Editorial Comment

The Citizens Forum on Self- Government What? Why?

EDITOR’S NOTE: What is the Citizens Forum on Self-GovernmenVNational Municipal League, Inc., all about? What are its goals? What emphasis is its program currently taking? All of these questions are kept in mind each year as the executive director prepares the report to the membership and Council. The 1982 meeting is being held on August 15 in conjunction with the 88th National Conference on Government at The Westin Hotel in Seattle. In addition to that report (excerpts from which will appear in a later issue), we are endeavoring to “introduce” the Citizens Forum to its “family” all over again-to remind ourselves especially of the importance of the program of service to citizens as they develop and refine institutions and processes to enhance self-government and build civic self-confidence in the face of shrinking resources and increasing service demands and a major realignment of the func- tions and responsibilities of the levels of government and the private sector.

ITIZENS FORUM ON SELF-GOVERNMENT is a nonprofit, nonpartisan C association of concerned and active citizens sharing the common goal of making their state and local governments more effective, represen- tative, responsible and responsive.

CITIZENS FORUM ON SELF-GOVERNMENT is the new operating name of National Municipal League, Inc., established in 1894 in the midst of an “urban crisis” of poverty, slums and municipal corruption which caused city government to be called “the one conspicuous failure of the United States.” To help overcome this failure, Theodore Roosevelt, Louis Bran- deis, Carl Shurz and other League founders launched a program of insti- tutional reform which has evolved over almost 90 years as a continuing force to make a reality of self-government.

CITIZENS FORUM ON SELF-GOVERNMENT with its services to citizens as voters, elected and appointed officials, and participants in organized com- munity action is needed more in the 1980s than ever before. Self-govern- ment is being tested, and it must be equipped to establish priorities, con- serve resources and enhance productivity as it responds to and meets the needs of citizens with equity and balance. CITIZENS FORUM is supplying tools required for revitalizing civic institutions and processes. These tools- guides, models and other publications, information exchange systems and conferences-are being constantly sharpened and refitted.

Support of CITIZENS FORUM is an investment repaid many times over as it helps to build self-governing capacity, strengthen civic self-confidence,

346 July-AugUSt 1982

EDITORIAL COMMENT I 347

and reinforce community self-help, and, thus, to enhance the capability of citizens and officials to perform effectively.

CITIZENS FORUM has an expanded role in the 1980s when increased citizen activism faces circumstances far different from those of recent decades. No longer can solutions be chiefly in the form of another federal grant or regulation. Citizen advocates are demanding results closer to home where they are negotiating in an environment of scarce resources through a mix of public/private programs. The focal points of decision making are in state and local governing bodies and in new private/volun- tary sector initiatives. Results will depend on how these institutions oper- ate. CITIZENS FORUM directs its efforts toward improving the effectiveness of state/local/voluntary decision making, and achieving greater account- ability and equity at all governmental levels and in their interrelationships.

The fundamental goals of the CITIZENS FORUM are:

-To create a setting in which all citizens can more effectively and equitably share in the governance of their communities.

-To bolster the strength and accountability of elected state and local government.

-To restore greater mutual respect and trust among local, state and federal partners.

-To make those changes necessary to liberate state and local govern- ments to manage scarce resources in times of tax, capital and energy scarcity.

-To support systems and processes which encourage accountability and responsible professional management in local and state govern- ment.

-To restore a strong sense of the common good, so that the demand for individual and group rights, however justified, does not cause an unravelling of the social contract.

-To continue the League’s most important thrust of the past eight decades: attention to structure and process, a rejection of philoso- phies of ends justifying means, a belief in the strength of the informed and participating citizens under representative government.

Self-government means participation by citizens as voters, officials and civic activists. The entire program of CITIZENS FORUM is an information and idea exchange for citizens in their several roles. How does CITIZENS FORUM serve citizens? For almost 90 years its clearinghouse and rnoni-

348 I NATIONAL CIVIC REVIEW

toring services have been an information resource for those concerned with the ever-changing civic and governmental scene. Special emphasis is given to particular issues as the need arises, e.g., reapportionment and representation, election reform and public ethics, neighborhood and re- gional governance, local charter and state constitutional revision, intergov- ernmental relationships. Its capacity is well known not only for providing substantive information but also for establishing linkages between individ- uals and groups with diverse backgrounds, but with similar concerns and needs.

Information is exchanged in CITIZENS FORUM’S monthly journal and other publications, video documentaries, model laws and systems, conferences, consultation and individualized responses to inquiries.

NATIONAL CIVIC REVIEW published since 191 2 (National Municipal Re- view until 1959) has a central role in the information exchange function. In addition, it is a basic reference tool providing a chronology of all major developments in state and local government reform and reorganization efforts.

NATIONAL CONFERENCE ON GOVERNMENT held annually since 1894 brings together a unique combination of citizens, officials, academicians and civic leaders-all elements in the CITIZENS FORUM constituency-to discuss issues of major concern for those committed to strengthening self-govern- ment. The National Conferences in the 1980s are giving particular atten- tion to the issues associated with a revitalization of the American federal system-clarification of the roles and responsibilities of its several levels and the privateholuntary civic sector. The results of conference delibera- tions, which cut across partisan and ideological differences, are an impor- tant contribution to the “federalism” debate.

Throughout its history, CITIZENS FORUM has presented its basic pro- grams in a practical, usable form-model laws, charters and systems. Rather than exhortations of general reform principles, the models, based on thorough research and extensive deliberation, provide specific pro- grams of reform for adaptation to local needs, circumstances and traditions by citizens occupying positions of leadership as officeholders or in orga- nized civic efforts.

All models set high standards of organization and accountability and stress visibility of all operations to assure open, responsible government. In a time of fiscal stringency, this is crucial to the maintenance of citizen confidence in self-governing institutions. Among the models are Model Election System, Model State Campaign Finance Law, Model State Con- flict of Interest and Financial Disclosure Law, Model Municipal General Obligation Bond Law, Model Municipal Revenue Bond Law, Model In- vestment of State Funds Law.

July-August 1982

EDITORIAL COMMENT 1 349 To assist in the appraisal of basic government organizational form, the

Model City Charter, Model County Charter and Model State Constitution have set the structural reform agenda for state and local government since 1900. Of special significance has been the influence of the models in establishing the norms of professional management in local government through the adoption of the council-manager plan, advocated since 191 5.

With an increased emphasis on community self-help, the efforts of or- ganized citizens assume greater importance both as they influence official action and as they undertake initiatives providing alternatives to services delivered by government itself. Citizens are organized for every conceiv- able purpose. They can be sources of innovation, voices of discontent, advocates of reform, fiscal watchdogs and volunteers in service delivery.

For more than 30 years, to assure that innovative action techniques do not remain isolated, the CITIZENS FORUM, through its All-America Cities Award Program, has honored citizens who have taken concerted, often dramatic action in their communities. Once exclusively a recognition pro- gram, it has been expanded in recent years to include research and tech- nical assistance, and will be further enhanced in the coming years through the development and operation of an expanded civic information system (CIVITEX) which will use both manual access and appropriate technology.

CITIZENS FORUM ON SELF-GOVERNMENT with its long experience as a communicator of civic information will continue to utilize the methods of information exchange which have proved successful, and expand its ser- vices by employing new technologies for information storage, retrieval and transfer. Its new CIVITEX (Civic Information and Techniques Exchange) system, initiated with a database on the processes involved in organized citizen efforts, can be expanded to all substantive areas presently covered by CITIZENS FORUM programs, and into new areas which require the atten- tion of concerned citizens as American federalism adjusts to new circum- stances.