California local government contracting after proposition 13

Recent fiscal constraints have forced many local governmental jurisdictions to search for alternative service delivery approaches. One approach frequently discussed is contracting out services to the private sector. While local governments in the state of California have been involved in such contracting for many years, the fiscal pressures which brought abut the passage of Proposition 13 have refocused increased attention to activities in this area. This article focuses on local government activities with the private sector, the reasons for deciding to provide services through the contract method, assesses probable outcomes to contracting out, and develops three future scenarios on the issue.