Local Government
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Government
How big is it
What is it (fed-state- local etc.)
What does it do
How does it do it
Intergovernmental relations:
Sub-state governments
Thousands upon thousands of governments.
They each do something different
BUT
They must also find ways to work together
Important Terms / Concepts / Topics
Primary policy areas of local governments
Dillon’s Rule
Counties: Their primary role and relationship to state government
County structure: legislative body and common executive officials
Special District – purposes and common types
Dependent vs. independent districts
Municipal corporation
Incorporated vs. unincorporated area and who governs each
Ordinance power
Home rule vs. general law cities, city charter
Types of government structures -- weak mayor, strong mayor, commission – and key difference between
each
Selection and role of a city manager
Urban / Metropolitan fragmentation, city-county consolidation
Local Governments are the most heavily involved in direct provision of citizen services.
LOC GOV TOPICS
Dillon’s Rule
“Municipal corporations owe their origin to, and derive their powers and rights wholly from, the
legislature. It breathes into them the breath of life, . . . . As it creates, so it may destroy. . . . The
legislature might, by a single act . . . sweep from its existence all of the municipal corporations in the
State, and the corporations could not prevent it.
County Sheriff
One of the most important county elected officials
Serves as the chief law enforcement officer in the county
Enforces state law and maintains the county jail
Jail hold those accused of felonies until trial
Those convicted of misdemeanors may serve their sentence in the county jail instead of the state
penitentiary
Is a major political figure
District Attorney (DA)
In charge of prosecuting violations of state law within the boundaries of the county
Also usually an elected official
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Another key political actor
The office of District Attorney,
along with service on the county legislative body
Are often used as first offices for those who eventually run for the state legislature
Other Elected County Executives
County clerk
Elected official who serves as the clerk for the commissioners court and for county records
Includes official state records of marriages, divorces, deeds, wills, etc.
County treasurer
Elected official who serves as the money manager for county government
May also collects and send state taxes to the state
E.g., annual automobile registration fees
Most offices just listed are separately elected
Each submits to the commissioner’s court a budget to run their office for the next year
Commissioners blend requests into a county budget and set the county tax rate to fund it
Commissioners often blamed by the voters for tax increases, so their incentive is to cut each
agency’s request as much as possible
Counties in most Southern states (including Texas) are some of the last vestiges of patronage
Sherriff's deputies are selected entirely by county sheriff and do not necessarily have law enforcement
training
Commissioners each buy own road maintenance equipment to service the needs of their constituents
Workers at county courthouse often patronage appointments
More Expansive Counties
Westchester County, New York
Over 40 specialized departments make up county government
Special Districts
Organized governmental entities, possessing structural form, an official name, the right to make
contracts, and obtain or dispose of property
Special districts are governments
Often headed by an elected board
Most can impose taxes
Usually carry out ONE function only
Are not general governments with multiple responsibilities
Why Special Districts?
1. Remove an activity from politics
(claim, not necessarily reality)
2. Physical needs cover multiple jurisdictions
3. Let somebody else pay taxes and pay for an activity.
1. To remove a particular function from the politics surrounding city or county government
Example, school districts
Ideal is to keep politics out of education
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Governed by a school board
Board members elected by districts
School board sets general curriculum and educational policy
hires a professional superintendent to actually manage the schools
Hire principals and teachers, set budget, etc.
Sets tax rate to fund schools
Boundaries of the school district do not necessarily match those of a city or county
Elected School Board:
Sets policies
Graduation requirements, dress code
Sets tax rate and district budget
Hires Superintendent
2. To deal with a function that covers multiple city or county jurisdictions
Some needed functions stretch far beyond single cities or counties
Need a special district with boundaries to cover the function
E.g.,
Air & water pollution districts –may cover multiple counties
River authority to prevent flooding – need to set rules for entire river regardless of what city or
county it wander into
Rapid transit district covering a metropolitan area that may include many cities
3. Let somebody else pay taxes and pay for an activity
Hospital Districts
Created by County and has same geographic jurisdiction
Governing board often selected by county
But separate taxing power
Special District Governance
Usually headed by a multi-member board or commission
Members are elected by districts for staggered terms
For limited functions, board may directly govern the district
For complex functions, will probably hire a professional manager
Cities and Towns
General Law and Home Rule Cities
Home Rule Cities
Cities with a population of more than 5,000.
Can adopt any form of government residents choose.
Provided it does not conflict with the state constitution or statutes.
General Law Cities
Cities with a population of fewer than 5,000.
Allowed to exercise only those powers specifically granted to it by the legislature.
Incorporated Cities DO have Ordinance Power
Often the primary reason county residents decide to incorporate as a city
Ordinances include speed limits inside the city limit, noise ordinances, etc.
Most important is zoning, allocating property in the city for use as:
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Single family homes
Multi-family properties (apartments)
Light retail (e.g. University, 19th St., etc.)
Heavy industry (e.g. warehouses, Frito-Lay plant, etc.
Forms of City Governments
Four general types of home-rule cities to choose from:
Weak mayor-council
Council-manager
Strong mayor-council
City commissioner
Forms of City Governments
Nearly all cities have both a mayor and a city council
The distinction between the various mayor-council forms is who exercises the city’s executive power
The hiring, monitoring, and firing of agency leaders
Police chief
Fire chief
Parks and Recreation Director
Etc.
Council members elected from districts
Weak Mayor-Council
Mayor may be elected at-large
At-large means by entire city, not a small district within the city
Or the city council may select one of its own members to serve as mayor
Mayor is a symbolic figurehead and has little or no more authority than any other member of the city
council
Mayor and council members are part-time
Agency leaders are selected and monitored by the entire city council
Council-Manager
Usually combined with a weak mayor-council form of government, but may exist with a strong mayor
form
Instead of the council hiring and firing agency leaders, they select a professional full time manager for
the city
City council sets general policy
City manager responsible for hiring personnel, monitoring city functions, drafting a city budget
If city council becomes dissatisfied with city manger can fire and hire a different manager
But do not need to be responsible for the details of other personnel or agency activities
Strong Mayor
Strong mayor cities assign to mayor full responsibility for running the city
Mayor is a full time administrator and political leader
Usually elected at-large by the entire city
Strong mayor form found in only the 5-10 largest cities in the country
New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, etc.
Commission Government
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Created by the City of Galveston after a hurricane destroyed the city in the early 1900s
Each city commissioner (city council member) responsible for operating one set of city functions
E.g.
Commissioner 1 – police and fire
Commissioner 2 – streets, traffic, public buildings
Commissioner 3 – parks, recreation, health
Etc.
City Commission
Commissioner form worked very well to put Galveston back together after the hurricane
After a brief popularity around the country, quickly fell into disuse
Seldom used nowadays
Even Galveston has changed to city manager form
Summary: City Executive Power
Weak mayor-council
Mayor and council as a group
City Manager (unless also a strong mayor)
City manager
Strong mayor
The mayor
Commission
Each member of the commission individually over different city functions
Urban Fragmentation – Central City, Suburbs, Metropolitan Area
We think of cities as single metropolitan areas
Most are large areas confounded by multiple and archaic jurisdictions
City-County Consolidation
Merging a city and a county into a single government
Examples:
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Denver, Colorado; San Francisco, California; Indianapolis, Indiana;
Jacksonville, Florida; and Nashville, Tennessee.
A city may extend across county boundaries in some states but not in others depending on the state
constitution.
The city of Dallas is in parts of five counties while New York City contains within itself five
counties, each of which is coextensive with one of the five boroughs of the city: Manhattan (New
York County), The Bronx (Bronx County), Queens (Queens County), Brooklyn (Kings County) and
Staten Island (Richmond County).