Note: Some of the information on this archival Web page may no longer be current.
Focus - July 1999
Budget Suggestions for 2000
Budget Suggestions for 2000
(
488kb) is now available on our Web site! Budget Suggestions for 2000
includes descriptions and interpretations of 1999 legislation that may affect
your budget, revenue forecasts, CPI forecasts, and an implicit price deflator
forecast, including a look ahead to 2001. Special features include articles
on two state programs - the Local Option Capital Asset Lending Program and the
Procurement Card Program, as well as articles on Initiative 695, the use of
public facilities to support or oppose ballot propositions, and the publication
of ordinances. The print edition will be "in the mail" by July 30.
Inquiry of the Week
This week's "Inquiry of the Week":
Who has the authority to designate leave as FMLA leave - the employer or the employee?
[Previous inquiries of the week]
Initiative 695 Resource Center
MRSC is acting as a central information-sharing resource center for Initiative 695. We are providing relevant links and information developed by other organizations for your benefit. We do not take responsibility for any of the information provided, nor do we necessarily agree with any of the positions taken. More …
MRSC's New Local Government Services Directory
Add a link to your company's Web site from MRSC's new Local Government Services Directory - the best place to get exposure to local governments in Washington. The directory lists Washington local government service providers alphabetically and by service category. Each listing will also allow placement of a brief description of your company's products and services. More …
Join in the Discussion
Since 1995, MRSC has hosted a national listserv (E-mail discussion group) on local government policy issues. The listserv provides you with a means to pose questions and share information on policy issues facing your local government. To add your name to the subscriber list, send an E-mail message to localgov-subscribe-request@home.ease.lsoft.com with no subject line. In the body of the message, type subscribe localgov [your name]. There is no charge for subscribing. You may unsubscribe from the listserv at any time by sending a message to localgov-unsubscribe-request@home.ease.lsoft.com. In the body of the message, type unsubscribe localgov.
License Requirement for Music/Dancing in Bars Ruled Unconstitutional
Local governments take note that Chief Judge John Coughenour of the Western District of the U.S. District Court ruled on June 29th that a Washington State law requiring bars and nightclubs to obtain permission from government offices before providing live music or entertainment violates the First Amendment right to protected expression. More …
Federal Court Strikes Down Maryland Right-of-Way Franchising Ordinance
On 5/24/99 the federal district court in Maryland struck down the recently enacted right-of-way franchise ordinance of Prince George's County, Maryland. Co-counsel William Malone of the Miller & Van Eaton law firm in Washington, D.C. has provided MRSC with this brief review of the case. Copies of the decision are available on BNA's Web site. The case is being appealed.
Portland AT&T/TCI Cable Decision
On June 4th the federal district court in Portland, Oregon issued a controversial and potentially momentous decision in litigation between AT&T/TCI, Portland and Multnomah County, Oregon. The judge ruled that local governments can require a cable provider to allow other companies to use the cable company's high-speed coaxial cable for access to customers, eliminating the natural monopoly enjoyed by most cable companies. More information is available on the National Association of Telecommunications Officers and Advisors (NATOA) Web site. Copies of the decision are also available on the NATOA site. The decision is being appealed.
Regulating Public Nuisances
MRSC receives numerous requests for information on regulating various kinds of public nuisances. Whether it's plants, animals, vehicles, or even old refrigerators, someone has found a way to turn it into a nuisance. So, we've put together a new Web page, Regulation and Abatement of Nuisances, with information and sample ordinances on all of your favorite public nuisances. You might want to add this one to your bookmarks/favorites list. If you don't need it now, you will later … trust us.
Yakima County's Best SELF Youth Program
Yakima County's newly launched Best SELF program is designed to provide social and learning experiences for children as a support for families. The program's three focus components are themed education, recreation and community service. Best SELF is designed to keep children involved in a fun, supervised, safe, active, social environment while they learn during the summer months. Staff will intertwine the three focus components into hands-on lessons that will also meet the schools essential academic learning requirements which may assist a child in passing the state's benchmark standards.
Web Sightings - School Violence Prevention Resources
This month we feature links to Web sites providing school violence prevention resources:
- School Violence
Resources - The U.S. Justice Department's Office of Juvenile Justice and
Delinquency Prevention Web site has information on school violence statistics,
strategies, and funding.
- Center for the Prevention
of School Violence - The University of North Carolina's Center for the
Prevention of School Violence serves as a clearinghouse for information about
the problem of school violence as well as solutions to it.
- National Resource Center
for Safe Schools - The National Resource Center for Safe Schools, operated
by the Northwest Regional Educational Library, works with schools, communities,
state and local education agencies, and other concerned individuals and agencies
to create safe learning environments and prevent school violence.
- National School Safety Center - The National School Safety Center serves as a catalyst and advocate for the prevention of school crime and violence by providing information and resources and identifying strategies and promising programs which support safe schools for school children worldwide.
Police Bulletproof Vest Partnership Grant Program
The Bulletproof Vest Partnership (BVP) Grant Program (Public Law 105-181) administered by the U.S. Justice Department's Bureau of Justice Assistance helps states, units of local government, and tribal governments equip their law enforcement officers with armor vests. The BVP has developed a Web site to assist local governments to obtain these vests using an electronic application for funding and request for payment process. The entire process of obtaining federal funds is completed through BVP's Web site. The fiscal year 1999 application process will be closed August 31, 1999.
New MRSC Compilations
Check out our new compilations on Junk Vehicle Abatement,Requiring Bicycle Helmets, and Investment Policies.
Targeted Brownfields Assessments Available
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (Seattle office) is currently offering a select number of environmental site assessments to public or non-profit entities interested in redeveloping abandoned or underutilized properties. More …
Selected New MRSC Library Materials
Browse through a selected list of new MRSC Library materials (listed by subject). The list includes new library books, videos, articles, government publications, and more.
Get MRSC Web Site Updates by E-mail
You can get a monthly e-mail notifying you of selected updates to MRSC's Web site by subscribing to the mrscweb mailing list (listserv). Simply send an e-mail to Terri Sanders, MRSC Information Services Technician, at tsanders@mrsc.org. Include your first and last name and your e-mail address. You may also have your name removed from the list at any time, again by sending an e-mail to Terri Sanders with your request.
Unlike most listservs, mrscweb is not a discussion list to which all subscribers may post messages, but a free subscription to a monthly notice updating you on major changes and additions to the MRSC Web site.