1. Chapter 22 Local Government and Politics in Texas Pearson Education, Inc. © 2006 American Government 2006 Edition (to accompany Comprehensive, Alternate, Texas, and Essentials Editions) O’Connor and Sabato

2. Pearson Education, Inc. © 2006 The Roots of Local Government in Texas  Roots emerge in colonial America  Few people lived in Texas when it was governed by Spain and then Mexico  Twenty-three large districts governed by a council, a judge, an attorney, a sheriff and a secretary  1827 Constitution of Coahuila y Tejas directed these local governments to establish schools  When the Republic of Texas formed, these districts became counties  Cities also created as municipal corporations

3. Pearson Education, Inc. © 2006 The Roots of Local Government in Texas  As a result of a nationwide municipal home rule movement, Texas adopted a constitutional amendment that allowed cities to decide their own structure, and with some limits, their powers.  Extended to counties in 1933

4. Pearson Education, Inc. © 2006 Counties  Texas Association of Counties Professional association and lobbying arm for county governments  County governments are multifunctional. PRIMARY areas of responsibility  Roads, public safety, public health, and elections In Texas, counties are both administrative arms of the state government and locally elected governmental bodies.

5. Pearson Education, Inc. © 2006 Structure of the County Government  County Commissioners Court The legislative body of a county in Texas County commissioners serve on this court.  County judge Elected official who is the chief administrative officer of county government, serves as the commissioners court, and may also have some judicial functions

6. Pearson Education, Inc. © 2006 Structure of the County Government  District attorney (DA) Elected official who prosecutes criminal cases Also called a criminal district attorney  County attorney Elected official serving as the legal officer for county government and also as a criminal prosecutor  Sheriff Serves as the chief law enforcement officer in the county

7. Pearson Education, Inc. © 2006 Structure of the County Government  County clerk Elected official who serves as the clerk for the commissioners court and for county records  District clerk Elected official who is responsible for keeping the records for the district court  County tax assessor – collector Elected official who collects taxes for the county (and perhaps other local governments)

8. Pearson Education, Inc. © 2006 Structure of the County Government  County treasurer Elected official who serves as the money manager for county government  County auditor Official appointed by a district judge to audit county finances

9. Pearson Education, Inc. © 2006 Authority of County Governments  Local Government Code The Texas statutory code containing state laws about local governments  Texas governments do not have general ordinance-making authority This is the legal right to adopt ordinances covering a wide array of subject areas, authority that cities have but counties do not Elgin Bank v. Travis County (1999)  Elections

10. Pearson Education, Inc. © 2006 Finances of County Governments  Historically counties have relied on property taxes.  In recent years, counties have increased their reliance on fee revenues. Motor vehicle registration fees are pass- through fees – they go back to the state. Other fees are left to the counties such as jury fees, breath-testing fees – many exist in the area of criminal justice.

11. Pearson Education, Inc. © 2006 Cities  Texas has 1,196 cities.  Houston, the largest, has 2 million citizens.  300 are home-rule cities.  Others are general-law cities. Cities with fewer than 5,000 residents, are governed by a general state law rather than by a locally adopted charter.

12. Pearson Education, Inc. © 2006 Forms of City Governments  Four general types of home-rule cities to choose from: Weak mayor-council Strong mayor-council Council-manager City commissioner

13. Pearson Education, Inc. © 2006 Organizational Chart: City of Waller (General Law)

14. Pearson Education, Inc. © 2006 Organizational Chart: City of White Oak (Weak Mayor)

15. Pearson Education, Inc. © 2006 Organizational Chart: Houston (Strong Mayor)

16. Pearson Education, Inc. © 2006 Organizational Chart: City of Austin (Council- Manager)

17. Pearson Education, Inc. © 2006 Authority and Functions of City Government  Cities have authority to provide services directly to citizens Sometimes through franchises to private companies  Have broad regulatory authority in areas of zoning, buildings, signs, nuisances, and subdivision development  Texas Municipal League Professional organization and lobbying arm for city government

18. Pearson Education, Inc. © 2006 Finances of City Government  Cities raise revenues from several sources Municipal sales tax, property taxes, occupation taxes, fees, state and federal revenues,and borrowing (bond sales)  Use both capital budgeting and operating budgeting as tools for long range planning and management of debt and revenue

19. Pearson Education, Inc. © 2006 Municipal Annexation  Annexation Enlargement of a city’s corporate limits by incorporating surrounding territory into the city Extraterritorial jurisdiction (ET)  The area outside a city’s boundaries over which the city may exercise limited control  Under the Municipal Annexation Act, a city may expand its municipal boundaries by an area up to 10 percent of its geographic area in any one year.

20. Pearson Education, Inc. © 2006 Municipal Annexation  In order to annex, a city must take the following steps: (1999 amendments) Develop a three-year plan for annexation, and not annex the targeted area during that three-year period. Make an inventory of the current services in the area. Provide to the annexed area all services currently provided in its full-purpose boundaries no later than two and one-half years after annexation. Require negotiations and arbitration regarding services. Conduct at least two public hearings. Not reduce level of services in the area from what they were before annexation.

21. Pearson Education, Inc. © 2006 Politics and Representation in City Governments  City council elections tend to be “at-large” or “at-large-by-place” An election system in which all positions on the council or governing body are filled by city-wide, elections, with each position designated as a seat, and candidates must choose which place to run for  Single-member districts weakened business monopoly over municipal politics in Texas

22. Pearson Education, Inc. © 2006 Politics and Representation in City Governments  Cumulative voting A method of voting in which voters have a number of votes equal to the number of seats being filled, and voters may cast their votes all for one candidate or split them among candidates in various combinations.

23. Pearson Education, Inc. © 2006 Politics and Representation in City Governments  Proportional representation A voting system that apportions legislative seats according to the percentage of the vote won by a particular political party.

24. Pearson Education, Inc. © 2006 Special Districts  Water Districts  School Districts Charter school: Public school sanctioned by a specific agreement that allows the program to operate outside the usual rules and regulations. School finance is a controversial issue in Texas.  1993 school-finance reform recaptures and redistributes school tax revenues by limiting school district revenues, capping tax rates in districts, and adjusting the state aid formula to guarantee a specified yield per tax effort for districts.

25. Pearson Education, Inc. © 2006 Special Districts in Texas