Gulf states fear long-term fiscal effects of oil disaster

The Gulf Oil Spill is a terrible environmental and financial disaster for the Gulf Coast Region which will have ripple effects across the country for years to come. An oil rig operated by British Petroleum exploded on April 20 killing 12 people. Since then, an ungodly amount of oil has been gushing into the Gulf of Mexico hour after hour, day after day, week after week and month after month. With no end in site, the cost of the disaster remains unimaginable. What will be the financial impact on Gulf Coast counties in Florida, Alabama, Mississippi Louisiana and Texas? No one know for sure. Stateline.org (Pew Center for the States) begins to put the disaster into perspective.

Gulf states fear long-term fiscal effects of oil disaster

The Gulf Oil Spill is a terrible environmental, financial and political disaster for the Gulf Coast Region which will have ripple effects across the country for years to come. An oil rig operated by British Petrolium exploded on April 20 killing 12 people. Since then, an ungodly amount of oil has been gushing into the Gulf of Mexico hour after hour, day after day, week after week and month after month. With no end in site, the cost of the disaster remains unimaginable. What will be the financial impact on Gulf Coast Counties in Florida, Alabama, Mississippi Louisiana and Texas? No one know for sure. Stateline.org (Pew Center for the States) begins to put the disaster into perspective.

When budget cuts cut the wrong way

It's easy to say, "cut spending" but difficult to do effectively. Stateline.org has an interesting article about state budget cuts backfiring. Often the political decision is "cut across the board" but what if you are cutting positions that bring money into state coffers? That appears to be the case in some states.

"For example, 5,300 employees of the Franchise Tax Board have been told to take three days off work each month rather than spending that time auditing delinquent taxpayers and collecting back taxes. For every dollar it has saved by furloughing these workers, the state has lost $7.15 in uncollected revenue, according to a report by the California Senate Office of Oversight and Outcomes. The decision to keep these workers off the job could reduce the overall projected savings of the furlough program by more than one-quarter, according to the report."

Stay Ahead of the Story: Media Relations Strategies for County Officials in Tough Times

We had a great NACo webinar recently, "Stay Ahead of the Story: Media Relations Strategies for County Officials in Tough Times." The featured presenter was Aileen Pincus, President and Founder of The Pincus Group. We also had Todd McGee who is the Communications Director of the North Carolina Association of County Commissioners and 2nd VP of the National Association of County Information Officers (NACIO). If you missed it, we have a recording that you can access free of charge at your convenience. You can find it on the Webinars and Seminars page at www.naco.org.