The following excerpt from the full version of GANE discusses the role of the federal government.
III. IMPROVING SUSTAINABLE WELL-BEING THROUGH
COMMUNITY FEDERALISM
Structural changes are required in government institutions and the private sector in order to achieve these goals. Such changes should promote the strategic focus of federal, regional and local activity on achieving full employment, equity and sustainability. They should also ensure full local participation in the process.
It is especially important to ensure that private investments,
especially those made by the largest corporations which control the
major share of America's investment capital, contribute to the
improvement in the index. This should be implemented through
corporate charters tied to corporate, community and regional
sustainability plans as set out in subsection D below.
A structure of community federalism in which national, regional and
local planning and program implementation begins at the community
level allows residents to have a direct stake in the operation of
government. At each level, a democratic process needs to be in place.
Criteria including environmental protection, preservation of stable
communities, creation of humane work environments, inclusive public
participation in the planning process and equitable sharing of
benefits should be incorporated into the planning process at all
levels.
A. ESTABLISHMENT OF PROCESS TO ACHIEVE SUSTAINABLE
COMMUNITIES
The first step in moving toward sustainable communities is to develop a shared vision for the sustainable future of the community, building on efforts in Chattanooga and other communities. This process needs to provide all members of the geographic community with an opportunity to speak and be heard. While visioning allows for the free flowing of ideas, it also involves consolidation and selection of primary goals.
During this process, some specific issues should be raised relating to the creation of sustainable communities. These include the following:
By working with the private and public sectors to develop and realize their local vision, residents can then develop specific plans and projects to achieve full employment, meet identified needs and make their area sustainable.
To implement the vision, a democratic process that fairly represents all sectors of the community should be established to translate the vision into local sustainability and employment initiatives and to guide their implementation with ongoing full public participation.
Whatever process is adopted, there needs to be a means for prioritizing implementation steps based on the contribution to sustainability and the opportunity for meaningful work by local residents. This may involve establishing local enterprises, creating public employment, undertaking work-related training programs, and providing services to meet unmet needs in the community.
Innovative ways to finance these efforts will be needed. Local venture capital can be redirected toward local projects, as occurred in Chattanooga after their visioning process. Community banks and revolving loan funds can be established using local savings and taxes and philanthropic gifts. The use of local currency for the bartering of labor (LETS and Time Dollars are already implemented in a number of communities) can also play an important role.
Local financing should be supplemented by federal funds allocated on an equitable basis. Such funding should reflect severity of local problems including unemployment and underemployment, differences in available natural resources and environmental degredation. In this way, federal taxes can actually help people create the kind of community they want.
In the event private initiatives are not sufficient to meet prioritized needs, the community should consider whether it wants to allocate a portion of available investment funds for public institutions capable of providing the services and/or goods.
B. ESTABLISHMENT OF REGIONAL SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
PROCESS
As each community strives to become sustainable, some of the social and environmental costs of economic activity may fall outside the community, requiring an examination of whether the region as a whole is becoming sustainable. Equally important, the protection of ecological entities such as watersheds, which are not confined to individual communities, needs to be addressed on a regional basis. There are also appropriate regional roles for implementation of sustainable practices.
A regional mechanism is needed to perform the following functions:
Such initiatives should reflect the same goals and special considerations noted in Section III-A. Federal funds should be provided to regional bodies charged with the development and implementation of regional sustainability initiatives that supplement and complement local efforts.
C. THE FEDERAL ROLE IN COMMUNITY FEDERALISM
While initiatives should be based at the local level, the federal role is essential to the overall success of building a sustainable, equitable, full employment economy. The federal government has three major functions.
One is to remedy ecological and social problems arising from past and ongoing unsustainable activities. This calls for a continuation and expansion of present federal functions, such as the following:
The second function is to assist in the conversion to sustainable economic activities. This includes federal funding of the community and regional efforts described above; setting appropriate standards based on feedback from the local and regional levels; and assessing national progress toward sustainability, equity and full employment.
The third function is to ensure that multinational corporations are not allowed to undermine efforts at building sustainable communities and regions. Existing federal policies should be reviewed and those that encourage such activities should be repealed or revised. Future policies, including tax and investment policies, and negotiation of international agreements should include provisions to prevent such damaging activities.
Federal funds are needed to ensure regions have sufficient resources to carry out their functions; to provide income and services for those unable to work; to help create a sustainable infrastructure, with expenditures accounted for in a capital budget; and to pursue research and development of sustainable approaches to the provision of goods and services.
Federal funds are needed to supplement community investment funds in order to provide an ongoing means of livelihood for all job seekers; to provide income and services for those unable to work; to help create a sustainable infrastructure, with expenditures accounted for in a capital budget; and to pursue research and development of sustainable approaches to the provision of goods and services. Per capita federal funding to local communities should begin with small amounts to allow the local processes to become established without being distorted by the promise of large inflows of funds.