Interlocal Relations: Cooperation

The persistence of large numbers of local gov ernments in the United States emphasizes the continuing need for interlocal cooperation. In the American federal system, where local units are the creatures of the states, it is the states which must play a key role if the service needs of the 1970s are to be met by local governments. It appears that the states are increasingly recognizing this key role by granting local governments broader powers of home rule, by empower ing them to enter into agreements among themselves to pro vide badly needed services, by extending some state pow ers—such as purchasing—to local units, and by devising revenue sharing programs which have the effect of strength ening local governments. Although the federal government undoubtedly has a greater impact on interlocal cooperation than it did in the pre-New Deal days, it would appear that the early results of the federal revenue sharing program do not reflect the hopes of those who saw the program as a great stimulant for localities to become more innovative and more cooperative with each other, particularly when the early record of the program seems to show a net loss in resources for the local units.