Local Government

==History of the Issue==
In 1982, the PA Local Government Commission, composed of five members of the state house and five members of the state senate (along with an administrative staff), surveyed the mandates imposed by the Commonwealth on political subdivisions. Subdivisions include counties, cities, boroughs, townships and school districts. 
The commission found more than 7,000 mandates imposed by the constitution, statutes, and executive branch agencies.
:Some mandates were found to be obsolete. Some were inherently defective. Some were in conflict with other statutes. Some were repealed in part or were in conflict with judicial decisions. 
The commission determined that to improve state-local relationships a thorough evaluation of these mandates was in order. The commission decided to wait for a policy decision to be made by the General Assembly as to how to address problem mandates before undertaking this thorough review. To date no such decision has been made by the General Assembly.
===Since 1982, the mandates have kept coming.===
In more recent times, the General Assembly has improved its efforts to disguise their mandates. Sometimes the state legislation takes the form of a pseudo-mandate (e.g. the Uniform Construction Code) or in the form of quasi pre-emptive regulations (e.g. land application of sewage sludge). 
===Each time the state takes actions, more local control is lost.===
Problems mount throughout the state. 
Citizens have the most direct input into government at the local level. Therefore citizens make better impacts and suggestions into decisions that affect their lives when the decisions are more localized. Decisions that are made at the state (and certainly the federal) level are unduly influenced by special interests and political deals.
===Possible solutions===
The Libertarian Party of PA is pondering the priority of making a shift of decision-making authority from the state (and federal) level toward local government. Local government is, after all, where all of the current elected and appointed Libertarian office holders serve.
==Planks==
* As a state senator, I'd push to discover and document the interplay of state and local governmental entities. 
* As a state senator, I'd attempt to join the PA Local Government Commission.
* As a state senator, I'd concentrate on common sense legislative solutions to the range of problems that confound our system.