The financial crisis is wreaking havoc with the budgets of local governments. "Revenues continue to decline as a result of the economic meltdown while spending pressures continue to grow," said Thomas P. DiNapoli, New York state comptroller, Aug. 13, kicking off a two-day workshop of the Local Government Leadership Institute on campus.

To help local governments find new ways to deliver services at a lower cost to their constituents, DiNapoli created the institute in April, in partnership with Cornell's Community and Rural Development Institute (CaRDI) and Hofstra University. Its mission is to bring together officials from across various classes of local government to increase dialogue and regional collaboration on common concerns and to provide fiscal and management expertise, information and guidance to local officials.

"Overburdened property taxpayers are crying 'uncle,' and local government officials are left with very few options to balance budgets," said DiNapoli in his keynote. "We must look for new approaches for doing business. The old ways of doing business are putting us out of business, both on the local and state levels."

The institute's first workshop was held June 11 at Hofstra. Cornell's workshop, which brought together elected and appointed officials from 17 counties, included six panels of elected and appointed local government leaders, state officials and representatives of higher education to share real world experiences, case studies and leadership skills needed to keep local government running effectively. Both workshops focused on ways to build partnerships and leverage opportunities.

"Our event was structured to maximize the networking of officials across municipal boundaries and classes," said Rod Howe, executive director of CaRDI and assistant director of Cornell Cooperative Extension. "To truly leverage opportunities, there is a need for dialogue and regional collaboration on common issues."

In addition to DiNapoli, Anthony Williams, former mayor of the District of Columbia, also presented a keynote address. Panelists at Cornell focused on municipal shared services, capital planning for local governments and school districts, developing public and private partnerships for community development, regional solutions for fiscal difficulties, using educational institutions for development and achieving greener communities.