Administration Plans Major Role for Collins Center in its Fiscal Year 2011 Initiatives
|  The proposed budget submitted by Governor Deval Patrick for Fiscal Year 2012 contemplates a significant role for the Center in the Administration's major municipal initiatives as well as in the implementation of the next phase of its statewide performance management project, MassGOALS.
The Governor has recommended the establishment of a $9.7 million Municipal Regionalization and Efficiencies Reserve to provide funds for municipal efficiency projects, including regionalization of services. The creation of this new program recognizes that, given the fiscal constraints Massachusetts cities and towns find themselves working under, there is very little money available in municipal budgets for innovation or changes that will save money in the long term. Funds may be expended by the Center from this reserve to develop and implement a program of performance management, accountability and transparency for local government.
The Governor also recommends an appropriation of $300,000 to fund a new Municipal Performance Initiative. Building on the work of N.E. StatNet (see story below ), which the Center has been coordinating for the past few years, this initiative will undertake the development of common performance measures that can be used across Massachusetts cities and towns to dramatically increase the transparency and efficiency of municipal operations. The Center, together with the members of StatNet, McCormack Graduate School faculty and others will develop a comprehensive and powerful set of performance measures for municipalities to use. This appropriation will fund education, training, standardized software and technical assistance to municipalities electing to implement them.
Finally, the Governor recommends the establishment of a new Office of Commonwealth Performance, Accountability and Transparency within the Administration and Finance Secretariat. This office will be responsible for expanding the strategies of MassGOALS, the Administration's performance management system, to all Commonwealth secretariats and agencies. During the last six months of 2010, the Center worked with state officials to develop a roadmap for MassGOALS (see the October 2010 edition of The Collins Report for more details), adding its expertise in performance management to this important project. The $650,000 in funding recommended for the Office represents a key investment in managing state government more efficiently and effectively.
The House Ways and Means Committee is expected to release its version of the Fiscal Year 2012 state budget later this week.
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| Center Completes Analysis of Norwell's Finance Operations |  At the request of the Norwell Board of Selectmen, the Collins Center recently completed a review of the finance operations of the Town. The Center's mandate was to assess the Town's finance operations and identify opportunities to improve their efficiency and effectiveness. The Center reviewed Town documents, interviewed Town staff as well as members of various Boards, and reviewed related research on other communities.
As with nearly all Massachusetts municipalities, the Town of Norwell is operating in a difficult fiscal environment. Norwell also faces another challenge that is common to Massachusetts towns: a decentralized structure that spreads out decision making authority and responsibility across a wide range of boards and officials. In responding to these challenges, however, the Town is able to draw on a significant number of assets, including a deep pool of talented and dedicated staff, elected officials and volunteers. It is one of the very small number of Massachusetts municipalities that maintains a AAA bond rating.
The Center's report included ten key findings about the finance operations of the town, touching on areas ranging from payroll administration to coordination among finance divisions to analytical capacity. Additionally, the Center included some discussion of human resources processes in its key findings, given their deep interconnection to finance and the number of times human resource issues were raised during the Center's research.
To address the findings, the Center provided five recommendations to the Town intended to stimulate discussion among policymakers and the public. Some recommendations were narrow and easier to implement, for example, streamlining payroll processes, while others were broad and more long-term, such as increasing the overall management capacity by creating a consolidated finance department and/or adding a new management-level position. The final report is available on the Collins Center website or by clicking here.
If you are interested in the Center's operational research and analysis services, please contact Michael Ward at (617) 287-4876 or at Michael.Ward@umb.edu.
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| Center Assisting in the Drafting of Hubbardston Town Charter |  As with many towns across Massachusetts, the Town of Hubbardston, located in northern Worcester County, does not have a single charter document. The Town's government has been guided and structured by an accumulated collection of bylaws, special acts, and general laws. When the Town was created in 1767, it was incorporated by the legislature of the Province of Massachusetts Bay and "His Majesty's Governor." Last year, a group of local citizens decided that, 244 years later, it was time for the community to take a look at the Town's governance and propose a modern charter.
The Center is working with the Town's Charter Committee, which is composed of nine Hubbardston residents, to analyze the Town's structure and put together a charter that provides "all residents with a local government that is transparent, effective, efficient, and responsive, for the present and for generations to come," according to the Committee's mission statement. To achieve this, the Committee will be examining all aspects of the Town's governance.
The Center has so far attended and helped facilitate five Committee meetings, during which the group discussed such topics as the procedures of open town meeting, the size of the board of selectmen, and whether elected officials in town should have term limits. Committee meetings are held every other Monday and are open to the public. The Committee has also begun planning a first public forum to solicit feedback on its work.
The Collins Center's work with charter commissions and government study committees continues to grow with several new requests for assistance and proposals currently under discussion. Additionally, the Center is nearing completion on a first edition handbook for Massachusetts charter commissions and government study committees. When completed, it will be made available on the Center's website. The Center is also working on a database of charter-related information.
If you are interested in the Center's charter or government study services, please contact Steve McGoldrick at (617) 287-4824 or Stephen.McGoldrick@umb.edu.
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| StatNet to Host Training on Performance Management for Municipal Officials |  As part of StatNet's work to expand the use of data and performance management in Massachusetts municipal management, the group will be hosting a training session entitled, StatNet Training: Managing Performance Using Data in Municipal Government for municipal officials at UMass Boston on Wednesday, May 18 from 8:30 am to 3:30 pm.
The training is intended to be an interactive, pragmatic program about how to improve the management of a city or town by using data more strategically. Officials will learn how to start a CitiStat program (or similar management system) or how to improve a current system for performance management. This training should prove useful for municipal managers who are already well-versed in performance management as well and those who are just beginning to learn about it.
Details about the agenda, cost, directions and reservations will be made available later this week by the Collins Center.
StatNet is a network of municipal officials using CitiStat or other data-driven performance management approaches. The group gathers three times per year for in-depth discussion of municipal governance, and works on other collaborative efforts. The Collins Center for Public Management coordinates the initiative, in collaboration with the Rappaport Institute for Greater Boston and the Pioneer Institute for Public Policy Research.
If you are interested in learning more about StatNet or any of its initiatives, please contact Michael Ward at (617) 287-4876 or Michael.Ward@umb.edu.
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The Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management
100 Morrissey Boulevard
Boston, MA 02125
Phone: (617) 287- 4824
FAX: (617) 287- 5566
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March/April 2011
Volume 3 Issue 3 |
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About Ed Collins
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Throughout his outstanding public career, Edward J. Collins, Jr. epitomized the spirit and goals of the Center that now bears his name. We at the Collins Center are proud to continue the work of Ed's life - helping governments work effectively and productively for the benefit of their citizens.More about Ed |
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McCormack Graduate School Dean Steve Crosby on the
Collins Center
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