The following principles provide a foundation to advocate for excellence in N.C. municipal government, with the objective of giving elected officials the ability to create a high quality of life for hometowns to provide economic opportunity, and to attract businesses, residents, and visitors.
Authority | Preserve Municipal Authority
The League supports a broad construction of municipal powers and applications thereof, and therefore stands opposed to legislation preempting municipal authority and to measures designed to otherwise erode local control of significant municipal issues.
Revenues | Protect Local Revenue Streams
The League supports measures to ensure the fiscal stability of cities, including the preservation of existing local revenue sources. In addition, the League supports the equitable distribution of state-collected revenues, the autonomy of local elected officials to determine the best use of their revenues, and the authorization of replacement revenues for repealed fiscal authorities.
Mandates | Minimize State and Federal Mandates
The League opposes requirements by the state and federal governments to appropriate funds for particular programs or functions, or to make specific management decisions, that were not voluntarily agreed to by the local elected body. The League only supports mandates to expend monies if the directive is accompanied by implementation funds.
Open Government and Ethical Conduct | Promote Open Government and Ethical Conduct
The League supports the principle of openness in government, with reasonable exceptions when such limitations are in the public interest, for all levels of government. Further, the League supports adherence to the highest standards of ethical conduct by elected and appointed officials at all levels of government.
Liability | Limit Imposition of Liability
The League opposes proposals placing inequitable and burdensome liability upon municipalities, including measures that seek to erode well-established principles of immunity or other defenses.
Growth | Support Responsible Growth and Economic Development Policies
The League supports the ability of local officials to target their resources toward the specific investments needed in their communities to grow and attract jobs. To that end, the League supports initiatives and policies that contribute to making N.C. hometowns more attractive places to live, work, and visit, while respecting the rights of current residents.
Regulation | Support Fact-based, Equitable, Cost-effective, Flexible, Achievable Regulatory Solutions
The League supports providing regulatory agencies sufficient funding and flexibility for program implementation. Further, the League supports an inclusive process for developing regulations that apply to municipalities. This process should prioritize the most critical concerns, allow localized solutions, account for compliance costs, eliminate duplicative regulations, apply proportionally to all contributors of pollution, and avoid layering with safety factors and conservative assumptions that are not based on a reasonable risk management approach.
