Intergovernmental support is a driving variable under the urban development model discussed by Savitch and Kantor (2002) that “provides the finance and infrastructure that are also essential for development,” mainly through intergovernmental support agreements entered by the Secretary of any federal executive department with a state or local government (Procurement Generally, 2006):
Simply put, intergovernmental support is granted by the federal government, through one of its executive departments, to a state or local government for the purpose of providing finance and infrastructure essential for development. An article from the Department of Veterans Affairs – Office of Public and Intergovernmental Affairs (DVA-OPIA, 2006) details the case of the city of Baltimore, Maryland. Baltimore has received intergovernmental support from the DVA-OPIA in the form of a $1.6 million grant for the homeless program of the city designed to benefit homeless veterans. The grant was awarded by the DVA-OPIA to The Baltimore Station, an organization that supports homeless veterans, with DVA Secretary Jim Nicholson describing it as “a dedicated partnership with community- and faith-based organizations” that can “hope to end homelessness among veterans” in Baltimore (DVA-OPIA, 2006).
The article in question exhibits intergovernmental support well, as established by the initiative of the DVA-OPIA (2006) to give The Baltimore Station a grant for the well-being of homeless veterans in Baltimore. Nicholson justified the grant by saying that “Maryland veterans answered their country’s call to serve during its greatest times of need, and now some live without shelter,” henceforth making it a mechanism that would enable them to become self-reliant once more (DVIA-OPA, 2006). Such a move provides greater impetus for Baltimore to improve its programs for homeless people, with The Baltimore Station being one of many organizations empowered by intergovernmental support to contribute further to the cause.
References
General Military Law, Part IV – Service, Supply, and Procurement, Procurement Generally, 10 U.S.C. §§ 2301–2337 (2006).
Savitch, H. V., & Kantor, P. (2002). Cities in the international marketplace: The political economy of urban development in North America and Western Europe. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
VA announces grant for Baltimore, Md., homeless program. (2006, November 13). US Department of Veterans Affairs – Office of Public and Intergovernmental Affairs. Retrieved from http://va.gov/opa/pressrel/pressrelease.cfm?id=1245
