Jonathan F. (Jon) Duncan, Friday, October 29, 2010 | Filed under: Miscellaneous
The Platte County Circuit Court recently entered an Order rejecting a challenge to a cooperative agreement between a school district and the local sewer district. Cooperative agreements, which are expressly allowed by Missouri law, enable political subdivisions to work together and save resources on a wide variety of projects. The agreement at issue was designed to provide sewer services at an elementary school. It was challenged by local residents on a variety of legal grounds and Spencer Fane represented the school district. After hearing factual evidence and legal argument, the Circuit Court entered an Order affirming the validity of the agreement and rejecting the challengers' claims.
If carefully drafted, a cooperative agreement can be a powerful tool for finding cost-effective solutions to potentially expensive projects. This recent opinion is a reminder that cooperation between school districts and other state agencies is very important, especially in difficult economic times.