Intergovernmental Cooperation Agreements

With local government budgets under the most severe pressure in a generation, local leaders are taking a fresh look at  intergovernmental cooperation. With good reason -- the advantages are appealing: Reduced personnel and other overhead costs lead to more efficiencies. Parties with common jurisdiction reduce duplication of effort and jurisdictional problems. Better service is provided at lower cost.

But let the negotiator beware: There has never been a discussion about governmental cooperation that didn’t involve four central (and difficult) issues: Control, funding, dispute resolution and dissolution.  These issues must be addressed thoughtfully in any successful agreement.

What are other obstacles to successful cooperative arrangements? Employment and benefit concerns and the impact on collective bargaining units can be difficult issues. Assuring clear lines of authority and control and allocating revenues and obligations are other major structural points to be overcome. To this traditional list add conflict-of-interest and incompatibility issues which are becoming more common.

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