Md. Democrat challenges Obama budget, saying it will decrease local revenue
This may be a first: a major news organization - in this case NBC.com's First Read blog - cites a NACo policy brief and links to it.

The Maryland Congressman, a former county executive, makes an important point about changing the tax exempt status of municipal bonds which local government uses to raise monies to build America's critical infrastructure such as schools, hospitals, roads and bridges: it will have a negative impact on local communities.

Protecting the tax exempt status of municipal bonds is a NACo priority.

Public Approval of State and Local Government Rises, Federal Rating Tumbles
Americans think highly of their local government. In the latest Pew Poll, the high approval rating has gone even higher, Governing magazine reports.

Supervisors agree it’s time for immigration reform
Great example of bringing the national work of NACo back home to the local county board with positive results. Santa Barbara County Supervisor Salud Carbajal is chair of NACo's Environment, Energy and Land Use Steering Committee. Here's a link to the latest NACo statement on immigration reform. 

Odd allies fight against taxing municipal bonds
NACo is hitting the muni bond issue hard this year, trying to convince Washington not to change the tax-exempt status of municipal bonds. This article in POLITICO was a result of a press conference NACo, the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the National League of Cities held on Feb. 27 at the National Press Club. NACo leadership met with editors and reporters from POLITICO two days later and continued to stress the importance of the issue for counties and cities, who use muni bonds to build America's critical infrastructure and create jobs.
 

Obama Calls for More for Infrastructure, Jobs, Energy
NACo is quoted in this Governing magazine article about Tuesday's State of the Union address.

“We’re excited [about] the president’s focus on infrastructure. We understand it’s going to be tough climb, but it’s essential to getting our economy restarted,” said Matthew Chase, executive director of the National Association of Counties.

Local Government Organizations Commend EPA’s Memorandum Concerning Financial Capability for Clean Water Act Requirements
NACo, National League of Cities and U.S. Conference of Mayors released a joint press statement regarding EPA's announcement that the agency will work with local governments to clarify how the financial capability of a community will be considered when developing schedules for municipal projects necessary to meet Clean Water Act (CWA) obligations.

NACo President Chris Rodgers said that NACo applauds EPA’s acknowledgement that the input of county and city leaders is critical to achieving the shared goals of the Clean Water Act.

"A reasonable balance between the costs to taxpayers and ratepayers and compliance with CWA regulations must be considered as we work to protect and improve water quality in communities across the country.”

With revenues still uncertain Natrona County prepares for worst case
Leah Todd of the Star-Tribune in Wyoming quotes NACo in an article about federal funding uncertainty regarding the Payment in Lieu of Taxes Program (PILT). 

PILT is funding is compensation for counties with tax‐exempt federal land within their boundaries. NACo supports full funding of the PILT program, to the authorized levels of P.L.103‐379 and beyond.

For more information about PILT, contact: Ryan Yates 202.942.4207 or ryates@naco.org.