How can municipalities save money

From London to Stuttgart to Portland, cities around the world are implementing speed limits for health, safety and environmental reasons. Simply lowering speed limits by just a few miles per hour can result in significant emissions reductions. Lowered speed limits also boost public safety, particularly for pedestrians. Even slight increases in speed can greatly increase the likelihood of death in pedestrians, according to researchers at the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safet y. They found that a person is 66 percent more likely to be killed if struck by a car driving 30 miles 48 kilometers per hour than one driving 25 miles 40 kilometers per hour.

Local governments are also consumers, and the day-to-day tasks of running a city require supplies and services. Purchasing policies can be written to ensure city purchasing is less harmful for the environment. Saving money and reducing environmental impact can be as simple as eliminating unnecessary printing. Across a city hall, there are plenty of instances where printing a document can be avoided.

Single-use meeting agendas can be digitally projected, and many city documents and reports can be posted on websites. Be the first to hear about important new environmental stories. Sign up now to receive our newsletter. More aggressive moves like going fully paper-free can cut costs of paper, printers, toner and the electricity used to run printers and copiers. Even small savings like these can add up over time.

Sometimes reducing environmental impacts is the responsibility of the entire community. In addition to the simple strategies listed above, cities should face the fact that reducing environmental impacts will cost money, says Jeff Hughes, director of the Environmental Finance Center at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

In recent years, Hughes has noticed more cities setting up dedicated environmental fees or service charges to pay for these essential services with environmental dividends. The city of Raleigh, North Carolina, for example, charges a stormwater utility fee to homeowners based on the amount of impervious surface on their property — a fee that accounts for the cost of processing stormwater that flows off the site and into the sewer system.

Each city is unique, and the right mix of low-cost environmentally friendly practices will be unique, too. But such efforts can be difficult from procedural, logistical and perceptual standpoints, said Mike Cerra. He recalled a resident who voiced concern that she would no longer know her local police officer, once Princeton Borough and Princeton Township finally completed their merger. Following World War II, New Jersey state government implemented a civil service — or merit-based — hiring system to limit patronage.

Most counties and municipalities followed suit via referendum, but others did not. Outgoing Gov. Regionalization, however, has been slow over the past quarter century: Today New Jersey has municipalities — only two fewer since — and school districts, down 26 districts in the same period. Ron Marsico is a contributing journalist for NJ Spotlight, handling general-assignment issues. The people who are most vested in efficiency are your employees and the citizens.

They are the most conscientious people when it comes to doing away with waste, creating efficiency, and streamlining operations. Often, all it takes to find ways to operate in a leaner fashion is to do an annual or biannual efficiency review much like the one that the Texas Performance Review did. All communities have to prioritize their needs. Think not only about new programs, but the cost of the infrastructure that it will take to sustain them continually. Make sure that the program structure supports that vision and then make sure that the budgetary structure supports the program structure, which supports the vision.

There has got to be some thought behind it. In running a lean local government, be careful not to cut programs that threaten public service. Keeping an open mind also means steering clear of naysayers. What must be done, can be done when you give new ideas and thought patterns the weight they deserve to take them to the implementation phase. Look for things that are common in every department and you will save in every department.

Do an annual or biannual efficiency review Often, all it takes to find ways to operate in a leaner fashion is to do an annual or biannual efficiency review much like the one that the Texas Performance Review did. Recommended Content.