AMERICAN
GOVERNMENT
Federal
State
Local
LOCAL GOVERNMENT
87,000 in U.S.
LOCAL GOVERNMENT
• County
• Special Districts
• Municipality (City/Town)
COUNTY
GOVERNMENTS
• Every state subdivided into counties
• More than 3,000 in U.S.
• County governments provide criminal
justice services, roads, healthcare, etc.
• Most are governed by an elected county
legislature and elected county executive
SPECIAL DISTRICTS
Provide single services within
counties or across county and city
boundaries
MUNICIPAL
GOVERNMENT
• Corporation created by state
governments to provide services in a
particular area
• Charter says what a municipality can
and cannot do
NEW YORK CITY
A Consolidated-City
County Government
NYC GOVERNMENT
• NYC collection of counties & a
municipality
– Five counties: New York, Bronx, Queens,
Richmond, and Kings
• Largest city government in the U.S.
• Strong mayor form of government
CITY COUNCIL
• Make Laws
• Tax and Spend
• Make Land Use Decisions
NYC CITY COUNCIL
51 members
4 year terms
limited to 2 terms
NYC CITY COUNCIL
• Members elected from districts around city
based on population (about 159,000 people
per district)
• Headed by the Speaker of the Council
• Bills go through a process that begins with
committee hearings, followed by vote of the
council, ending with bill signing by the mayor
• Council can override mayoral vetoes
LOCAL COURTS
• Most are state courts operating within
counties
• A few administrative courts—housing
court or traffic court
OTHER NYC OFFICIALS
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District Attorneys
Comptroller
Public Advocate
Borough Presidents
COMMUNITY BOARDS
(59 Boards with 50 Members
Each Appointed by Borough
Presidents)
COMMUNITY BOARDS
• Hear citizen complaints
• Conduct oversight of city agencies
• Advise on land use decisions
NYC MAYOR
• Elected by all Voters in City
• 4 Year Term of Office (limited to 2
terms)
• Roles:
– Leader
– Legislator
– Administrator
NYC BUREAUCRACY
(Headed by Mayor
but Managed by Deputy Mayors)
• Buildings
• Small Business
Services
• City Planning
• Corrections
• Education
• Environmental
Protection
• Fire
• Health and Mental
Hygiene
• Homeless Services
• Housing Preservation &
Development
• Parks & Recreation
• Police
• Sanitation
• Transportation
OTHER LOCAL
ORGANIZATIONS
• Con Edison—private utility with exclusive
monopoly to provide electricity
• New York Public Library—nonprofit, but with
significant funding from city government
• Health and Hospitals Corporation—
government corporation that runs public
hospitals, such as Bellevue
• MTA—state level government corporation,
but city owns many of its facilities
Metropolitan
Transportation Authority
(MTA)
SUBWAY HISTORY
• 1904: Interborough Rapid Transit (IRT): built
and operated number lines, 1, 2, 6, etc.
• 1913: Brooklyn-Manhattan Transit (BMT):
built and operated letter lines, B, N, R, etc.
• 1940: NYC government took over BMT and
IRT
• 1967: MTA created by state government to
run subways and other transportation
systems
Metropolitan
Transportation Authority
(MTA)
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NYC Transit
Metro-North Railroad
Long Island Railroad
Long Island Bus
Bridges and Tunnels
Bus Company
MTA GOVERNANCE
• 17 Member Board, 6 Year Fixed Terms of
Office
• All appointed by Governor with consent of
State Senate
• 4 Members recommend by NYC Mayor
• 7 Members recommend by officials from
counties were MTA operates