Local Government

Local government generally refers to the government of an

area smaller than a country, state, or province. Such areas include

counties, cities, towns, and villages. Each unit of local

government has some important responsibility for the welfare of

its citizens and provides certain services. Most local governments

are run by elected officials and have some power of taxation. In

the United States, each state government creates and has legal

control over all local governments in the state.

Traditionally, Americans have strongly supported the

principle of local self-government. Some scholars argue that

small local governments are more responsive to citizens' wishes

than are large units of government. They also feel that local

governments encourage people to become involved in the life of

their community. Other scholars believe that local governments

have certain weaknesses. For example, they claim that an

individual local unit often cannot deal effectively with such

problems as transportation and pollution when they require the

cooperation of other local units in the area.

Units of local government. The United States has about

87,000 units of local government. There are four types of local

governments: (1) counties, (2) municipalities, (3) school districts,

and (4) special districts.

The county is the largest unit of local government in most

states. The United States has about 3,000 counties. In Louisiana,

these units are called parishes.

There are about 19,000 municipalities in the United States,

including cities, villages, and townlike units called boroughs. They

lie within each county or extend into two or more counties.

Municipalities, often called city governments, are chartered by

state governments to provide such services as police and fire

protection.

School districts are responsible for running public school

systems. There are about 15,000 school districts in the United

States. Most school districts operate independently of city

governments. The city governments of New York City and a few

other communities in the Northeast operate their own public

school systems.

Special districts are organized to provide one or more public

services, such as mosquito control or transportation. There are

about 33,000 special districts in the United States. The governing

boards of these districts have the authority to levy taxes and to

spend public money.

Functions of local government. Most of the activities of local

government in the United States can be classified into three main

groups: (1) health and safety functions, (2) welfare functions, and

(3) housekeeping functions.

Health and safety functions of local government in the United

States began with law enforcement by local police forces and

through local courts. Today, most local governments also have

responsibility for fighting fires, immunizing people against

contagious diseases, and providing and maintaining hospital

services, local roads, garbage collection, and safe drinking water.

In addition, they conduct inspections and educational campaigns

in the areas of health, housing, traffic safety, sanitation, and fire

prevention. They are also concerned with reducing air pollution

and water pollution.

Welfare functions. Early in U.S. history, local governments

began to provide public education. Today, they spend more

money on education than on any other function. Local

governments also provide libraries, museums, parks and other

recreational and athletic facilities, and buses and subways for mass

transportation. They cooperate with other levels of government in

providing public housing for low-income families. Many local

governments have zoning restrictions to protect and promote the

beauty and land values in their area. Many also try to stimulate

economic growth by attracting business and industry to their area.

Providing health, safety, and welfare services is an important

part of the American political process. Such questions as how

much to spend for schools or whether to allow a factory to be built

in a certain part of the city often cause conflicts among citizens

and groups.

Housekeeping functions are administrative activities. They are

essential to the function of a governmental unit but are not part of

its main activities. One housekeeping function is keeping official

records of births, deaths, marriages, and property transfers and

assessments. Local governments also collect taxes, hire public

agency workers, and administer elections.

Дата добавления: 2015-10-16