Investing Together: Tackling Capacity and Coordination Challenges Across Levels of Government

Investing Together: Tackling Capacity and Coordination Challenges Across Levels of Government

Ana Marie Argilagos, Deputy Assistant Secretary for International and Philanthropic InnovationFederal and local governments have been increasingly motivated to develop creative place-based approaches to revitalize communities suffering from chronic or acute distress— especially true in the face of limited financial resources. To address this challenge, President Obama created the Strong Cities, Strong Communities initiative (SC2) last March. SC2 is a partnership between the White House and 14 federal agencies aimed at breaking down federal silos and helping cities facing long-term challenges, build capacity, and more effectively use federal funds.

HUD’s Office for International and Philanthropic Innovation (IPI) is helping to inform SC2 and other Federal initiatives by engaging with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), a multilateral agency of 34 countries that provides a forum in which governments can work together to share experiences and seek solutions to common problems. By comparing and contrasting HUD’s initiatives with those of its international counterparts, IPI aims to accelerate innovation and policy transfer to provide the Agency with the best available evidence and lessons to build inclusive, sustainable communities that connect its residents to housing, jobs, transportation and education.

The OECD recently evaluated the challenges and opportunities national governments face when working with state, local, and regional governments in its report, “Investing Together.” Such studies allow HUD to consider similar effective solutions from other countries. The report points to seven critical governmental capacities required for effective public investment:

• Strategic planning and investment prioritization
• Strategic resource management, budgeting practices
• Engaged citizens and firms
• Public sector capacity
• Monitoring and evaluation
• Integrity and transparency
• Multi-level regulatory framework for public investment

OECD’s evaluation points out the successes and challenges of coordinating efforts and capacity building across government agencies and levels of government. A few examples stand out as ideal comparisons to HUD’s efforts.

• In a move similar to HUD’s establishment of the Sustainable Communities Initiative, the Japanese central government is encouraging local governments to establish low-carbon city development plans. With support from the National Ministries of Infrastructure, Environment, and Industry, these plans identify projects to promote a low-carbon city, including transport, hospitals, public housing, open and green space, and energy facilities, some of which are funded by grants from the national government.
• Austria’s Territorial Employment Pacts (TEPs) tackle local employment challenges and policy by coordinating efforts among multiple levels of government in relevant policy areas, including employment, education, and regional economic and structural policies, aiming at an integrated, place-based approach.
• Strong local cooperation is occurring between the cities of Brandenburg and Berlin in Germany. The two metropolitan areas are engaged in joint spatial planning (which helps Brandenburg assess and control urban sprawl from Berlin), are collaborating with the federal government to plan a new airport, and have established a coordinated transportation network. The cities have also developed a joint innovation strategy whose products include a biotechnology center that serves as a platform for exchanges between companies and research institutes.
• Another example of how HUD is advancing government to government learning is through continued engagement with the German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMF). In addition to serving as the intermediary for the SC2 initiative, GMF has played a central organizing role in Dialogues for Change (D4C), an innovative international peer-to-peer city learning exchange network. Sponsored by HUD and the German Ministry of Transport, Building, and Urban Development, D4C engages local leaders in deep and substantive dialogue to find solutions to shared and complex community development challenges. In January 2013, the exchange brought together leaders from Austin, Flint, and Memphis with counterparts in Bottrop, Leipzig, and Ludwigsburg to explore the opportunities and challenges around innovative approaches to civic engagement.

OECD’s “Investing Together” report also offers key recommendations for effectively conducting programs that involve multiple levels of government. Namely, cross-government initiatives must align with existing ways of doing business and include training for all levels of government in implementing programs and policies. OECD has discovered that siloed government agencies often do not consider how to effectively translate training needs across organizations.

Another important opportunity to learn from other countries is through the financing of cross-agency programs. Federal governments can encourage state and local governments to find innovative ways of engaging the private sector, not just in maintaining and operating services but also in co-financing public investment. Public-private partnerships should be viewed not simply as an alternative funding strategy but also as a way to procure private-sector experience.

The OECD study shows how platforms or national bodies can facilitate the structured exchange of information among levels of government. These platforms must not be overly prescriptive, given the need for bottom-up input into the design of cohesive policy interventions. They should reflect a consensus among stakeholders and emerge from negotiations across multiple levels of government. OECD’s lessons and case studies present numerous ways in which PD&R can ensure that its programs are both innovative and effective.