North Carolina History
“First in Freedom”
• First Provincial Congress (August
1774) – elected people to the
Continental Congress
•
• Mecklenburg Declaration (May 1775) –
citizens of Mecklenburg County stated
that the only lawful government was
the provincial government, not the
British.
•
• Halifax Resolves (April 12, 1776) – NC
was the first state to call for
complete independence from Britain.
• Sent 3 delegates to the 2nd Continental
Congress
• Did not ratify Constitution until 1789
when Bill of Right added
Three Constitutions in NC’s History
Very small number compared to other states
1st – Constitution of 1776
It was very similar to the US Constitution.
1835 Changes Voters were now allowed to elect a governor,
and approve or reject constitutional
amendments
Took away rights of free men of African and
Indian decent
2nd – Constitution of 1868
All Confederate states had to create new
Constitution after Civil War
Slavery abolished, all men over 21 could
vote
3rd – Constitution of 1971
All elections free, freedom of speech, equal
protection of laws
Suffrage in North Carolina
 After Civil War, next 2 decades African
Americans got to vote.
o Hiram Revels – 1st African American
to vote
 By 1900, General Assembly set up
discrimination test to keep minorities
(Blacks and Indians) from voting
 Women fought for suffrage (voting) in NC,
but to no success until the 19th amendment
in 1920
 Voting Requirements:
o Citizen
o 18 years old by the next General
Election
o Lived in voting precinct for 30 days
o Not serving felony sentence
o Registered to vote
State Government
* Each state has its own constitution.
* All states have three branches of
government.
* Voters ratify amendments in all states
except for Delaware.
* All states have bicameral legislatures
except for Nebraska.
* Each state must accept the validity of
all other state laws and contracts (Full
faith and Credit).
* Extradition: Governor orders a suspect
to be returned to the state where the
crime was committed.
Executive Branch
* Led by a governor.
* In most states a person must be 30 years
old, US citizen, and a resident of the
state for five years.
* Serve a four year term, 2 consecutive –
can come back for another 2 terms after 4
years
* Recall: An election where voters can
remove state officials.
* Lieutenant Governor: Takes over for the
governor and is head of the state senate.
Powers of the Governor
* Chief Executive, Chief Legislator,
Judicial Leader, Commander in Chief,
Party leader, Ceremonial leader.
* As judicial leader a governor can:
* Commute: Reduce a sentence.
* Parole: Early release from prison.
* Can offer pardons and reprieves.
Executive Officials
* Most officials are elected by voters.
* There are many different departments led
by a secretary.
Legislative Branch
* The Legislative Branch of North
Carolina’s state government is called the
General Assembly. The legislative process
is the same as the national level
* Makes two types of laws:
* Statues – apply to everyone in the
state
* Local or Specific laws – just to
certain areas in the state
* Major power deals with finances. How much
to spend and how much to tax?
* Legislative Oversight – review of
government operations
* State is divided into districts.
* Reynolds vs. Sims (1964): All election
districts must be equal in population.
“Each person one vote”.
* Apportionment: Distribution of seats
according to population.
* Legislators must be US citizens, live in
the district, and meet an age
requirement. Fairly low pay.
Judicial Branch
* Misdemeanors:
lower courts.
Minor crimes handled by
* Felonies: Serious crimes handled by
higher courts.
* Trial courts:
punishment.
Use juries.
Judge decides
* Appellate courts: Panel of judges.
Appellate jurisdiction.
* State Supreme Court:
Highest level.
* Plea Bargain: Defendant pleads guilty
for a reduced sentence.
County Government
* Local governments are established by
state governments.
* Charter: Plan that explains the power of
a local government.
* All counties provide services for their
citizens.
* County board has legislative powers.
* Ordinance: Law passed by a county board.
* Provide law enforcement, set up
hospitals, improve transportation, and
set up public libraries.
* Collect revenue through property tax and
sales tax.
* Have executive power to enforce laws
(Inspectors).
County Officials
* Sheriff: Law enforcement. Keeps peace
and manages the jail.
* District attorney: Investigates crime
and prosecutes in court.
* Coroner: Establishes the cause of death.
* County clerk: Keeps official records.
* Assessor: Determines the value of
property for tax purposes.
Town Governments
* Some counties are divided into towns.
* In the northeast, town government is more
important than county.
* Town govt. began in New England as a form
of direct democracy.
* Other northern states divided into
smaller units called townships.
* In the Midwest, townships were
established during expansion by Congress.
Village Government
* Smallest unit of local government.
* A group must get permission from the
state.
* Villages have a board and an executive
elected by the voters.
Special Districts
* Provides a solution for a single issue or
provide a service.
* An elected board runs the district.
* User fees: Rates paid for services
City Government
* Must get a charter from the state
government.
* Home rule: Allows cities to write their
own charters.
* Crime, medical problems, drug abuse, and
homelessness are problems.
* Ward:
Voting district in a city.
Organization of City Governments
* Mayor: Executive leader. Presides over
city council meetings. There are strong
and weak mayor plans
* City Council: Legislative branch of the
city. Voter elected
City Manager: Helps makes decisions on city
projects – runs the city. Appointed by the
city council
Community Problems
* Public Policy: Decision that effect people. They can come
from lawmakers, citizens, interest groups, and the media.
* Must plan for the future. Involves educated guessing.
* Short term: Decisions effecting the next few years.
* Long term: Decisions effecting the next fifty years.
* Must have priorities and evaluate resources.
* Communities develop a master plan of goals.
Zoning
* A zoning board decides what land will be used for.
* Different zones for residential, business, and public land.
* Provides a map for the community.
Financing
* Taxes: Sales, property and income.
* User fees: Fares paid for the use of services.
* Bond: Borrow the money and pay it back later.
Education and Housing
* Education is the most expensive service provided by state and
local governments.
* Magnet school: Students focus on a particular field of study.
* Vouchers: Help parents send children to private schools.
* Urban renewal: Re-building old neighborhoods.
* The government provides low income housing.
Shortages and Pollution
* Many places have shortages on power and water.
* Conservation: Using less of our resources.
* Disposing of garbage is a problem (landfills).
* Recycling: Using old materials to produce new ones.
Federalism
* National government shares power with the states.
* This gives Americans freedom to provide for their own needs.
* The main reason is sectional differences.
* Types of Power:
* Enumerated: Powers given to the national government.
Can be expressed or implied (Elastic clause).
* Reserved: Powers given to the state governments.
* Concurrent: Powers shared between national and state.
Federal Aid to the States
* Spending is roughly related to population of the state (from
census numbers)
* Additional demographic questions to find out where children
are located (education), minorities (grants for minorities), and
population density (highways)
New Federalism
* Recently shift of some programs/authority for decisionmaking on the implementation of the programs back to the
state and local governments.
* Started with President Nixon and continued with President
Reagan
Types of Aid
 Categorical Grants – funds for some specific closely defined
purpose.
Like money for school lunches
Usually have strings attached
 Block Grants – funds for much more broadly defined
purposes
Fewer strings attached, more freedom for state/local to
decide how to spend money
 Project Grants – funds for specific organizations or
governmental bodies
For research, job training programs, etc.
Fiscal Federalism
 Most interactions between national and state government
involve monetary considerations
* Fiscal Federalism
* Carrot and Stick Approach
* Unfunded Mandates
* Coercive Federalism
* South Dakota v. Dole
Understanding Federalism
* Advantages for Democracy
* Increases access to government
* Local problems can be solved locally
* Hard for political parties or interest groups to dominate
all politics
* Disadvantages for Democracy
* States have different levels of service
* Local interest can counteract national interests
* Too many levels of government and too much money
Summary of Federalism
* Federalism is a governmental system in which power is
shared between central government and the 50 state
governments.
* The US has moved from dual to cooperative federalism; fiscal
federalism to new federalism.
* Federalism leads to both advantages and disadvantages to
democracy.
* Most interactions today have a monetary component.
* There are still struggles and conflicts over power sharing in
this relationship.