NATaT Federal Platform and Action Plan for 2007

The National Association of Towns and Townships (NATaT) is the voice of 12,000 small towns and townships across America that seeks to enhance the ability of communities to deliver public services, economic vitality, and good government to our citizens. America’s small towns and townships seek continued partnership with the federal government to ensure that public laws and policy, reasonable regulations, and adequate resources will support our role in fostering local progress. For the 110th Congress this coming year, NATaT and its members will focus on the following federal platform and action plan:

LOCAL INFRASTRUCTURE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

• Telecommunications Expansion that Serves Local Progress – As Congress considers reauthorization of telecommunications law and the FCC seeks to change telecommunications policy, NATaT supports the preservation of long-standing local franchise authority and local control over rights-of-way. Federal telecom law should maintain and enhance franchise fee authority for localities. NATaT seeks to ensure that video providers provide uniform and equitable build-out and service across regions, including non-urban areas, and do not limit their services to lucrative, suburban communities.
• Rural Economic Development in Farm Bill – NATaT seeks to provide a small community perspective in the reauthorization of the 2007 Farm Bill, Rural Development, Energy, and Conservation titles. NATaT emphasizes the importance of support for robust USDA rural water, electric power, telecommunications, alternative energy, wastewater infrastructure, rural health care, land conservation, and rural business development programs.

PUBLIC SERVICE VOLUNTEERISM

• Support for Public Service Volunteers – Small stipends paid to public service volunteers are subject to tax withholdings, placing an unreasonable burden on small towns. NATaT supports tax flexibility, exemptions, and incentives for local public service volunteers who receive nominal compensation for their service. NATaT supports a FICA tax exemption for local public service volunteers who receive less than $2,500 in compensation.
• Federal Support for Public Sector Volunteers – Local volunteers play an essential role in building the capacity of America’s small towns and townships, and reduce the burden on federal and state governments to fund public and social service programs. Federal support is needed to help provide the training, technical assistance and organizational infrastructure to foster local volunteerism, particularly fire, emergency, and other first responders.

FAIR SHARE OF FEDERAL RESOURCES

• Federal Funding Support for Local Transportation, Public Works, Infrastructure, and Revitalization – NATaT supports increased federal domestic funding for local transportation, including rural roads and bridges; water, stormwater, and wastewater infrastructure, including small sewer and septic systems; economic development programs; and brownfields revitalization. NATaT supports increased targeted funding to rural communities through these programs.
• Reduced Unfunded Mandates – NATaT opposes additional unfunded mandates, including regulatory burdens and delays, which put an unfair fiscal burden on towns and townships.
• Make Allocation Policies Fair to Towns and Townships – NATaT will work to identify any unfair allocation policies that place towns and townships at an unfair disadvantage for receiving federal funding. For any unfair funding policies that are identified, NATaT will work with Congress and the appropriate federal agencies to ensure that those agencies provide fair treatment to small communities. NATaT will also seek flexibility in matching requirements for grants to small communities with an inability to pay for the local match, and the avoidance of regressive tax policies that hurt local citizens. In addition, NATaT supports initiatives to ensure accurate Census counts in towns and townships.

FIRST RESPONDERS, HOMELAND SECURITY & PUBLIC SAFETY

• Local First Responders – NATaT supports increased funding for local first responders and greater flexibility in the distribution of that funding. NATaT is particularly concerned about adequate and fair funding for FEMA disaster mitigation resources and FIRE Act grants.
• Tax Credits for Volunteer First Responders – NATaT supports tax credits for eligible volunteer first responders, similar to those included in the proposed Supporting Emergency Responders Volunteer Efforts Act of 2005 (“SERVE Act”, H.R. 934/S. 625), which had bipartisan support in the 109th Congress.
• Increased Funding for Local Domestic Security – NATaT supports increased homeland security funding for all communities, including non-urban areas that demonstrate the need to protect critical infrastructure, public facilities, and public safety.
• Streamlined Grant Procedures – The Department of Homeland Security should simplify and streamline federal grant application and implementation forms and requirements, which can pose a significant burden on small communities.

For more information about NATaT’s federal issues and agenda, see www.natat.org or call 1-800-830-0008 or 202-454-3954