https://www.americancityandcounty.com/wp-content/themes/acc_child/assets/images/logo/footer-logo.png
  • Home
  • Co-op Solutions
  • Hybrid Work
  • Commentaries
  • News
  • In-Depth
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Podcast
  • Resources & Events
    • Back
    • Resources
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
    • IWCE 2022
    • How to Contribute
    • Municipal Cost Index – Archive
    • Equipment Watch Page
    • American City & County Awards
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Privacy Statement
    • Terms of Service
American City and County
  • NEWSLETTER
  • Home
  • Co-op Solutions
  • Hybrid Work
  • Commentaries
  • News
  • In-Depth
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Podcasts
  • Resources/Events
    • Back
    • Webinars
    • White Papers/eBooks
    • IWCE 2022
    • How to Contribute
    • American City & County Awards
    • Municipal Cost Index
    • Equipment Watch Page
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Cookie Policy
    • Privacy Stament
    • Terms of Service
  • newsletter
  • Administration
  • Economy & Finance
  • Procurement
  • Public Safety
  • Public Works & Utilities
  • Smart Cities & Technology
  • Magazine
acc.com


Public works, city management: yin and yang

Public works, city management: yin and yang

Superfund policy could benefit local governmentsLike the trade that sent Babe Ruth from the Red Sox to the Yankees for $100,000 or the duet between Barbra
  • Written by Janet Ward
  • 1st August 1997

Superfund policy could benefit local governments

Like the trade that sent Babe Ruth from the Red Sox to the Yankees for $100,000 or the duet between Barbra Streisand and Frank Sinatra, Superfund was a good idea in principal that just, let’s be honest here, stunk in practice. Most of the cleaning up that occurred was accomplished by the lawyers, not the communities that sat on or next to toxic waste sites.

In fact, in the 16 years since the law that created Superfund was passed, EPA has spent more than $15 billion to clean up fewer than 100 of the almost 1,400 sites on the national priority list. Much of that – some say upwards of 80 percent – went to the lawyers.

This year, as in virtually every one of the last 15 years, Superfund reform talk is in the air. Unlike those of previous years, however, the prospects for 1997 look promising, especially for local governments, who have borne a not insignificant share of the cleanup burden.

One positive sign is a draft policy, recently published by EPA in the Federal Register, that would eliminate most of the litigation aimed by polluters at cities and counties that own and operate landfills on the Superfund list. The original law set out a formula for determining Potentially Responsible Parties, and a number of polluters have used that to haul cities and counties into court to force them to assume the financial burden of cleanup. Operating on the theory that the more a local government pays, the less they pay, these polluters brought actions against more than 750 cities, counties, towns and school districts in attempts to limit their own liability. (When they failed in court, a number of them simply declared bankruptcy.)

But now the cities and counties appear to have both Congress and the White House on their side. “If we are to amend the Superfund bill this year, we must not add greater burdens on taxpayers in order to remove burdens from the shoulders of responsible polluters,” said Republican Senator Frank Lautenberg in introducing the GOP’s reform bill.

EPA’s draft policy has been cheered by the National League of Cities, National Association of Counties, U.S. Conference of Mayors, International City/County Management Association and the National Association of Towns and Townships.

All are encouraging their members to send written comments to EPA supporting the new policy. The deadline is August 25.

Tags:

Most Recent


  • Seamless Cooperative Experience Saves Indiana City Exponentially in Time and Money
    Significant new responsibility in an unfamiliar spend category didn’t intimidate Jasper-Dubois County Public Library Director, Christine Golden. What could’ve been an overwhelming furniture project for a state-of-the-art, 67,000 square-foot new facility turned into a seamless, stress-free experience through a cooperative purchasing strategy. “Stress-free” may sound like an exaggeration, but it’s the result that cooperative purchasing […]
  • 10 best large cities for fishing
    Across the United States, Americans of all backgrounds—from both urban and rural settings alike—enjoy a mutual pastime: fishing. But while there are plenty of cities that feature lakes and rivers, some large metro areas are better fishing communities than others.  A list created by Apartment Guide considers all U.S. cities with a population of more […]
  • public sector
    Generational differences present an opportunity to reinvent public sector service delivery
    As major technology companies have transformed the ideal customer experience into instantaneous “one-click” services, the public sector has been challenged to keep pace. As a result, government organizations must meet the changing expectations of Americans with faster, simpler, 24/7 services. Government is ingrained in the fabric of our lives, including the water we drink, the […]
  • Report: Local and state governments are facing a retention crisis; the worst could be yet to come
    When the pandemic struck in 2020, public retention was hit hard: jobs in local government plummeted by 8.5 percent; state employment dropped by 4.4 percent. Two years later, local and state government jobs have rebounded by about half—to 4.1 and 1.9 percent below pre-pandemic levels respectively, according to a new report from Mission Square Research […]

Leave a comment Cancel reply

-or-

Log in with your American City and County account

Alternatively, post a comment by completing the form below:

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Content

  • Filling staff vacancies as workers retire is a priority for procurement administrators
  • What “smart city” means for 2021: How digital twins, AI and other innovations drive smart transformation
  • 10 reasons why local governments should outsource all IT: Post pandemic view
  • A call to action: Moving procurement past its pre-pandemic mindset

White papers


How to Assemble a Rockstar Website Redesign Steering Committee

7th June 2022

Hand Hygiene: Compliance Matters

23rd May 2022

What it Takes to Build a Winning Esports Program

23rd May 2022
view all

Events


PODCAST


Young Leaders Episode 4 – Cyril Jefferson – City Councilman, High Point, North Carolina

13th October 2020

Young Leaders Episode 3 – Shannon Hardin – City Council President, Columbus, Ohio

27th July 2020

Young Leaders Episode 2 – Christian Williams – Development Services Planner, Goodyear, Ariz.

1st July 2020
view all

Twitter


AmerCityCounty

Seamless Cooperative Experience Saves Indiana City Exponentially in Time and Money dlvr.it/SSxp95

27th June 2022
AmerCityCounty

10 best large cities for fishing dlvr.it/SSxbSZ

27th June 2022
AmerCityCounty

Generational differences present an opportunity to reinvent public sector service delivery dlvr.it/SSxbN7

27th June 2022
AmerCityCounty

Report: Local and state governments are facing a retention crisis; the worst could be yet to come dlvr.it/SSnmS7

24th June 2022
AmerCityCounty

Amid an unprecedented increase in federal spending, cities and counties stand to benefit from partnerships dlvr.it/SSkGBn

23rd June 2022
AmerCityCounty

Governments using technology to harness data and improve decision-making dlvr.it/SSk3H0

23rd June 2022
AmerCityCounty

Infrastructure highlighted by city leaders as top priority in analysis of 60 mayoral addresses dlvr.it/SSgBck

22nd June 2022
AmerCityCounty

Oklahoma City puts the focus on employees when implementing changes in office technology dlvr.it/SSfyns

22nd June 2022

Newsletters

Sign up for American City & County’s newsletters to receive regular news and information updates about local governments.

Resale Insights Dashboard

The Resale Insights Dashboard provides model-level data for the entire used equipment market to help you save time and money.

Municipal Cost Index

Updated monthly since 1978, our exclusive Municipal Cost Index shows the effects of inflation on the cost of providing municipal services

Media Kit and Advertising

Want to reach our digital audience? Learn more here.

DISCOVER MORE FROM INFORMA TECH

  • IWCE’s Urgent Communications
  • IWCE Expo

WORKING WITH US

  • About Us
  • Contact Us

FOLLOW American City and County ON SOCIAL

  • Privacy
  • CCPA: “Do Not Sell My Data”
  • Cookies Policy
  • Terms
Copyright © 2022 Informa PLC. Informa PLC is registered in England and Wales with company number 8860726 whose registered and Head office is 5 Howick Place, London, SW1P 1WG.
This website uses cookies, including third party ones, to allow for analysis of how people use our website in order to improve your experience and our services. By continuing to use our website, you agree to the use of such cookies. Click here for more information on our Cookie Policy and Privacy Policy.
X