City leaders are calling on President Clinton and Congress to put aside their squabble and agree on a balanced-budget plan this year.
Administration and congressional leaders cannot be allowed to "pass the buck" to local governments, Columbus, Ohio, Mayor Greg Lashutka told about 3,000 municipal officials gathered Sunday for a conference of the National League of Cities, which he heads. "Voters and taxpayers expect and deserve better."Vice President Al Gore was among those speaking to the group Monday.
Lashutka, a Republican, also urged Washington to consult cities before imposing new requirements without providing additional money to cover the extra costs.
"The days of the federal government dictating its own solutions on cities and towns, but offering no resources, must end," he said."It is time for an end to the one-size-fits-all mentality that has governed at the federal level for too many years and replace it with a true partnership."
In addition, Lashutka said, the budget plan must give local governments time to make adjustments to their budgets for any new responsibilities, he said.
The White House and congressional Republicans have been unable to agree on a plan to balance the federal budget, leading to two temporary shutdowns of parts of the federal government last year and through much of January.
Last week, the House narrowly approved another temporary spending bill that would prevent another shutdown but is billions of dollars shy of what Clinton wants for domestic programs.