Unit 7: Participating in State and Local Government
Unit 7: Participating in State and Local Government
Chapter 24: Organization of State and Local Government
Section 1: The State Legislatures
I. The State Constitutions
A. Each state has a Constitution
1. Most have a Preamble-an introduction, usually not part of the states constitutional law
2. Bill of Rights-individual-can go beyond the federal Constitution
3. Articles-separate for each branch
4. Amendments-changes
II. The Legislature: Structure and Size
A. The law making function of government
B. Legislature many be known as the General Assembly
C. 49 states are bicameral
1. Nebraska is unicameral
D. Size
1. Varies state to state
a. Should not be so large as to hamper the orderly conduct of the people’s business
b. Should not be so small that the many views and interests within the State cannot be adequately represented
III. The State Legislators
A. Qualifications
1. Each state is different
2. Age 18 to 30
3. U.S. Citizen
4. Live in state for a period of time
5. Only Nebraska doesn’t have to belong to a political party
B. Election
1. Selected by voters voting in popular elections
2. Nominated at party primaries
3. Elections coincide with national elections (in November)
C. Terms
1. MOST STATES SERVE 2 YR. TERMS FOR HOUSE AND 4 YR. TERM FOR SENATE
2. S.D. 2 YEARS FOR EACH
3. NEBRASKA-4 YEAR TERM
4. Turnover rate is higher that in the Federal government
D. Compensation
1. SALARY VARIES FROM STATE TO STATE
a. DEPENDS ON LENGTH OF SESSION IN MOST CASES
b. RANGES FROM $2000 TO OVER $50,000
E. Legislative Sessions
1. January to March in South Dakota
2. Number of days varies from state to state
3. Governor and Lieutenant Governor rule most state legislatures. Others include the President Pro Tempore, Majority and Minority leaders, Whips
4. California meets in continuous two year sessions
5. Arkansas, Kentucky, Montana, Nevada, North Dakota, Oregon, and Texas meet on an every-other year basis
IV. Powers of the Legislature
State legislatures have all powers not delegated to the executive or judicial branches by the state constitution and those not denied to it by the constitution
A. Legislative Powers
1. Power to make laws for the state
2. Power to tax, spend, borrow, establish courts, define crimes and provide for their punishment, regulate commercial activities, and maintain public schools
3. Promote public health, safety, morals, and welfare
B. Nonlegislative Powers
1. Executive Powers
a. In some states, appointments by the Governor must be approved by the Legislature, and in others the legislature may appoint officials
2. Judicial Powers
a. Power of impeachment-varies from state to state (Oregon may not impeach)
b. Powers to deal with its own members
3. Constituent
a. Constitution making process
V. Organization of the Legislature
A. The Presiding Officers
1. Much like Congress (Speaker of the House, Lieutenant Governor is Pres. Of Senate)
2. Other posts (Party leaders, whips, etc.)
B. The Committee System
1. Much like Congress
2. Names of standing committees varies according to the issues in the state
VI. The Legislative Process (How a bill becomes a law)
A. Bill is introduced
B. Bill is referred to a standing committee
C. Committee hearings
D. Debate and vote
E. Executive action, Governor signs or veto
VII. Direct Legislation
A. INITIATIVE
1. CITIZENS GET A PROPOSITION ON THE BALLOT FOR THE NEXT GENERAL ELECTION
2. Video Lottery, Income Tax
B. REFERENDUM
1. CERTAIN BILLS PASSED BY THE LEGISLATURE MUST GO TO THE VOTERS BEFORE THEY BECOME LAW
2. In South Dakota-first state to adopt it in 1898
C. RECALL
1. ALLOWS VOTERS TO REMOVE AN ELECTED OFFICIAL FROM OFFICE
Section 2: The Governor and State Administration
I. The Governorship
A. Qualifications
1. 1. Most states must meet certain requirements
2. 2. Usually 30 years of age
3. 3. Five years lived in the state
4. 4. Governors have come from rich and poor backgrounds
5. Serve four year terms (N.H. and VT serve 2 year terms)
6. Half of the states restrict the number of years (Virginia is one term)
B. Selection
1. Chosen by popular vote in every state
2. Major party candidate is usually picked in primaries
C. Succession
1. In 43 states, the Lieutenant Governor serves as the first in line
2. In Maine, N.H., N.J., and West Virginia, the President of the Senate succeeds
3. In Arizona, Oregon, and Wyoming, the office passes to the Secretary of State
D. Removal
1. Impeach-last was in Arizona in 1988 Mecham
2. Recall-last was in North Dakota in 1921 Frazier
E. Compensation
1. Average is $95,000 per year ($65,000 in Nebraska to $130,000 in New York)
2. Official residence
II. The Governor’s Executive Powers
A. Appointment
1. Staff members, dept heads, various state commissions
B. Removal
1. If they defy or ignore governor
C. Commander in Chief-head of the national guard or state militia, called out in emergencies
D. Budget-making—Usually shares with budget or finance director
Legislative powers
A. Proposals
1. Introduce bills
B. Special Sessions
1. May also be called by governor
C. Veto power
1. Balance the power of the governor
III. Judicial Power
A. Governor appoints ¼ of state judges
B. Governor-power for Executive Clemency
1. Governors ability to reduce or end a convicted criminals sentence
2.Also means reprieves, pardons, paroles for state prisoners-1988 Presidential Election
C. Commute-Reduce jail sentences
D. These are all highly controversial
IV. Governor is also an informal leader
Ribbon cuttings, ground breaking, parades
V. Other Executive Officers
A. Lieutenant Governor
1. Much like Vice President in most states
B. Secretary of State
1. Record keeper of state
2. Prepares state ballots, supervises elections
C. Treasurer
D. Attorney General
1. State’s chief lawyer, offers legal advice
Section 3: Counties, Towns, Townships, and Special Districts
I. The Counties
A. County
1. A major unit of local government
2. Found in all states except Connecticut and Rhode Island
3. In Louisiana, they are called parishes
4. In Alaska, they are called boroughs
5. Function varies from region to region, but here are some
a. Serve as judicial districts
b. Share the functions of rural local government
II. Common Elements of County Governments
A. The Governing Body
1. “County Board” in most states
2. Popularly elected
3. Usually chosen from districts within the county
4. Board of Commissioners and Board of Supervisors
5. Duties
a. Finance matters, zoning ordinances, etc.
B. Elected Officials
1. The Sheriff
2. The Clerk
a. Registers and records public documents
3. Treasurer
4. Auditor
5. District Attorney
6. Coroner
7. Some of these, and some others, are elected officials in counties
C. Boards or Commissions
1. Fair board, planning commission, hospital board, board of health, just to mention a few
D. County Bureaucracy
1. Approximately 2 million workers for the nation’s 3043 counties
III. Functions of Counties
A. Institutions of rural government
B. Maintain jails, courthouse, assess property for tax purposes, build and repair roads, and maintain schools
C. 2/3 of the nation’s population live in 375 of the 3043 counties
IV. Towns and Townships
A. The New England Town
1. In the six northeast states, the town is the major form of local government
2. From colonial times
3. Main feature is direct democracy (Town Hall Meetings)
B. Townships
1. County subdivisions (in South Dakota)
2. Approximately the same size in South Dakota (6 square miles)
3. Maintaining rural roads
V. Special Districts
A. An independent unit created to perform one or more related governmental functions at the local level
B. School districts
1. In South Dakota, they vary greatly in size (land area)
2. 13,500 school districts in the U.S.
Section 4: Cities and Metropolitian Areas
I. Forms of City Government
A. The Mayor-Council Form
1. The oldest and still the most widely used type of city government
2. Features an elected mayor as the chief executive and an elected council as its legislative body
3. Most cities are nonpartisan
4. Council members are most often elected from the city at-large (not in Sioux Falls)
5. Popularly elected
6. Strong-mayor or weak-mayor type
a. Strong-mayor
1) The mayor heads the city’s administration, usually has the power to hire and fire employees, and prepares the budget
b. Weak-mayor
1) The mayor has much less formal power
B. The Commission Form
1. Three to nine, but usually five, commissioners popularly elected
2. Together, they form the city council, pass ordinances, and control the purse
3. Has both legislative and executive powers
4. Voters or the commission elects a member as mayor
5. Serve 2 or 4 year terms
6. Nonpartisan
7. Problems
a. Lacks a single chief executive
b. Built in tendency toward “empire-building”
c. Lack of coordination at the topmost levels of policymaking and administration
C. The Council-Manager Form
1. It features:
a. A strong council (usually 5 to 7 members), elected at-large in nonpartisan election
b. A weak mayor, chosen by the voters
c. A manager, the city’s chief administrative officer, named by the council
2. Council is the city’s policy making body
3. Manager carries out the policies, serves at the council’s leisure
a. The manager is a professionally trained career administrators
4. Spreading quickly
II. Municipal Functions
A. To provide services to those who live within its boundaries
B. What are some?
III. City Planning
Have you ever been to any cities where the streets seem extremely confusing?
A. Planning Growth
1. Most cities have created a planning agency to create a vision of growth
2. “Forward Sioux Falls”
3. Very important in this area
B. City Zoning
1. Zoning
a. The practice of dividing a city into a number of districts and regulating the uses to which property in each of them may be put
b. Residential, commercial, or industrial
c. Why is this important?
d. Zoning ordinances must be reasonable
IV. Suburbanitis and Metropolitan Areas
A. Suburbanitis
1. 45% of our nation’s population live in suburbs
2. Began to grow after WWII, boomed in the 1950’s with the automobile
3. Suburbs and large cities must work together to solve their problems
B. Metropolitan Areas
1. The cities and the areas surrounding them (hinterlands)
2. Usually classified as areas over 250,000 people
3. Many cities have annexed some of their suburbs (Twin Cities)
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