Originally published in the April 2016 Conference Edition of the CSMFO Magazine

I’ve been to Disneyland many many times, with family, with friends, chaperoning school groups, and several times now for conferences. The familiar recurring “magic” keeps it fun and endearing but it’s never the same: a different group, new attractions, closures, new discoveries, unexpected events. Even at the “happiest place on earth” change is a constant. Keeping the magic there clearly means a lot of effort to keep things running and also being on the cutting edge of new developments. It means letting some things go too.  “Swiss Family Treehouse” is now “Tarzan’s Treehouse.” The first few times I ever went on the Matterhorn it had a hollow interior with no snowmen. I remember the “country bear jamboree,” the “skyway to tomorrow” and the “people mover,” all gone now. But I’m fascinated by what new things are coming and many of the additions since my childhood are among my favorites: “Indiana Jones,” “Soarin’,” the “Radiator Springs Racers.”

Perhaps it’s a stretch to compare the world’s most unique and successful amusement park with a local government. I’m thankful my city doesn’t have a soundtrack playing from speakers wherever I go.  And I’m fine with leaving the animatronics out of the building permit line at city hall. But the Herculean effort of Disney to keep Disneyland relevant and running well bears lessons for us.

If we are really serving our guests, we in local government should be embracing both the core identity of our agency and the necessity of continuing work to maintain and improve, many times to transform, to bring in completely new elements, and to let old ones go.

In local government finance, so much of the change comes at us from forces beyond our control (although not beyond our influence). It can feel; like all we do is react to changes in rules and laws, in allocations and trends and service demands, disruptive social-technical advances, new expectations, and practices that just don’t work very well anymore. The learning, the adapting never ends and the success of our organizations relies on our ability to embrace this constant state of change, to find the thrill and to lead in that change.

In the coming year we will see many important changes in local government finance from the obvious and direct to the more tangential but real: the sales tax triple flip is ending, transportation funding must respond to a changing world, sales tax is waning and being wasted, the social service needs of the poor and marginalized require more response at the local level, new cybersecurity challenges, continuing pressures to reform pensions and healthcare, water and wastewater services, projects and funding issues, marijuana, energy efficiency and climate change.

The good thing is that we are not alone. There are hundreds of local governments mapping out their ways into Tomorrowland and we’re all in it together. Stay connected with us as we enjoy the ride together.