The Consolidated Government Committee has engaged the outside resources shown here
to help develop a fact-based understanding of the benefits of government consolidation in Saugatuck Douglas.
These firms and enterprises all share a high level of ethical standards and professionalism.
Funding to support these resources comes from private sources. No taxpayer funds have been used.
to help develop a fact-based understanding of the benefits of government consolidation in Saugatuck Douglas.
These firms and enterprises all share a high level of ethical standards and professionalism.
Funding to support these resources comes from private sources. No taxpayer funds have been used.
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• Plante Moran is the 12th largest certified public accounting and business advisory firm in the United States. Headquartered in Southfield, Michigan with domestic offices throughout the Midwest, Plante Moran was engaged by the CGC to look at the cost-savings potential in consolidating local governments. Although highly respected and notable for its 85 years of experience serving governments, the firm's name is not a household word. Consequently, some community members wondered who Plante Moran was, and whether they could trust their work. Click here to learn about Plante Moran's credentials, experience, and most of all, the firm's integrity. Here's a short video on the firm...
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Recently, Plante Moran was named one of Fortune Magazine's "100 Best Companies to Work For" for the 14th consecutive year.
The CGC continues to partner with Plante Moran to update financial analyses in order to provide citizens with reliable, straightforward, and easy-to-understand cost-savings comparison data. The two most recent studies released in June, 2012, both pegged minimum annual cost-savings of $500,000 or more arising from the consolidation of Douglas and Saugatuck. Both studies were vetted by an independent local citizen who is both a CPA and an attorney. |
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• Munetrix™ is an online source for cost data for virtually every municipality and school district in the state of Michigan. Utilizing state-required "F65 filings" from the various government units, Munetrix allows comparisons among and between municipalities, that are reliable and completely unbiased. "F65 filings" refers to Michigan Department of the Treasury Form Number 3965, "Annual Local Unit Fiscal Report." Every government unit in the state reports its cost numbers on this form, and accepts the numbers from other jurisdictions similarly reported as accurate and representative.
AccessMyGov. com
• The same government-expense financial data found on the Munetrix site is available on AccessMyGov.com. The site allows for easy comparisons between and among municipalities throughout Michigan.
Mitchell Research & Communications, Inc.
• Headquartered in East Lansing, Mitchell Research & Communications has extensive experience in marketing research, from conducting focus groups to questionnaire development to data analysis. The firm is very well-known to politicians, community leaders, and business enterprises throughout the nation. Its polling in particular has a remarkable record for accuracy, reliability, and projectability. The CGC commissioned Mitchell Research for early studies on local voters' views on, and interest in, government consolidation.
• In 2009, as the CGC sought to learn more about the potential benefits of government consolidation, the Michigan State University Extension service was engaged to undertake such a study using the best information then available. While some of this work is now out-of-date, their study represented a useful look at the topic.
• Extensive and detailed maps and related geographic work were required to be submitted to the state Boundary Commission as part of the CGC's consolidation petition. At its expense, the Committee engaged the professional services of Holland Engineering to ensure that the highest quality information and presentation would be available to the Commission. Click here to learn more about Holland Engineering.
• The CGC engaged Western Michigan University to conduct different studies in the early stages preparing for a consolidation petition. The studies are archived here.
