By Dr. David Childs, Ph.D.
Northern Kentucky University
Function of Local Government
When we think about civics and the democratic process, we may primarily think about government at the state or even national level. However, much of the day to day managing of resources and infrastructure that impact our daily lives are carried out by our local town, city and county governments. If it were not for a well-organized local government structure many of the modern conveniences we enjoy on a regular basis would not be available. What are the primary functions of the local government? What is the structure of our local city and county governments? This article will answer some of those fundamental questions and will also hone in on the Hamilton County and Cincinnati governmental structure and give a basic overview of leadership roles in the city. We will also provide some resources and lesson plans for teachers to use to help students understand local political structures and perhaps help them be more involved in the process. We will begin by discussing the function of local government and discussing the division of labor and responsibilities of those in various leadership positions.
County Governments
County governments oversee a large geographical region and encompasses cities and towns, but are smaller than states. Counties are created by state governments and generally operate under the provisions set forth by the state constitution. In this way, county governments are administrative units of the state. According to the 2012 Census there are just over three thousand counties in the United States. County systems usually take one of three basic forms: the commission system, the council-administrator system, and the council-elected executive system. The most common form of the three, is the commission system. Hamilton County in Ohio is run as a commission system. Under this structure, a small number of commissioners are elected to serve as the governing body within the county. The commissioners perform all legislative and executive functions, which might include holding authority for government taxing, budgeting, appropriating, and purchasing. They also hold title to county property. In Hamilton County there are three county commissioners. There are also eight other elected officials in Hamilton County that possess executive authority for their offices; these include the judiciary, and several independent commissions.
City and Municipal Governments
City and Municipal Governments manage the day to day operations and functions of cities and towns. For example, cities provide things like clean water, sewage and garbage disposal. They also maintain city facilities, such as parks, streetlights, and stadiums. Furthermore, they address zoning and building regulations, promote the city’s economic development, and provide law enforcement, public transportation, and fire protection. Cities and municipal governments are typically funded by property, sales and business taxes. Revenue also comes from fees from trash collection and the provision of water and sewer services. According to the 2012 Census there are just over 19,500 municipal governments and nearly 16,500 township governments in the United States. There are two primary types of municipal governing models: a mayor-council system or a council-manager system.
The city of Cincinnati operates under a mayor-council system. Under the mayor council-system both the mayor and members of the city council are elected by voters. The mayor is generally responsible for executive functions while the city council takes care of the legislative responsibilities. In Cincinnati city council members and mayors serve for four year terms. Furthermore, the City Manager works on behalf of the mayor and city council and is responsible for the day to day operations of the city.
In order for citizens to become more involved in the democratic process they must be educated on how the system works. Below are some resources and lesson plans that can help shed more light on the functions of local government that might perhaps help students and average citizens become more involved.
Resources and Lesson Plans
iCivics- State and Local Government- Middle/High School
Local Government- Middle School Lessons
Local Government- High School Lessons
Civic Action- High School Lesson Plan
Local Election Scrapbook Lesson Plan- High School
Role of City Government
The Responsibilities of Local Government
Local Government Lesson Plan
Resources
Hamilton, County Ohio
Hamilton County Board of Commissions
Cincinnati Politics
List of mayors of Cincinnati
Cincinnati City Council
References
City of Cincinnati Official Page
Cincinnati City Manager’s Office
County and City Government
Classroom Resource on How Local Governments Function
After reading this article I have noticed that we do not really talk about the local government and their direct impact on our daily lives. Most people only care about the national government voting, but those are wide scale and you will never really see any change in your direct town/city living. Voting for your local bills to pass is more important because it directly effects you as a person. Most student do not even know they have a local government also.
When I hear the word government I first think of President’s, the White House and etc. Even though I do not know much of the nation’s government, I do know more about it than the state and or local government. On the news even I hear more about the nation that what is going in my neck of the woods, as they would say. I think students should be educated more about what is happening to them through the local and state governments. I sure think it would be very helpful to be educated about the government that is happening in our city and state.
Getting into the different types of government and what each is responsible should be taught more in schools. Talking about local government and the impact it can have on you and the community is important. There is so much time spent looking at national and state government that it can be overlooked and spent little or no time on.
It’s a shame to me how the government runs, rather than working together to solve issues they form aliases in the country’s government. These aliases become the focus of the media after a while you fail to see all those things going on behind the scenes in our own local government. I think we need to push education of the local government. The cool thing about teaching local government is you could show the students people active in the local government like the mayor. This might not be as feasible with the president for example. I think a fun way to teach students about local government is also by having students run for mayor and present classroom problems to the candidates.
When I think back to what I learned about government, I really only remember the things that I learned about the national and state government. Local government is not something that is stressed enough in the civics curriculum even though form most students, this is the type of government that they are exposed to most often. Prior to reading this article, I did not know about the three basic forms of local government. This article really opened my eyes to the importance of local government and how it should be taught in the social studies curriculum.
Prior to reading this article, I had never thought much about local government. It is something I have never been properly educated on and never even really considered. After reading this short article, I already understand so much more about local governments and their importance. The last paragraph explains that for citizens to become more involved, they must be educated. This is true for many things in life and is why I believe teaching is so important. I hope in my classroom I have the knowledge and opportunity to share information about local governments to help my students become more involved in the community in their futures.
After reading this article, I realized more than ever before how little I actually learned in school about these topics and I am realizing how important they are and that they should be taught. As a future educator I really want to be able to teach my students about not only the national and state governments but the type of government that goes on around us every day. We teach the kids the importance of voting for the national issues but I feel that we should start to talk about local as well so students can see how these affect our lives even more directly to show its importance.
I did not realize how little schools did not focus on local government but when I think about it I did not know much until High school level school. We focus students on the big picture and the big government, but not local. If students could know and get involved more with local governments their voices could be heard and could feel more connected. Depending on the area, this could make a big difference in their communities.
In schools, we hardly ever spend time on local government, which is a shame considering that they control so much of our everyday life. I think that it is easier to educate students on a federal level and to an extent a state level because the policies that are being made at these levels are often social wedge policies, and students are already informed and have an opinion on them, even if their opinion is simply due to socialization. Examples of these social wedge policies include abortion, LBGTQ+ rights, and legalization of marijuana. These subjects are easy to discus in schools, and track how they flow through the legislation process. Students often find these social wedge issues exciting and want to debate them, they don’t find local decisions as exciting because there isn’t a major debate and excitement surrounding them. Despite the excitement of students it is important that we educate them on local government because it often has more impact on students. Federal government often deals in the abstract, and only effects a small percentage of individuals in a community, local government focuses on the practical day to day issues, and impacts everyone in a community.
Being someone who has never really been informed of the local government and all the roles that are played in that part of government, this article caught my attention. I have only really every kept up with national government and have always felt uninformed, especially when voting for these people to represent my state, county, city. Therefore these resources are a tremendous help to becoming more knowledgeable in this realm of government. I live in Kentucky and with all the change in the education system and votes happening for and against teacher pension, among various other causes, I believe understanding these roles and how to be involved in my community and government in this way can only help the cause that current and future teachers are standing up for. This aspect also brings relevant information and experiences into the classroom in order to engage students with what is happening in their community; while determining what they want their individual roles to be as a student in thinking about the government.