Some local governments in nonmetro areas--especially those in the rural West and in very rural areas--experienced high levels of fiscal stress in the mid-seventies that were associated with high and rising local taxes. These local governments may be forced to cut back their rural development activities in the eighties. Fiscal pressures on local…

Reports results of a 1982 survey of suburban and rural local governments in Maryland, which showed that cable television in rural areas is generally inferior to that in the suburbs, providing less revenue for local governments and poorer services. Advises local officials how to improve their current cable arrangements. (JHZ)