This is a particularly long Staff Update. Please review it all. - - - Thanks.

Code charges - Beginning July 1 we will charge for code updates and new codes. We recently revised the charges and are mailing copies to all cities Friday, July 11. The first set of charges worked to discourage cities from doing updates and we think set works better.

We have two classes of service. One is an annual update service. This service will update each city's code once a year by incorporating all of the ordinances adopted during the past year and any amendments made to the city's charter. Each city that takes advantage of this service will pay an annual fee that includes the update and ten copies of the updated pages. Additional copies will be invoiced separately based on our actual costs for duplication, dividers, and shipping. We have a per page fee based on the number of modified pages we return to the city. This will allocate the cost fairly based on the amount of work done on each update.

The second service is for a complete code , which includes new codes from scratch, all future conversions from the old MTAS codes, any annual update that contains three or more years of uncodified ordinances, and any conversion of a code prepared by a private code company.

Charges for both services are based on population because of the relative work load and the ability of the city to pay. A fifty percent surcharge will be added to the charges for any complete code that contains a zoning ordinance. Zoning ordinances are large and often changed. They are best published as separate documents. We will invoice cities with fifty percent of the cost of a complete code at the time work begins, usually three to four months before completion. We will invoice cities for the remaining fifty percent upon delivery.

Both the charge for the annual update service and the charge for complete codes will take effect on July 1, 1997. However, every city on the waiting list for a complete code as of April 10, 1997 will receive the service free. The MTAS advisory committee felt it was important to keep our commitment to the cities on the waiting list.

Population	Complete Code *		Annual Update *
	Old	Revised	Old	Revised
0 - 1,000	$1,250	$2,000	$625	$200+$10 per page
1,001 - 2,000	$2,250	$2,000	$1,125	$200+$10 per page
2,001 - 5,000	$3,250	$5,000	$1,625	$300+$10 per page
5,001 - 10,000	$4,250	$5,000	$2,125	$300+$10 per page
10,001 - 20,000	$5,250	$6,000	$2,625	$500+$10 per page
20,001 - 40,000	$6,250	$6,000	$3,125	$500+$10 per page
40,001 +	$7,250	$7,000	$3,625	$500+$10 per page

New Incorporation Bill - There has been so much activity with the incorporation of new cities that we have put what we know so far into the MTAS staff discussion database. We created a category for incorporation. Please enter any new proposed cities that you know about into the data base. At the moment we have eight potential cities listed.

Also, to help guide everyone, I have prepared the following policy for our assistance with new incorporations.

The Municipal Technical Advisory Service of the University of Tennessee is the primary source of information on municipal government in Tennessee. As such, MTAS is often the first stop for any group or individual seeking information on incorporating a new municipality. Absent any familiarity with Tennessee law by the incorporating group, MTAS is the only available source for this information. The MTAS policy on assistance to new incorporations is as follows:

If a group or individual contacts an MTAS Management Consultant regarding how to proceed with a new incorporation, the consultant provides the information. All of this information is contained within Tennessee Code Annotated 6-1-201 through 6-1-211 for the Mayor-Alderman charter form, and TCA 6-18-101 through 6-18-107 for the Manager-Commission charter form. On occasion, a consultant may follow up this information by meeting with the organizing group or individuals to answer questions regarding effective dates, potential amounts and receipt of state-shared and county-shared revenues, levy and collection of taxes, election of officers, and similar matters.

Every consultant emphasizes the need for a thorough, carefully considered decision on incorporation. The key point made is that the potential new city should be incorporated only if it is committed to improving the level of governmental services for its residents. Incorporation to avoid annexation by a neighboring jurisdiction is very strongly discouraged, and MTAS does not assist any group whose stated or implied goal is avoiding annexation. The MTAS consultant may also provide advice on whether the group's goals for the new municipality are realistic, and may discuss the "cost of doing business" of a municipality.

MTAS assistance ends after providing the information on how to incorporate and in some cases explaining the advantages and disadvantages. Any further work on the incorporation is the responsibility of the interested group. An exception is a community isolated from any city (far enough away so as not to interfere) and has justifiable reasons for incorporation. Technical assistance is provided in this case with the proposed plan of services and budget.

The MTAS library is open to all residents of Tennessee and will respond to informational requests about incorporation.

MTAS never actively encourages new incorporations. Our organizational consensus is that small communities with limited resources who are unwilling to impose taxes on their residents to provide a reasonable level of service will never become successful municipalities. While we will assist any new municipality immediately following incorporation, our assistance in efforts leading to incorporation is limited to providing basic information and occasionally answering follow-up questions.

Telecommunications Right Of Way Ordinance - TML will soon mail all cities copies of the telecommunications ROW ordinance that Jim Finane and Sid Hemsley helped draft. We will get a copy of the ordinance and of TML’s cover letter to you when it is available.

Impact Measurement - We are making some changes to Project Reporting. I have asked Mike Tallent to send everyone an E-mail explaining the changes next week.

Vacation - I will be on vacation for the next two weeks. I’ll be checking E-mail from time to time, but please don’t expect a quick turnaround.