Plenary Session Transcripts

Governors Attending:

Guests:

Discussion Subjects:

State-local relations; and energy conservation

Points of Interest:

Governors continued the discussion of state-local relations that had begun at the 1974 annual meeting. It was noted on the minus side that the failure of states to attend to local government concerns was in part to blame for the efforts of city and county officials to approach the federal government directly for assistance. A County Supervisor who chaired health issues for the counties complained specifically that states sometimes imposed underfunded health mandates on counties and other local government jurisdictions.

On the plus side, the Governors' association had begun working closely with other state and local government associations to secure greater input into federal decisions. And the association was supporting the National League of Cities in its Supreme Court challenge of the Fair Labor Standards Act Amendments of 1974, which extended minimum wage and mandatory overtime and work-week provisions to all state and local government employees.

Speaking on behalf of state legislators, the President-elect and Vice President of the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) noted that state and local governments were working together effectively on a number of issues. A key example was land-use planning, where cities and states were cooperating to enact legislation prohibiting new development without local proof that needed services would be provided. Governors were not in full agreement, however, on the extent to which states should be involved in local land-use planning. Some believed that recognition of the limits of land availability compelled states to become involved in its protection. But other Governors believed the right of private property ownership was paramount, and any government interference with that would amount to an infringement of individual freedoms.

Providing a federal perspective, Carla Hills, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, said that demographic and economic trends had eroded the property tax base of many cities, which in combination with the rising cost of services against stagnant revenue sources placed tremendous burdens on local government. She argued that while local governments were best suited to know the specific needs of their residents, state governments could bring regionalism to the decision-making process that would guard against inequities of local resource allocation. In addition, she said that HUD's new rental subsidies program was based on the concept of shared responsibility by providing federal assistance to state and local governments that in turn could best decide how to meet the needs of lower-income families.

Governors discussed the energy crisis and considered—but did not adopt—a motion to support a federal expenditure of $100 million for research on, and development of, domestic oil and shale gas. Also considered, but not adopted, was a motion to support an amendment to pending federal legislation that would permit states—by enacting their own gas tax—to preempt a portion of federal gas tax increases.

Contentious debate ensued over a proposal to support glass recycling legislation modeled after successful recycling programs in Oregon and Vermont. Governor James Rhodes of Ohio balked at the idea, charging that the resulting reduction in glass production would cost jobs in his state and commenting that he would not support legislation that harmed another state and hoped that other Governors would show him the same consideration. Ultimately, the recycling proposal failed to receive sufficient support to be adopted.

Noteworthy is that the Executive Committee of the National Governors' Conference offered a motion to consider co-locating state offices and associations of state officials in Washington.

Memorable Quotes:

The association's Chair, Governor Calvin Rampton of Utah, said: "The past several years have seen a tendency arise for local governments, both city and county, to circumvent state government and take their problems directly to Washington. In all candor, I must say that a large share of the blame for this disenchantment on the part of local officials with state government lies with the States themselves. We as States have failed fully to meet our responsibility to the units of local government, and they have turned to the federal government in desperation...Among the powers neither granted to the federal government nor prohibited to the States [under the Constitution], and therefore vested in the States, is the power to form subsidiary units of government. Thus there is no county, no city, no school district or other special service district that exists under the authority of the government of the United States. These units of government are created, and their powers and responsibilities defined, either by state constitutions or by legislative action within those States, or by a combination of both. It is paradoxical, therefore, that cities and towns and other units of local government which exist by virtue of the authority assigned to the States by the Constitution of the United States should have to look around the States to the federal government for help in carrying out their functions."

Governor Rampton said the following about the Executive Committee's motion in support of an effort to bring state associations and Governors' offices in Washington together under one roof: "[A] recommendation which seems to have great merit is the possibility of bringing together many of the associations into a common physical facility or building in Washington, D.C. The some 40 associations which currently are located in Washington lease over 50,000 square feet of office space throughout the city. They are not in close communication with the Governors, each of them has separate conference facilities, printing facilities, extensive libraries and equipment. We have recommended that consideration be given to developing a single, common facility into which all of these trade groups or associations could be assembled, their officing with the National Governors' Conference, and perhaps join with some of the state Washington, D.C., offices which some of you have established, be in a common building which would house most of the state government functions in the capital. We have suggested that under such an arrangement there could be common meeting rooms, reproduction facilities and so forth."

Tom Jensen, President-elect of the National Conference of State Legislatures, said: "...we have heard people talk about how revenue sharing is a new idea, a new thing in this republic. But the fact is that, for many years, state government, although really not recognized by the American voter as doing so, has been involved in revenue sharing in a big way. We allocate, in fact, about two-thirds of our revenue in most of our States for local subdivisions. This is truly revenue sharing."

With respect to the potential for government "taking" of land to promote better land-use planning and conservation, Governor James Edwards of South Carolina said: "...I am sitting here wondering what the rights are of the man who has increased his money, worked hard all of his life, bought a deed to a piece of property. Doesn't this man have some rights...I don't make any excuse for the profit motive in America because without profit, we would have no taxes with which to do all of the great social things that we need to do in America. But don't you believe that somewhere along the way we need less regulation in America...I think it is time that we unleash this great American system once again to become productive and let the marketplace establish what should be done with a piece of property within certain frameworks. I have been a conservationist all of my life, but this thing is going entirely too far and, if the government seems to think that a piece of property is so valuable to the public interest, then I think it is time we went back to the old-fashioned system of negotiating with the rightful owner of that piece of property and purchasing it for use of the public good. If a view along the coastline is so beautiful that it should be preserved for generations to come, let's go to the people who own that property, negotiate and purchase, and then assure that this is preserved for years to come. But we must never, ever confiscate a man's private property in America under the guise of environmental protection or land-use planning because, if we do, the whole system is going down the drain."

Governor Milton Shapp of Pennsylvania said: "I submit that housing should not be considered as an expense but as a self-liquidating investment...what we should be doing now is cutting out all of the red tape, looking at the housing problem, the needs of our people, and coming forth with a long-scale housing program for our cities and rural areas, putting the money into these programs which...will be self-liquidating through the rentals that will be collected for the housing and, at the same time, will give much needed boosts to the sagging economy of this country."

Governor Edwin Edwards of Louisiana said the following in support of his motion to amend the association's policy position so as to promote oil exploration in the United States: "...90 percent of the oil comes from the Persian Gulf, which costs $15 a ton to transport, and you are...going to pay...about $16 a barrel. You are sitting on billions of barrels of oil that can be produced for less than $5 just 60 miles from your shores. Don't be concerned about this bugaboo about it ruining your shores. An offshore well is not some ugly, belching, noisy implementation that has to be circumnavigated by a swimmer off your coast. This is going to be 60 miles in the Gulf in 200 feet of water. You couldn't see a rig out there from the top of the Empire State Building on a clear day, if you had a clear day in New York. We have to get to the Outer Continental Shelf as a major thrust to this problem. It should come by sweet reason, but I suggest to you...sooner or later it is going to come, if not by foresight and planning and rational thinking, it will come from angry mobs in the streets who can't turn on light switches and find no gasoline stations." When Governor Edwards' motion failed, he said: "May I have a roll call so I will have it available when Armageddon gets here."

Selected Motions Adopted
(1) Advising federal agencies to deny grants to associations of state officials unless those grants were determined not to be in conflict with Governors' objectives; and (2)to consider co-locating associations of state officials in one building in Washington.