State and Local
Government
Looking at Georgia’s
Government and
beyond….
The “Empire State of the South”
The “Peach State”
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Population (2010): 9,815,210 million
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Caucasians , 59.7%
Black or African American persons, 30.5%
Persons of Hispanic or Latino origin, 5.3%
Asian persons, percent, 8.8%
http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/13000.html
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Capital: Atlanta
Economy: retail, service,
manufacturing, timber/lumber (pine,
hardwood), fishing (Brunswick &
Savannah), and agriculture (peanuts,
cotton, soybeans, tobacco)
State Data
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Motto: Wisdom, justice, and moderation
Flower: Cherokee Rose
Bird: Brown Thrasher
Tree: Live Oak
Song: Georgia on My Mind
1 of the Original 13 colonies; 4th of the 13
to sign the U.S. Constitution (Jan 2, 1788)
State Fair: Macon (3rd Week in October)
Geography
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Largest state east of the Mississippi
58,909 square miles of land area
Borders 5 States and an Ocean:
Tennessee (NW), North Carolina (NE),
South Carolina (E), Alabama (W),
Florida (S), and the Atlantic Ocean (SE)
Major Cities
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Atlanta
Savannah
Augusta
Albany
Macon
Brunswick
Columbus
Georgia: Federal Level
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14 U.S. Congressional Seats
2 U.S. Senate Seats
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16 Total Electoral College Votes
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Structure of Government
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Executive Branch
Legislative
Judicial
Constitutional Basis of State
Government
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Georgia has had 10 constitutions since 1777
There is a Preamble, a Bill of Rights, and 11
Articles – and begins with the Bill of Rights.
GA has had 4 capitals … what are they?
Vocab:
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Chapter 23 sections 1,2
Legislative Power:
The General Assembly
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Two Chambers: Upper
House (Senate)
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presiding officer of the upper
house is the lieutenant
governor
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56 members
Lower House (House of
Representatives)
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In the lower house, the
presiding officer is called the
speaker of the house
236 members
Legislative Power:
The General Assembly
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The state legislature has the power:
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A. To pass laws that deal with health,
crime, labor, education, transportation, and
other matters
B. To tax, spend, and borrow money
C. To check the power of the governor and
the bureaucracy
Legislative Power:
The General Assembly
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Elected for two year terms
Congressional districts:
http://www.legis.ga.gov/Joint/reapportionme
nt/Documents/congprop2.pdf
Governor can call special sessions
Legislature “cont”
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Bills can be introduced in either the Senate or the
House (bicameral)
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Revenue & appropriation bills, however, can only
originate in the House
Many organizations influence legislation on the
state level by proposing bills : labor unions,
community groups, business organizations
Senate is responsible for confirming governor’s
appointments to boards and commissions
Initiative, Referendum, Recall
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Initiative, Referendum and Recall are three
powers reserved to the voters to enable
them to affect legislative procedures and
remove individuals from office.
Initiative, Referendum, Recall
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Initiative is a power reserved by the people to
enact, amend or repeal propose legislation, by
petition.
Referendum is a power that allows a meeting to be
held for the voters to demand the acceptance or
reconsideration or repeal of any legislative act
Recall is a power that allows the voters to demand
the removal of an elected official
(you should have these as vocab cards)
House of Representatives
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236 Members
Elected every two years
21 years old
U.S. Citizens
Georgia Citizens for 2 years
One year resident in their district
Georgia State Senate
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56 Senators
Elected every two years
25 years old
U.S. Citizens
Georgia Citizens for 2 years
One year resident in their district
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Senators
Saxby Chambliss
(Republican)
Senators
Johnny Isakson
(Republican)
Georgia Executive:
Plural Executive
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http://georgia.gov/
Governor
 All are elected to max of 2 4 year terms, but can sit
out for 4 yrs and run again
 15 Years U.S. Citizen
 6 years Georgia Resident
 30 years old
Lt. Governor
 15 Years U.S. Citizen
 6 years Georgia Resident
 30 years old
Office
Governor
Lieutenant Governor
Secretary of State
Attorney General
School Superintendent
State Agriculture
Commissioner
Holder
Nathan Deal
Casey Cagle
Brian P. Kemp
Sam Olens
John Barge
Gary Black
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Nathan Deal
– Governor
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Casey Cagle
– LT. Governor
Executive
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Veto power; propose legislation, call special hearings, pardons
Appoints judges and executive positions:
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Secretary of State
Attorney General
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Must have been an active-status member of the State Bar of Georgia for 7 years
State School Superintendent
Commissioner of Agriculture
Commissioner of Insurance
Commissioner of Labor
Work on vocab 23 sections 1
and 2
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9 total
The Georgia Judiciary
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The state is geographically divided into
judicial circuits, each of which must represent
at least one county
Each county (159) shall have at least one:
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Superior court
Magistrate court
Probate Court
State Court and Juvenile Court (where needed)
Set up of the Georgia court
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http://www.georgiacourts.org/index.ph
p?option=com_content&view=article&id
=180&Itemid=27
Types of courts
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Superior court
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The Superior Court is Georgia’s general jurisdiction
trial court. It has exclusive, constitutional authority
over felony cases, divorce, equity and cases
regarding title to land.
Magistrate court
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jurisdiction includes: civil claims of $15,000 or
less; certain minor criminal offenses; distress
warrants and dispossessory writs; county
ordinance violations; deposit account fraud (bad
checks); preliminary hearings; and summonses,
arrest and search warrants.
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Probate Court
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This court handles matters concerning
administering the estate of a person who has died
(decedent).
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It sees that the provisions of a will are carried out or
sees that a decedent's property is distributed according
to state law if he/she died intestate
State Court and Juvenile Court
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The purpose of our Juvenile Courts is to protect
the well-being of children, provide guidance and
control conducive to child welfare and the best
interests of the state, and secure care for children
removed from their homes
Juvenile Courts extends to delinquent children
under the age of 17 and deprived or unruly
children under the age of 18.
Georgia Supreme Court
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1 court, 7 justices
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Elected in a non-partisan election
Serve unlimited 6 year terms
Begin on January 1st
Admitted to practice law for at least 7 years
Other Courts
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63 State Courts
159 Probate Courts
159 Magistrate Courts
390 Municipal Courts
2 Civil Courts
4 Recorder Courts
1 City Court of Atlanta
Judicial Qualifications
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Superior Court (45)
Jurisdiction over trials in all felony cases
(except juvenile offenders)
Also: title to land cases, divorce, and equity
cases
Elected on a non-partisan basis, for unlimited
4 year terms
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Shall reside in the geographical area where they
serve
Have been admitted to practice law for 5 years
Same qualifications for Juvenile court judges (159)
Qualifications “cont”
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Probate (159 Courts) and Magistrate
(159 Courts) Judges are elected in nonpartisan elections
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No law experience required
General Assembly sets the requirements
Vocab – 3rd period please get
out 23.1 and 2 to be checked
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Everyone:
Vocab due Friday: Chapter 23 Section 4
and Chapter 24 Section 1
IMPORTANT!!
UNIT 9 AND 10 TEST WILL BE NEXT
WEDNESDAY, 12/11/13!!
Unit 9 notes handout
Tax System
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Georgia has a state income tax
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Income tax: Tax placed on an individual or
corporate income.
progressive tax: the more income you earn, the
more tax you pay
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Fixed at 6% once income exceeds $7000
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So, someone who makes $1 million a years pays 6%, and someone
making $40,000 pays 6%
Georgia also has a sales tax as well as a tax on corporate profits
Other Taxes
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Georgia collects revenue from other places:
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Sales Tax: a tax, usually paid by the consumer
at the point of purchase, itemized separately
from the base price, for certain goods and
services
Excise taxes: Selective Sales tax also known as
a “Sin” taxes: gasoline, alcohol, and tobacco
products
Property Tax:
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is the most important source of revenue for LOCAL
governments and usually includes the assessed
value of land and buildings
Taxes
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Property Tax:
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is the most important source of revenue for
LOCAL governments and usually includes the
assessed value of land and buildings
The process of calculating the value of the
property to be taxed is called assessment
Land, farms, houses, and buildings are called
real estate
market value: the amount of money the owner
may expect to receive when a property is sold
is the
Georgia Expenditures
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States spend and distribute money in
several ways:
Social Security
Georgia Expenditures
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Corrections
Construction
Human Resources
Medicaid
Transportation
Misc. Other (tourism, environment,
research, etc)
Education
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State Board of Education
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187 School systems (members are either
appointed or elected – local option)
159 County school systems
28 independent school systems (larger
cities)
Education
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Board of Regents
34 public institutions of higher learning
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Research Universities(UGA)
Regional Universities (Georgia Southern)
Four Year Colleges (Armstrong State)
2 Year Colleges (East Georgia College)
Budget is not line-itemed
The General Assembly allocated revenue in a lump
sum to the Board of Regents, and they allocate as
they deem proper
State and Local
Government
Counties and towns
Structure
State
County
City
Town
Other important information
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Densely settled areas adjacent to a
metropolitan city are called suburbs
In a town, borough, city, or urban
district
City/County Responsibilities
“cont”
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Police and Fire Protection
Garbage & Solid Waste Collection/Disposal
Public Health Facilities: Hospitals, emergency
services, animal control)
Street & Road Construction/Maintenance
Parks & Recreational Programs/Facilities
Storm water, sewage, and disposal systems
“cont”
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Water storage, treatment, and distribution
Public Housing
Public Transportation
Libraries, and arts and science facilities
Terminal and dock and parking facilities
Codes for building, plumbing, and electricity
Air quality control
County/Municipal Government
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159 Counties (2nd to Texas – 254)
2 Types of Municipal Systems
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Council manager
Mayor/Council
Home Rule applies – minimal amount of
interference from state authorities
Effingham County
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http://www.effinghamcounty.com/Elect
ed-Officials.53.0.html