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 a particularly 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, which has a federal system of government, each state government creates and has legal control over all local governments in the state. In countries that have a unitary system of government, such as the United Kingdom, the central government creates and has legal control over local governments.
Some experts 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 more involved in their community. Other experts believe that local governments have certain weaknesses. For example, these people claim that an individual local unit cannot deal effectively with issues that require the cooperation of other local units. Such issues include homeland security, pollution, and transportation.
This article deals mainly with local governments in the United States. The last section discusses local governments in other countries.
Units of local government
There are four types of local governments in the United States. They are (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, and in Alaska, they are referred to as boroughs.
Municipalities in the United States include cities, villages, and townlike units called townships. 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. Most school districts operate independently of city governments.
Special districts are organized to provide one or more public services, such as water, sewage disposal, and transportation. The governing boards of these districts have the authority to levy taxes and to spend public money. Historically, special districts were created because cities and counties lacked the authority to deliver certain services. Local self-government called home rule resolved most of these issues, and today special districts spring up to meet a need that a city or county government cannot meet itself because of an inadequate tax base and competing demands.
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) education and community 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 garbage collection, hospital services, local roads, and safe drinking water. In addition, they conduct inspections and educational campaigns in the areas of fire prevention, health, housing, sanitation, and traffic safety. They are also concerned with reducing air and water pollution.
Education and community welfare functions.
Local governments provide libraries, museums, parks, public education, recreational facilities, and 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 another important responsibility of local governments.
Housekeeping functions
are administrative activities. An important housekeeping function of local governments is keeping official records of births, deaths, marriages, and property transfers and assessments. Local governments also collect taxes, issue business licenses, and administer elections.
Relations with higher levels of government
Government in the United States operates on three levels—national, state, and local. The Constitution of the United States grants certain powers to the federal and state governments. State legislatures, unless restricted by their state constitutions, have complete control over local governments. The states may specify what activities local governments can undertake, as well as the kinds of taxes and tax rates they can collect. Most states allow local governments to decide their own form of organization and to have considerable freedom in local matters.
All three levels of government have increased their activities to deal with the problems of society. As a result, they share authority and responsibility in such matters as education, finance, and welfare. Many local governments get financial assistance called grants-in-aid from state governments to help pay for local government functions. Local governments—especially those of big cities—have also become increasingly dependent on federal aid. They receive federal grants directly or through payments transferred from their state government. In most cases, federal aid is provided only if local governments follow state or federal requirements.
Since the 1980’s, state and local governments have become more important in delivering services as the federal government has cut its own programs. This trend is known as devolution. It is based on the belief that a smaller federal government is more desirable, and the level of government best suited for carrying out most functions is the one closest to the citizens.
Issues confronting local governments
Local governments in the United States face many problems in trying to provide services for their residents. Many of these problems stem from population changes, financial difficulties, and conflicts in authority.
Population changes
have affected local governments in the United States throughout its history. The movement of people from rural to urban areas is called urbanization. When the first census of the United States was taken in 1790, only 5 percent of Americans lived in cities. In 1920, about 50 percent of Americans resided in cities. The 2010 census showed that 81 percent of Americans lived in urban areas. As populations have grown, demands for services have increased.
Especially during the 1900’s, American cities were confronted with suburbanization, the movement of people from the city to areas outside it. Businesses and families moved from cities to suburbs, which reduced jobs and economic opportunities in the cities.
The urbanization of minority groups also affected local governments. In 1910, only about 25 percent of African Americans lived in urban areas. Today, about 85 percent of them do. Social and economic pressure forces millions of African Americans and members of other minority groups to live in crowded, decaying neighborhoods called ghettos. Racial conflicts in cities have presented difficult problems for local governments. Through the years, many African American communities have had to deal with challenges stemming from inferior schools, limited economic opportunities, and unfair treatment by police officers. Local governments of major cities today also face the needs of growing Hispanic and Asian American populations.
Local governments also have been affected by a regional population shift. Cities in the South and West have grown in population, while cities in the Northeast have declined. Local governments in such rapidly growing cities as Phoenix and Las Vegas struggle to provide transportation, water, and other services to their expanding populations. Older cities, such as Baltimore and Detroit, face problems of declining populations and weakening economic opportunities. Local governments in older cities also must repair or replace deteriorating bridges, roads, school buildings, and other facilities, often called the infrastructure. Local governments are also struggling with how to deal with an aging population as the large number of baby boomers—that is, people born from 1946 to 1964—reach retirement age.
Financial difficulties.
Traditionally, the major source of revenue for local governments has been property taxes. Local governments collect these taxes from homeowners, businesses, and other owners of taxable property. The amount of tax is based on the property’s estimated value. Many people object to property taxes. They point out that standards for assessing (determining the value of) property vary from city to city and from one assessor to another. Many also believe that property ownership is a poor measure of the ability to pay taxes. Additionally, since the late 1900’s, the value of property in some areas has increased so significantly that long-time homeowners have been forced to sell their homes because they could not afford to pay the taxes on them.
All municipalities have become more dependent on grants from the state and federal governments. Meanwhile, the federal government has continued to cut services and require states to take on unfunded mandates—that is, increased responsibilities but decreased financial support. States, in turn, pass these unfunded mandates along to local governments. Some local governments have financial troubles despite aid from the higher levels of government. A few cities, including Cleveland and New York City, have come close to bankruptcy. Such financial problems are more severe in Northern cities that have lost many people and businesses to other regions of the country.
Conflicts in authority.
Almost every metropolitan area has a bewildering variety of local governments. The Chicago area has about 1,400 local governments. Philadelphia has about 875, and Houston has about 800. No single local government may have sufficient power to solve certain problems, and the different authorities with overlapping jurisdictions may find it difficult to work with one another.
Many experts on government believe that small, ineffective local units should be consolidated (combined) into larger, more efficient ones. At one time, cities solved part of this problem by annexing (attaching) surrounding areas as the cities grew. But today, most large cities are surrounded by incorporated suburbs that the central city government could not annex.
In some areas, citizens have tried to bring the central city and the suburbs under the authority of one government. Such a metropolitan government may be responsible for mass transportation, police protection, water supply, and other services that might be handled best by an areawide authority. The urban areas of Miami and Jacksonville, Florida, and Nashville, Tennessee, have metropolitan governments. However, most U.S. voters have rejected such consolidation proposals because they fear higher taxes and believe that only small local governments can remain close to the people.
Some minority groups have demanded decentralization (splitting up) of authority to give neighborhood residents a greater say in controlling their own affairs and providing community services. In addition, wealthier suburbs often fight consolidation for fear that their resources will have to be evenly distributed among the new, larger jurisdiction, which may contain neighborhoods and schools with fewer resources.
Local government in other countries
Local government takes various forms in different countries. The degree of local authority and independence also varies from nation to nation. In some countries, governmental authority has been decentralized so that many important decisions are made at the local level. In other countries, authority is centralized in the national government. Most countries have either a federal or a unitary system of government.
Federal systems
divide the powers of government between the national government and the state or provincial governments. In most cases, the powers are set forth in a constitution. Although the state and provincial governments have legal control over local governments, they may give some authority to local units. Australia, Canada, Switzerland, and the United States have federal systems of government. Local governments usually have more authority under federal systems than they have under unitary systems.
Unitary systems
give most of the chief powers to the central government. All local, state, and provincial governments are subject to control by the central government. They have only those powers that the central government gives them. France, Norway, Sweden, and the United Kingdom have unitary systems. In these countries, local areas have a considerable amount of self-government, though they are under the central government’s control. Local areas have broad taxing powers and much authority for providing education, housing, and transportation.
Japan also has a unitary system of government. Local government in Japan is responsible for the same range of services—including police protection, sanitation, and transportation—that local governments in the United States are. But, as in most unitary systems, the central government of Japan exercises much tighter control over the activities of local governments.
Most Communist countries and former Communist countries have had unitary systems. In these countries, decision making has traditionally been highly centralized at the national level. Local governments have operated almost completely according to the requirements of the central government. In Vietnam, local government officials must follow Communist Party policies. The Communist Party chooses—and the people elect—the officials of the lower levels of local government. The lower level officials elect the members of the higher levels of local government.
Local governments in less developed countries
face especially severe problems. In most poor countries, rapidly increasing populations and limited economic opportunities in rural areas drive people to cities. Thus, urban populations swell rapidly. This condition is sometimes called hyperurbanization.
In the United States, the poorest neighborhoods are usually in the center of the city. But in less developed countries, the poorest areas lie on the edges of the city. These vast areas of poverty present special problems for local governments. Sanitation is often nonexistent, schooling is limited, transportation is poor, and such services as police and fire protection are scarce. Even so, people from rural areas continue to come to the city, believing that economic opportunities are better there. These migrations swell urban populations, straining local governments that already lack the resources to care for their people.
