Mandate Madness Unjustified., Commission Says
By JEFF FLETCHER
(Reprinted with permission from the Jan 22, 1996 issue of Nation's Cities Weekly, the official publication of the National League of Cities.)
Unfunded federal mandates are a symptom that
something is seriously wrong with American federalism, concludes a recent preliminary study of the Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations (ACIR).
Washington's tendency to treat every problem as a
national issue has abridged the historic powers of state
and local governments and saddled them with complex
one-size-fits-all requirements that impose major costs
with little regard for ability to pay or ability to comply,
the report says.
From among more than 200 separate federal mandates that reach into every nook and cranny of state and
local government operations, ACIR took a detailed
look at 14 of the most onerous by asking the questions:
• Does the national purpose justify federal intrusion in state and local affairs?
• Are the costs of implementing the mandate fairly
shared among governments?
• Is maximum flexibility given to state and local
governments in implementing the mandate?
• Can changes be made in the mandate to relieve
intergovernmental stress while still maintaining a
commitment to national goals?
Recommendations on Individual Mandates
Of the 14 federal mandates it studied, the Commission recommends outright repeal of provisions in half
of them that extend coverage to state and local governments. Seven other mandates should be modified to
permit greater compliance flexibility and to accommodate the budgetary and administrative constraints of
state and local governments.
While not recommending repeal of the laws themselves, the Commission said that the application of
seven federal laws to state and local government should
be repealed. The laws are the Fair Labor Standards Act,
Family and Medical Leave Act, Occupational Safety
and Health Act, Drug and Alcohol Testing of Commercial Drivers, Metric Conversion, Boren Medicaid
Amendment, and Recycled Crumb Rubber mandate
(already repealed). These federal mandates, ACIR
concluded, did not have a sufficient national interest to
justify the intrusion on state and local government
rights and authorities.
On seven other federal mandates, the Commission
found sufficient national policy purpose to justify their
use, but recommended the changes below.
• Clean Water Act. Either restore direct federal
cost sharing or give state and local governments greater
authority to develop their own control methods and
timetables for implementing federal standards.
• Individuals with Disabilities Act. Either increase
federal funding to the 40 percent authorized level or
relieve states from prescriptive and costly administrative mandates. Limit lawsuits to those brought by the
responsible federal agency, and require the implementation of alternative dispute resolution practices.
• Americans with Disabilities Act. Either provide
increased funding to state and local governments, including funding for paratransit, or modify deadlines
and requirements to let state and local governments
meet national ADA requirements in a way that recognizes their technical and budgetary constraints. Create
a single federal ADA enforcement and assistance
agency. Legal actions against state and local governments should be brought only by the responsible federal agency.
• Safe Drinking Water Act. Enact amendments
similar to those approved by the Senate and establish a
long-term goal of returning to the states full responsibility for safe drinking water standards.
• Endangered Species Act. Give state and local
governments an official role-beyond the current consultation and review and comment requirements — in
the management and planning decisions affecting the
listing process. Use exemptions more extensively to
minimize the negative impacts on state and local governments of the recovery planning and listing procedures.
• Clean Air Act. Permit states to develop their own
ways of meeting federal air quality standards and eliminate penalties if states are making good faith efforts to
comply.
• Davis-Bacon Acts. Amend the laws to exempt
projects below a larger dollar cost than now prevails
and below a certain federal percentage of cost sharing
from compliance in state and local construction projects.
The ACIR study, "The Role of Federal Mandates in
Intergovernmental Relations," was called for in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (P.L. 104-4).
Copies of the report are available from ACIR Publications Office, Suite 450 South, 800 K Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20575; phone (202) 653-5540; fax (202)
653-5429 •
March 1996 / Illinois Municipal Review / Page 7