True to his campaign pledge that he would seek ways in which government could operate more efficiently and, more to the point, less expensively, freshman House of Delegates member Rick Morris, R-Carrollton, recently introduced a proposal to study the benefits of the consolidation of administrative services among school districts and local governments.

The proposal would study a model similar to Isle of Wight County’s successful efforts to consolidate services among its own school and county government offices. His proposed study, which was defeated in the House this past week, would have examined the benefits of combining certain administrative functions of neighboring school districts as well.

Funding of all local government services, not just public education, is likely to become more challenging in the coming years as smaller localities struggle to provide quality services. Every option needs to be on the table for study. Morris should be commended for his efforts, and Franklin, Southampton County and Isle of Wight County officials should follow his lead in looking for alternatives to local funding challenges.