Local Government Flashcards
Typical City Services
- police / fire
- street lighting
- water / sewer / garbage
- zoning
- building codes enforcement
- parks/recreation centers
- parking
Typical County Services
- collecting taxes
- court houses
- jails
- manage elections
- public health
- hospitals / ambulatory services / 911
- libraries
Shared Country & City Services
revenue - property, sales taxes, fees
County Government (Local)
- created by the state govt by a commission charter (charter/bill)
- THREE DIFFERENT FORMS: commission system, council-administrator system, council-elected executive system
Commission System
an elected commission (consists of a small number of commissioners) serves as the governing body within the county
- most common form of county government
- elected commission deals with all legislative and executive functions
Council-Administrator System
voters elect council members to serve for a specified period of time, and the council in turn appoints an administrator to oversee the operation of the govt
- administrator can be terminated by the council
- goal is to divide responsibilities with the council
Council-Elected Executive System
voters elect both the members of the council and the executive
- Executive performs functions similar to those of a state governor
- Executive can veto the actions of the council, draft a budget, and provide public policy suggestions
City Government
oversee the operation and functions of cities and towns;
- created by the state by a city charter/bill
operate on one of two governing models: a mayor-council system of a council-manager system
Mayor-Council System
voters elect both a mayor and members of the city council
- City council performs legislative functions and mayor the executive functions
- Mayor is given a great deal of authority or only limited powers
Council-Manager System
either the members of the city council are elected by voters along with a mayor who presides over the council, or voters elect members of the city council and the mayor is chosen from among them
- City council in both cases appoints a city council to carry out administrative functions
- city council is in charger of POLICY but turn the operations to a full time city manager
Sole Commissioner
elected member of the city council that make policy and running govt decisions
Mayor Jason Buelterman of Tybee Island
- 27 years old when he first ran for city council
- 31 years old when he first ran for mayor
originally from Ohio but moved to Tybee and worked in public education
- saw unique problems in youth in Savannah schools, so he ran for city council
Mayor Buelterman’s first election (CC + M)
CC:
- door-knocking, campaign yard signs, raised 32$
- won 6th place
M:
Mayor he went against during his first election had ran for 16 years
- he ran for mayor bc he thought the previous mayor was not seeking enough funds from outside of Tybee (taxes)
Tybee’s Municipal Elections
~70% voter turnout
Tybee: Unique Govt Responsibilities
- fire/police organizations
- emergency management agency (evacuation decisions for Tybee)
- water/sewer
- parks system
- infrastructure
