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• -11- ' The Councilmember said he thought everybody- agreed with the initial purpose of the Fiscal Disparities Law that all communities should share the ,wealth when commercial industrial growth takes place in the metropolitan area. The phenomena the bill ' s writers had not expected had been that most of the commercial/industrial growth would only take place in 17 communities , leaving the other 111 communities in the metro area to become the basic benefactors. It was the Bloomington official ' s contention that the growth experienced by those 17 communities had been derived principally from the fact that they were located where they were and everything those growth communities realized from commercial/indust- rial growth had gone into fiscal disparities to be paid. to other communities. Councilmember Peterson indicated this had caused Minneapolis to switch from a receiver to a payer which had changed the whole picture and caused the AMM Board to determine there was going to be a Fiscal Disparities bill before the legislature this year. The Board had also perceived it was better for the AMM to participate in the inevitable legislation and at least provide an arena for everybody to participate in the discussion rather than to have Minneapolis do whatever they wanted to do, he said. Under the new formula, the contribution rate would be reduced by 20 per year for five years and any pre-1971 commercial/industrial base would start paying. The Bloomington Councilmember said his city would be a large. benefactor of the bill and would be paying more in fiscal . disparities than Minneapolis in four or five years. He couldn' t provide a defense for the 111 communities not sharing in the benefit except to say there would be more industrial growth and the 17 larger beneficiaries would be continuing to contribute to the program. Minneapolis would be lobbying extra hard for the new formula, but -St. - Paul was providing the main opposition, according to Councilmember Peterson. He said he agreed with both cities that many of the low income housing and welfare problems were being exported to both of their cities and that they need the industrial base to pay for them. He also said he agreed- the outer circle suburbs need the inner cities if they are to grow stronger, which gives some _credence to Minneapolis ' arguments. The Bloomington Councilmember said he didn' t know how the detrimental effect of the new formula could be alleviated for St: -Paul. Mr. Childs said the difference in the potential effect for Hennepin and Ramsey County sides of St. Anthony is accounted by the larger commercial areas , principally Apache Plaza in the latter , which vastly overshadows the little commercial area on the other end. •