Chapter 11 Section 5 pg.206 - 213

Question 1

Define and describe county

Answer 1

> county - largest unit local government in most states
organized county government exists in every state except Rhode Island and Connecticut
units of government known as counties in most states are called parishes in Louisiana; in Alaska they are called boroughs
concept of county government is part of America’s British heritage
play a role in local government
serving citizens who reside in rural areas
county officials are usually housed in county courthouse or county building
administer and enforce state laws and county laws
preserving peace; maintaining jails, libraries, and other public buildings; operating school system; assessing property tax value; levying and collecting taxes; dispensing county funds; building and maintaining roads, bridges, drainage systems and other public works; issuing permits such as hunting, fishing, and marriage licenses; maintaining records of such things as property deeds, births, deaths, and marriages; conducting elections; caring for needy; and protecting and promoting public health

Question 2

Define county seat

Answer 2

> county seat - city in which county government has its headquarters

Question 3

Define “county board”

Answer 3

> “county board” - popularly elected governing body that most counties have
board of commissioners
board of supervisors

Question 4

Describe the board of commissioners

Answer 4

> most common “county board”
usually consists of 3 to 7 members
members are elected specifically to this body and usually hold no other public office

Question 5

Describe board of supervisors

Answer 5

> larger body
generally consists of 12 to 50 members but may include as many as 100
members are elected to represent townships within their county and usually hold township office as well as county office

Question 6

List the several important elected officials that a typical county would include

Answer 6

>sheriff
>county assessor
>treasurer
>auditor
>clerk
>recorder
>prosecuting attorney (also called district attorney or states' attorney)
>coroner
>county medical examiner
>superintendent of schools
>county president (or county supervisor)

Question 7

Describe the sheriff of a county

Answer 7

> with aid of other law enforcement officers, the sheriff provides police protection for rural areas
supervises county jail and detention facilities
carries out orders of local courts
in many counties, he even serves as tax collector

Question 8

Describe county assessor

Answer 8

> appraises taxable property within county

>his appraisal determines property tax that county residents will pay

Question 9

Describe treasurer

Answer 9

> receives taxes and fees
acts as caretaker of county funds
makes authorized payments from county treasury

Question 10

Describe auditor

Answer 10

> supervises county’s financial records

>authorizes spending of county funds

Question 11

Describe clerk

Answer 11

> sometimes called recorder
maintains county records and issues various kinds of licenses
often supervises elections within county and may serve as secretary to county board and/or as clerk of courts

Question 12

Describe prosecuting attorney

Answer 12

> also called district attorney or state’s attorney

>conducts criminal investigations and prosecutes cases tried in local courts

Question 13

Describe coroner

Answer 13

> investigates cause of death when people have died under unknown or unusual circumstances
in recent years, some counties have replaced elected coroner by an appointed and highly trained, county medical examiner

Question 14

Describe superintendent of schools

Answer 14

> heads administration of all or some of public elementary and secondary schools in county
sometimes appointed; sometimes elected

Question 15

Describe county president

Answer 15

> sometimes called county supervisor
is elected chief executive
administers day-to-day affairs and exercises some degree of executive authority
plan is patterned after strong mayor-council plan of municipal government

Question 16

Describe county manager plan

Answer 16

> under this plan, county board hires professional county manager
serves as legislative and policy-making branch of county government
exercises executive power
sets up clear chain of command: department heads take orders from manager; manager answers to county board; and board members face voters on election day

Question 17

Describe county administration plan

Answer 17

> is variation of county manager

Question 18

Describe circumstances that led to the New England Town Government

Answer 18

> life in colonial New England was not conductive to development of county government
land not suitable for cultivation of large plantation
people engaged in commercial activities or worked small farms
threats of French and Indian attacks and desire to be close to local church helped to keep settlers bound together in small communities
under these circumstances, town became most important unit of local government

Question 19

describe New England town government

Answer 19

> in much of New England today, town government continues to perform many of functions handled by cities or counties in other parts of nation
most sections of each of 6 New England states (Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island) are divided into towns
in New England, each town generally includes all of urban and rural territory within its borders
Outside New England, such jurisdiction is usually called township
within New England, such jurisdiction is usually called town

Question 20

Define town meeting

Answer 20

> unique feature of traditional town government is town meeting, example of direct democracy

Question 21

Define selectmen

Answer 21

> between town meetings, administrative matters are handled by popularly elected board of selectmen, somewhat comparable to county board

Question 22

Describe township government

Answer 22

> as early US settlers moved into Midwest, they developed township system of local government, which resembled New England town government but differed in form
today, township government is found in states from New Jersey to Nebraska
function largely as subdivisions of counties
functions of townships are primarily rural
handle such matters as road and drainage problems and cemetery upkeep
some involved in minor law enforcement and supervision of public schools

Question 23

Describe municipal government

Answer 23

> usually not included within township jurisdiction
smaller municipalities often called towns, villages, or boroughs
larger municipalities almost always called cities

Question 24

Define an incorporated municipality

Answer 24

> municipality is incorporated, meaning that it has been designated as legal governmental organization with certain rights and responsibilities

Question 25

Define an unincorporated municipality

Answer 25

> some small communities are unincorporated
unincorporated communities have no government of their own; they are usually under jurisdiction of county, but most communities of any size are incorporated

Question 26

Define and describe a city charter

Answer 26

> state incorporates city by granting it a city charter

>city charter - legal document granted by state which outlines form of government for city

Question 27

List the forms of municipal government

Answer 27

> mayor-council form, commission form, and council-manager form

Question 28

Describe mayor-council form

Answer 28

> oldest and most widely used form of city government is the mayor-council form
members of city council are popularly elected, often at-large, but sometimes wards (or districts)
council serves as legislative body, adopting ordinances and establishing city policy
mayor, executive head of city, usually elected by voters-at-large, although is some cases council appoints one of its members as mayor
in most cities with over 500,000 people, mayor-council form of city government is used