2022-11-09 CC Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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November 9, 2022 Re: Metro Cities Policy Adoption Honorable Mayor and Councilmembers, Metro Cities, a membership organization representing cities in the seven-county metropolitan area at the Legislature, Executive Branch and Metropolitan Council, is holding their annual policy adoption meeting on November 17, 2022. One vote per member city is allowed, with an additional vote in communities that exceed a population of 50,000. There are many policies being considered for adoption on November 19, however the most pressing issue for the city is Local Government Aid (LGA). Over the last several months, the city has been involved in policy discussions with the League of Minnesota Cities (LMC), Metro Cities, and Minnesota Small Cities on the LGA allocation. In August, city council signed a letter supporting Metro Cities request for the State’s executive and legislative branches to act on its LGA proposal. See the attached letter signed by Mayor D. Love. The Metro Cities draft policy states the following: The Metro Cities supports the city Local Government Aid (LGA) program as a means of ensuring cities remain affordable places to live and work while meeting the public service needs of residents and businesses. Metro Cities supports updates to the LGA formula factors and an increase in the program appropriation consistent with recommendations by a work group of city associations. Recommended updates will ensure the LGA program adequately reflects and addresses city needs. To ensure appropriation levels are adequate to meet program objectives, Metro Cities supports increasing the LGA appropriation to address cities’ unmet need as defined by the LGA formula as well as increases in the LGA appropriation to account for inflation. By way of reference, the total need identified in the LGA formula for 2023 is estimated at $767.9 million, whereas the current funding is set at $564.3 million, putting the remaining need at $203.5 million. Metro Cities supports formula-based allocations for increases to the LGA appropriation, and opposes freezes of the LGA appropriation, reductions of LGA for balancing state budget deficits, and diversions of the LGA appropriation to other purposes or entities. Metro Cities also opposes artificial limits or reductions that single out specific cities, and further opposes using LGA as financial leverage to influence activities and policy decisions at the local level. While there are many policies included in the Metro Cities draft policy document, it is not included with this memo, because it is more than sixty pages. The full document can be accessed here.