Studies have found that information sharing between city governments can be easily observed within the same county jurisdiction, but less attention has been paid to the reasons why the jurisdictional boundary matters. This article fills this lacuna, drawing on the insight of the "strength of strong ties" argument that "people help their friends first." The analysis reveals that city governments in the Orlando, Florida, metropolitan area are more likely to share economic development information (EDI) with governments in the same county as the collective demand for such information in that area increases. This study additionally finds that the greater the demand for EDI, the more likely it is that city governments will seek the information from their county members. As a result, as the demand for information increases among city governments in a metropolitan area, the likelihood that it will be shared by all members of the area beyond the county boundaries decreases. Evidence for Practice• When there is a high collective demand for information sharing from other cities, municipal governments and their officials are more likely to provide information to governments within the same county jurisdictional boundary. • As municipal governments' information needs increase, they will have a greater tendency to contact same-county members for that information. • This research suggests a strong need for policy entrepreneurs who can bond weak-tied city governments across county jurisdictional boundaries and facilitate intergovernmental information sharing beyond jurisdictional boundaries.

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