibility for financing education should devise and fund a school equalization program to extend additional aid to those districts handicapped in raising sufficient revenue. (Report A−34, 1969) States should make a critical review of their present school grant formulas to make sure they provide a minimum educational level and to assure that local tax effort and community requirements are measured as accurately as possible. (Report A-25, 1965) States should add to their aid formulas appropriate factors reflecting high costs per pupil among disadvantaged children in areas of high population density. The Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 should be amended to provide incentive grants for this purpose. (Report A-31, 1967) Where school financing has not already been placed on a countywide or regional basis, States should mandate the establishment of county or regional school property taxing districts. The Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 should be amended to authorize Federal incentive grants for the establishment of county or regional school taxing districts and other areawide educational arrangements to assist in equalizing fiscal resources. (Report A-31, 1967) 46 HEALTH A Uniform allotment and matching formula should be established for Federal grants-in-aid to States for health programs.7 (Report A-2, 1961) [Implemented by Health Planning and Services Act of 1966, PL 89-749.] States should make greater use of equalization in terms of fiscal capacity, need and tax effort in distributing State aid for public health and hospital programs. (Report A-34, 1969) States should eliminate constitutional and legislative barriers to the establishment of prepaid group practice of health care. (Report A-33, 1968) The President should direct the Secretaries of Interior and Health, Education and Welfare to prepare and submit a joint report and recommendations to clarify the relationship between Medicaid and medical services provided Indians, Eskimos and other indigenous groups. (Report A-33, 1968) Dariel, Fountain, McDonald, Ullman dissent; Mundt abstain. Rockefeller dissent. Fountain dissent. HOUSING (see also Urban Growth) Discrimination and Diversification Federal and State agencies should accelerate adoption of coopera- Federal and State housing legislation should be amended to: States should restrict zoning authority in metropolitan areas to Urban Renewal Congress should remove limitations on nonresidential renewal from the Federal urban renewal program. (Report A-25, 1965) States should authorize and help counties in metropolitan areas provide urban renewal and public housing services to unincorporated areas and small municipalities. (Report A-25, 1965) Building Technology Congress should authorize and finance a cooperative public and private program to develop national performance criteria and standards and testing procedures for building construction. There should be a continuing national program of building research; the President should direct Federal agencies with policy or program responsibilities for construction, urban development and renewal to cooperate in this endeavor. (Report A-28, 1966) 47 [Section 1010 of Demonstration Cities and Metropolitan Development Act of 1966, PL 89-754, provides for a national program of building research.] States and institutions of higher education should establish programs for research in building construction and provide appropriate technical information services for public officials and private business. (Report A-28, 1966) 49 47 Fleming dissent. 48 Anderson, Wilcox, Goldner dissent. 49 Ervin, Mundt, Crank and DeStefano disagreed with Commission taking action on the report A-28 Building Codes: A Program for Intergovernmental Reform, at that time. (January 1966) Building Codes The President should instruct all Federal, State and local agencies with direct responsibility for building construction or with responsibility for establishing construction standards, to develop and set a common set of standards. (Report A-28, [Proposed Building Sciences Act would establish National Institute of Building Sciences to develop and maintain "national relationship between building codes and related regulatory requirements and building technology" and facilitate cost saving innovations."] States should enable their local jurisdictions to adopt the recognized uniform building code by reference and adopt future changes by administrative rather than legislative action. (Report A-28, 1966) 49 States should establish a building construction review agency at State level to provide uniform interpretation of standards in considering appeals from decisions of local government. (Report A-28, 1966) 49 Building Inspectors State agencies should be empowered to establish professional States should authorize and support programs for training Relocation Congress should establish a uniform relocation policy for payments and advisory assistance for persons and business displaced by direct Federal and federally aided programs. Each State should establish a uniform policy for State and local programs. (Report A-26, 1965) [Federal aspect implemented by Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisitions Policies Act of 1970, PL 91-646.] Congress and State legislatures should assign responsibility to administrative agencies for determining the amount of relocation payments. Federal, State and local governments causing displacement should centralize in a single agency in each major urban jurisdiction responsibility for relocation. Cities in Ervin, Mundt, Crank and DeStefano disagreed with Commission taking action on the report A-28, Building Codes: A Program for Intergovernmental Reform, at that time. (January 1966) Crank dissent. DeStefano and Goldner dissent. Goldner dissent. metropolitan areas with relocation staff and experience should contract to provide areawide relocation services and studies. (Report A-26, 1965) [Implemented in part by Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisitions Policies Act of 1970, PL 91–646.] The President should appoint a representative group to draft a model building code. The group should recommend machinery to keep the code revised and updated 50 (Report A-28, 1966) 19 49 The States should authorize the adoption and use by local governments of uniform housing, building, zoning and platting codes within metropolitan areas. (Report A-25, 1965) The States should prepare and promulgate comprehensive building codes, with a permissive procedure for products approval. Local jurisdictions should not have the authority to alter the code except on specific approval of the State agency. To the extent possible State model codes should adhere to nationally recognized models. State and local government should use 701 funds for this purpose. States should consider a uniform policy of construction loans and grants to local governments upon conformance of aided projects to the State model code. (Report A-28, 1966) 49 States and regional organizations should assist local governments in planning for relocation. Where States make urban renewal capital grants, advances should be provided for relocation planning. (Report A-26, 1965) Federal and State legislation should require that before governments proceed with any property acquisition, they assure the availability of at least comparatively standard housing for the displaced. Federal and State governments should require their agencies causing disaplacement to give advance notice of impending construction programs at the earliest practicable time. (Report A-26, 1965) [Implemented by Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisitions Policies Act of 1970, PL 91–646.] The Federal Government should finance the full cost of relocating families and up to $25,000 for relocating business displaced under Federal grant-in-aid programs. Additional costs for businesses should be on the basis of cost-sharing formula. States should share in the cost of relocation for programs which receive State grants or State contributions to Federal grants. (Report A-26, 1965) [The Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisitions Policies Act of 1970, PL 91-646, provides full federal reimbursement until July 1, 1972, after which time the cost is to be shared with States and localities on a project formula basis. Proposed Uniform Relocation Act Amendments would remove cutoff date.] 40 Ervin, Mundt, Crank and DeStefano disagreed with Commission taking action on the report A-28, Building Codes: A Program for Intergovernmental Reform, at that time. (January 1966) |