TAMU POLS 207 Exam 4 Dyer Questions With Correct Answers

Why is it difficult to generalize about local governments? - Answer -Diverse communities with diverse governments - no mention of local government in Constitution How do local communities in the United States get their authority to govern themselves? How does this differ from the legal status of the states? - Answer a. Authority delegated by their state constitution and/or laws, only have powers granted to them by the state. b.State power is not derived from the national government because they are their own sovereign political entities How does Dillon's rule restrict the powers of local governments? - Answer Dillon's Rule construes grants of power to localities very narrowly. Under Dillon's Rule, one must assume the local government does NOT have the power in question. What is meant by the 'political function' and 'service function' of local governments? Give an example of each function. - Answer Political Function: Questions of "Who gets what?"; Managing conflict over public policy (ex: infrastructure) Service Function: Providing services not offered by private sector (ex: market failure, monopolies, merit goods) These functions frequently overlap: who gets goods/services vs. who does not Explain the difference between general-purpose and special-purpose governments. Which types of governments fall into each category? - Answer General Purpose: Provide wide range of services (ex: County, City, regional varieties and variations (law enforcement, infrastructure, sanitation)) Special-Purpose: most common type of government* Fulfill specific purpose (ex: School districts, special districts (mosquito control, MUD)) What are some of the traditional functions/ characteristics of county governments? What kinds of changes have characterized the shift from the traditional county commission structure to other forms? - Answer Traditional: • Responsible for law enforcement, courts, roads, elections & public records • Differences exist b/t urban or rural counties • Commissioners • Elected governing body (~3-50 members) (Other officials w/ countywide jurisdiction: Sheriff, Coroner, County attorney, Clerk, Tax assessor, Tax collectors, Treasurer, auditor) -Responsibility for county government is fragmented and dispersed Changes/variations: • More centralized/professional • County mayor (instead of board of commissioners) • County administrator who answers to elected commissioners • More autonomy from state & unique organization • "Home rule" counties w/ unique charter • e.g. Los Angeles County How are Texas counties structured? What are some of the responsibilities of county government in Texas? - Answer -Traditional county commission structure -Structure & power defined by state constitution -Commissioner Court w/ 4 elected commissioners + county judge -No "home rule" counties -Responsibilities: Law enforcement, courts, roads, elections, public records, control unincorporated land What legal status do cities hold? Based on this, what does it mean to say that an area is 'incorporated'? - Answer Legal status: municipal corporation -Incorporated: the area resides within the city limits -Unincorporated: Area belongs to a county instead Incorporated: Governed by a Charter What is a charter? What are the various types of municipal charters? - Answer Charter (mini constitution for a city) -State grants power of self-gov't to incorporated community -Determines structure & powers of city gov't Types of charters: -Special Act -General Act/General Law -Optional -Home Rule a.Which types of charter gives state legislatures the most control over cities? b.Which type of charter gives local residents a greater degree of control over the composition and functions of their government? - Answer a. 1.Special Act: -Charter granted directly by state (once common, now rare) -Special enactment by state legislature -Legislative approval required for changes 2. General Act (General Law): -Lege defines size of cities -Municipal laws then uniformly applied -State statutes often specify form of gov't b. 3. Optional: -Lege gives some choice in form of gov't -Greater flexibility 4. Home Rule Charter (greatest local control over local government): -Common in larger cities -Community adopts own form of gov't: a) Voter approval required for adoption of charter b) Charter amended by referenda c) More direct powers -Have inherent powers (**most important) NOT granted by state Constitution or laws * General Law and Home Rule Charter are the only types in Texas* What are some of the advantages and disadvantages of home rule? - Answer Advantages: -Reduced legislative interference in city affairs -State legislature can focus on state affairs -Citizen participation -Choose form of gov't & administration -More control over local gov't policies Disadvantages: -Frequent amendment of charter -Policy fragmentation -Local interest groups may have greater influence -Long ballots may discourage participation How does home rule reverse the assumption of Dillon's rule? - Answer Dillon's Rule states that anything NOT listed in the charter CANNOT be done by the city. Home Rule tries to reverse that by saying anything not stated in the charter CAN be done by the city. What are some of the forms city government can take? In these various forms, who is responsible for the day-to-day operation and supervision of city departments? - Answer Commission: (traditional) -Elected commissioners form small govering board -Combined executive & legislative -may suffer problems of "gov't by committee" Council Manager: -elected council makes policy & sets budget -common in mid-sized cities (ex: college station) -appoints city manager to carry out city business Mayor Council: -Varies greatly based on formal powers of mayor -both strong & weak forms -hybrid forms w/ separate city manager -common in larger cities Town Meeting: -All voters decide policy; elected officials carry it out -Model of direct democracy but... actual participation may be low Representative Town Meeting: -Voters choose representatives for meetings -Board of Selectmen implements policy What are some of the differences between strong mayor-council and weak mayor-council forms of government in terms of the relative powers and responsibilities of the mayor and the council? Under which circumstances are 'strong' mayoral forms of government more common? - Answer Strong Mayor-Council: -Separation of powers (Council= legislative, Mayor= chief executive w/ VETO) -Mayor: Appoint & remove powers, Manage departments & daily operations, Agenda-setting power, Fiscal power over budget Weak Mayor-Council: -Council has legislative & exec. Authority, little mayoral power outside council -Mayor: (elected OR peer selected)Limited agenda-setting power, Limited exec. Power over city gov't, No veto -Mayor has ceremonial, figurehead role What is a Metropolitan Statistical Area (or MSA)? How metropolitan is Texas in terms of how many MSAs it has and where most of its residents live? - Answer - MSA: Core urban area of 50K people w/ adjacent counties (predominantly urban pop. w/ close ties to central city) -Metropolitan Texas: • 3 of the 10 largest U.S. cities • 24 MSAs • 4 of 30 largest MSAs in the U.S.: 4. Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington 5. Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land 24. San Antonio-New Braunfels 31. Austin-Round Rock • Future megalopolis?