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o 011'1 8 5. Informal Communication Between Governments Local autonomy in planning and zon- ing is an article of faith in the United States, yet this does not need to mean that communities should ignore the ac- tions or interests of their neighbors. Al- though now little used, there are many interlocal communication channels avail- able to promote rational floodplain man- agement as well as other mutual objec- tives. Such communication may occur through a "council of government" or other regional organization, or it may simply take the form of letters, tele- phone calls, or street comer conversa- tion between officials of neighboring communities. Local news media play an important role in reporting pending local actions and policies. Where floodplains are concerned, communities should be vigilant in looking over the shoulders of their neighbors. 6. Zoning Testimony The American approach to zoning has substantially hindered municipal partici- pation in the zoning and planning deci- sions of neighboring localities. Most state laws do not require notice of proposed zoning changes to be circulated beyond the immediate municipality. (Massachu- setts, however, now requires notice of any amendment, variance, or special per- mit to be sent to the planning boards of abutting municipalities as well as the state, regional planning agency, and ad- joining property owners.) In any case, though, there is no constitutional barrier to the submission of verbal or written testimony to the zoning authorities of a neighboring jurisdiction. The New Jersey Supreme Court, in a 1949 decision, recog- nized the standing of municipalities to participate in and challenge the zoning decisions of their neighbors: What may be the most appropriate use of any particular property de- pends not only on all conditions, physical, economic, and social, pre- vailing within a municipality,... but also on the nature of an entire region in which the municipality is located. . . . The effective develop- ment of a region should not and cannot be made to depend upon the adventitious location of mu- nicipal boundaries, often prescribed decades or even centuries ago and based in many instances on con- siderations of geography, com- merce, or politics that are no longer significant with respect to zoning and the use of property. (Duffcon Concrete Products, Inc. v. Cresskill, 64 A.2d 347 [1949]) In a subsequent case, the same court recognized that a municipality owes a duty to hear any residents and taxpayers of adjoining mu- nicipalities who may be adversely affected by proposed zoning changes and to give as much con- sideration to their rights as they would to those of [their ownJ resi- dents and taxpayers. . . . To do less would be to make a fetish out of invisible municipal boundary lines and a mockery of the. principles of zoning. (Cresskill v. Dumont, 104 A.2d 441 [1954J) 'Ibese cases and more recent de- cisions from New Jersey, New York and Dlinois support the right of municiJ:6li- ties to participate in zoning decisions af- fecting land within a short distance of their borders. While the issue of flooding was not involved in these or other re- ported decisions, the threat of litigation has undoubtedly lent force to the pro- tests by one community as to pending actions by others. (See Part II, Haikey Creek case study.) , I ,. ; t i I 7. Intergovernmental Agreements Municipalities, special districts, coun- ties and states are all "legal persons" and therefore may enter into contracts and agreements with each other. Inter- governmental contracts are formal legal instruments which specify the duties and rights of each party thereto. Failure to perform duties specified in a contract subjects a party to legal liability. Gov- ernmental bodies may also enter into less formal agreements which lack the specific character of contracts. In "memoranda of understanding," they may express mutual policies and inten- tions without creating legal obligations. Even a mere exchange of letters may serve to provide mutual reassurance as 24