The chatter is that it'll be a tough budget year for #localgovernments, again. Many officials and residents are concerned about reductions in some services, as counties and municipalities prepare to do more with fewer dollars and the same or fewer staff members. But what if you could increase capacity with services that pay for themselves? Many local governments are doing just that. Take the example of a small city. For decades the City of Rutland, Vermont issued Certificates of Occupancy with first an unstructured, inefficient paper process. Then, they implemented single-use software that caused confusion by assigning different permit numbers for passed and failed inspections. In addition, the municipality wasn't collecting application fees. Working with GovPilot, though, the City of Rutland was able to offer an online application for Certificates of Occupancy that integrated immediate online payments through a third-party processor. Despite concerns that new fees would reduce applications, the city was on pace to collect between $40,000 and $45,000 in COO fees in FY 2022-2023. Revenue from fee collection alone more than covered the cost of the GovPilot modules the town implemented. The following year the city added more GovPilot modules, scaling their time savings and ensuring a simplified, streamlined process for revenue collection.

📢 PUBLIC NOTICE: TEMPORARY SUSPENSION OF MUNICIPAL TELEPHONE LINES The Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality confirms that its landline system is currently inaccessible to the public due to suspended telephone lines. As a responsible organ of state, the Municipality is obliged to manage public resources in strict compliance with the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA) and related regulations. A due diligence process is currently underway to verify the service account in full before payment is processed. This ensures that the Municipality only pays for services legitimately rendered and that every cent of ratepayers’ money is responsibly accounted for. 💰 The account will be settled once verification is complete, and the Municipality remains committed to finalising this matter as swiftly as possible while upholding principles of sound financial governance. 👉 In the interim, residents and stakeholders are encouraged to use the following alternative channels to access municipal services: 🌐 Official website: https://lnkd.in/dtn_sPbH 📱 Municipality’s official mobile app 📧 Customer Care email: customercare@mandelametro.gov.za 🏢 Walk-in Customer Care Centres across the Metro 👥 Ward Councillor offices for direct community support The Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality sincerely regrets any inconvenience caused and assures residents and stakeholders that restoring full telephone services remains a priority. #AllHandsOnDeck #Siyasebenza #MetroAtWork #ANationThatWorksForAll

A new report from the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has identified ‘a number of problems' with Community Infrastructure Levies (CIL) and other developer contribution systems, which means cash has failed to reach local communities. Find out more below ⬇️ https://lnkd.in/e47gfWDz

Rural agencies face big challenges with limited resources. Chanute Housing Authority in Kansas found a way to do more with less. From boosting their PIC score to streamlining waitlist and voucher management, CHA is saving time, cutting costs, and staying focused on residents, not paperwork. Read how they’re making it work with MRI - https://lnkd.in/eth6Eey3

Rural agencies face big challenges with limited resources. Chanute Housing Authority in Kansas found a way to do more with less. From boosting their PIC score to streamlining waitlist and voucher management, CHA is saving time, cutting costs, and staying focused on residents, not paperwork. Read how they’re making it work with MRI - https://lnkd.in/ejA4ge-8 #MRISoftware

Good question Nicholas. Using cash we've secured from developers', along with one-off grants, we're investing in new resources to keep our high streets and town centres clean and safe - day and night. We're also introducing new ways to respond to issues when they crop up - making sure we're flexible to get things done wherever we need to. 🏗️ Section 106 funding or Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) is technical talk for cash we secure that can only be used on certain things, like safer streets or new community facilities. This isn’t money from central government, it’s one-off pots so it can’t cover everything – but we can use it to get things done 💪

Londoners caught in the cost-of-living crisis will have their water bills cut automatically under a pioneering new partnership between Thames Water, 17 London Borough Councils and data analytics company Policy in Practice.

At a press conference today, Minister of Government Transformation, Public Works and Procurement Joël Lightbound shared updates about the future of Canada Post. Here’s what direct mail fundraisers need to know: ⚫ Is Canada Post dead? Definitely not. Minister Lightbound was clear that this is an essential service that many people in Canada rely on, and that its longevity is a government priority – but, that it can’t continue to be supported so significantly by taxpayers. ⚫ What’s changing at Canada Post? The government’s given CP the authority to adjust their service model in a few key ways: converting 4 million more Canadians to community mailboxes, loosening the delivery time for non-urgent mail from 2-5 days to 3-7, ending the 1994 moratorium on closing rural post offices, and reviewing the process for setting stamp rates. ⚫ Canada Post has also been given 45 days to review their management structure for cost efficiencies, at the same time as bargaining with CUPW continues. ⚫ What’s it mean for direct mail fundraising? It means you can expect your mail to take a day or two longer to hit mailboxes, and that postage rates might increase. We may also see an impact as older donors, who are likelier to have mobility issues, are shifted to community mailboxes – but there’s already a program in place to service those folks, who can request home delivery if they need it.

In our industry, planning separates communities that can navigate challenges with confidence from those that struggle to keep pace.   Community lending, cash management, and insurance solutions - they are the framework that gives boards and councils clarity and help simplify the complex world of community financials.   What I’ve seen consistently is that strong financial planning builds trust. It gives board and council members the confidence to make difficult decisions, and residents the reassurance that their community is being looked after with foresight.   The lesson carries well beyond community associations: planning is about putting yourself in a position to adapt. That’s why today, #WorldFinancialPlanningDay, is an important reminder for all of us. #FirstServeOthers #PropertyManagement

HANO Executive Director Marjorianna Willman addresses how the federal government shutdown will affect the thousands of families who depend on federal assistance, including our Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) and public housing families, as well as our landlords. She also discusses how we will maintain near-normal operations during this time.   How does the federal government shutdown impact HANO? HANO expects to sustain near-term operations, including rental assistance payments, using funds already provided by HUD. HANO is closely monitoring the situation and has expressed a willingness to assist policymakers to end the shutdown. Any operational changes resulting from an extended shutdown will be quickly provided via normal communication outlets.   What is HANO doing to prepare for potential funding cuts? HANO is working to diversify funding sources by engaging the business sector and other stakeholders with aligning priorities. A full-time position of Director of Philanthropy and Business Development was created to provide full-time attention to this important task. HANO's goal is to leverage its resources with other non-federal funding to better support self-sufficiency, youth empowerment, homeownership, and innovation in housing development.