The Chief Domestic Advisor recommends:
1.) Comprehensive Regional Land Use Planning - Planning Areas to be defined. Large states (in terms of land area) may have more than one regional commission. Small states, such as in the Northeast and New England may be combined. The primary focus would be on metropolitan areas, and bioregions would be a consideration. Of course, there would be a need for many rural planning districts. Planning districts would often cross state lines (for example the New York City Metro District would probably extend into parts of Connecticut, New Jersey, and New York State).
2.) Metropolitan Tax Base Revenue Sharing would be enabled (perhaps required), supported, and subsidized with Federal incentives and monies.
3.) Tax Increment Funding would be enabled (perhaps required), but the definition of blighted areas would be strictly defined and substantial penalties for using TIF for sprawl development strongly enforced. Only quasi-public, not-for-profit regional community development corporations would be allowed to employ TIF programs. (See item #5 for a discussion of RCDCs).
RCDCs would be allowed to joint venture with private enterprise as a transitional strategy (see item # 10.).
4.) Presevation of ALL prime farmlands would be required. Federal policy would require and provide incentives and financial support for the full implementation of agricultural zoning, UGBs, PDRs, TDRs, right to farm provisions, and property tax abatement programs. Furthermore, Federal programs would directly and indirectly support community activities to subsidize local agricultural business operations. Special advantages, educational, organizational, and research and development funding would be given to cooperative business organizations that would support sustainable and humane agricultural operations.
5.) The Federal government would enable, facilitate, foster, and suport the creation of regional business organizations (regional ommunity development corporations {RCDCs} based on the principles of cooperative economics, community stewardship, equity, neotraditional planning, sustainability, and conservation; to implement regional ecological economic plans.
6.) EPA, DOT, HEW, Urban Development and Housing, DOE, and Department of Agriculture and other programs would be coordinated subject to unified policy and program objectives.
7.) Department of Defense funding would be substantially reduced and reassigned.
8.) Progressive gas guzzler and gasoline taxes would be established and raised. Exceptions or possibly tax credits for essential commerce and high mileage vehicles would be considered.
9.) A more progressive income tax structure would be re-introduced.
10.) Stockholder corporations would be phased out in favor of cooperative communitarian socialist business entities (as introduced in item #'s 3. and 5.)
11.) A national energy plan would be designed and implemented based on the principles of conservation, sustainable use levels, and renewable energy.
12.) Dependence upon the automobile and airplane would be actively phased out (see my document(s) in the Transportation in Historical Perspective on this website).
13.)A comprehensive waste management system would be designed and implemented based on the priorities of waste reduction, reuse, and recycling.
14.) A national health plan would be implemented based on the five principles as outlined previously. (see Health Care under the Planning Forum section of this website).