9780130260062

Lorch's accessible and entertaining sixth edition offers comprehensive, concise and accurate coverage of state and local government systems.Examines the fundamental elements shared by all local and state governments. Offers an in-depth look at the division of power, the mechanics of the electoral system and state constitutions. Examines the party system, pressure groups, civil servants' roles and agency functions. Identifies the role and responsibilities of the governor, the legislature and the courts.Anyone interested in understanding the details of state and local government including those with political aspirations and those seeking greater involvement in the governing process.

Preface

ix

Looking at States and Localities

1

(10)

Out of Sight, Out of Mind

1

(3)

Are the States Alike?

4

(3)

Why Study State and Local Government?

7

(3)

Key Terms

10

(1)

Discussion Topics

10

(1)

Suggestions for Further Reading

10

(1)

State Constitutions

11

(10)

Similarities Among State Constitutions

11

(2)

The Amendment Process

13

(3)

Length of Constitutions

16

(1)

Revision of Constitutions

16

(3)

Content of Amendments

19

(1)

Key Terms

20

(1)

Discussion Topics

20

(1)

Suggestions for Further Reading

20

(1)

Federalism

21

(28)

Dual Sovereignty

21

(4)

Constitutional Avenues for the Rise of Federal Power

25

(3)

Cooperative Federalism

28

(4)

A Shifting Balance of Federalism

32

(7)

Does Federalism Still Have A Useful Function?

39

(2)

Admission of States to the Union

41

(1)

National Obligations to the States

42

(1)

Obligations of States to the Nation

43

(1)

Interstate Relations

44

(3)

Key Terms

47

(1)

Discussion Topics

48

(1)

Suggestions for Further Reading

48

(1)

Election Machinery

49

(27)

The System Dictates the Outcome

49

(1)

Control of Elections

49

(3)

Who May Vote

52

(4)

Blacks and the Election System: A Case Study

56

(3)

Nonracial Discriminations

59

(1)

Who Votes? Nonvoting in America

60

(1)

Does Democracy Work?

61

(2)

Other Forms of Political Participation

63

(1)

Nominations

63

(5)

The General Election

68

(2)

Nonpartisan Elections

70

(1)

Referendum and Initiative Elections

71

(2)

Recall Elections

73

(1)

Key Terms

74

(1)

Discussion Topics

74

(1)

Suggestions for Further Reading

75

(1)

Parties, Pressure Groups, and Elites

76

(32)

Party Functions

76

(1)

The Two-Party System

77

(4)

Party Organization

81

(7)

Campaigns

88

(3)

Campaign Finance

91

(4)

Two-and One-Party States

95

(1)

Elites

96

(6)

Pressure Groups

102

(1)

Ethnic Politics

103

(2)

Lobbying

105

(1)

Election Fraud

105

(1)

Key Terms

106

(1)

Discussion Topics

106

(1)

Suggestions for Further Reading

107

(1)

The Governor

108

(32)

Joys and Sorrows of Being Governor

108

(1)

Governorship as an Institution

109

(1)

Some Advice for New Governors

110

(3)

Who Becomes Governor

113

(1)

People Who Work in the Governor's Office

113

(6)

The War Against Governors

119

(1)

The Governor's Appointment Power

119

(4)

The Governor as Legislator

123

(1)

The Governor's Ability to Influence Public Opinion

123

(3)

The Governor's Power to Call Special Sessions

126

(1)

The Governor as Party Leader

126

(1)

The Veto Power

127

(2)

The Governor's Term as a Power

129

(1)

The Governor's Budgetary Power

130

(2)

What Is a ``Power''?

132

(1)

How Strong Should Governors Be?

133

(2)

The Lieutenant Governor

135

(3)

Key Terms

138

(1)

Discussion Topics

138

(1)

Suggestions for Further Reading

138

(2)

The Legislature

140

(50)

The Triumph of Legislative Power

140

(1)

Decline

141

(1)

Democratization

141

(1)

Corruption

141

(1)

Reform

142

(1)

What a Legislature Does Besides Make Laws

143

(2)

Sessions

145

(1)

Limitations on Legislative Power

146

(2)

Bicameralism

148

(3)

Size of the Legislature

151

(2)

Terms and Turnover

153

(3)

Compensation

156

(1)

Is the Legislature Representative?

157

(1)

Theories of Representation

158

(2)

Apportionment and Reapportionment

160

(8)

Services to Legislators

168

(7)

Standing Committees

175

(3)

Speaker and President Pro Tem

178

(1)

Other Officers

178

(1)

Decay of Legislative Leadership

178

(2)

How to Kill a Bill

180

(7)

Key Terms

187

(1)

Discussion Topics

188

(1)

Suggestions for Further Reading

188

(2)

Courts and Law

190

(37)

General Organization of the Court System

189

(1)

Local Courts

190

(1)

Trial and Appeals Courts of General Jurisdiction

191

(2)

Specialization of Courts and Judges

193

(1)

Some Specialized Courts

193

(5)

Administrative Tribunals

198

(1)

The Relationship of Federal and State Court

199

(2)

Judges

201

(4)

Juries

205

(3)

Common Law

208

(4)

Statutory Law

212

(3)

Criminal Procedure

215

(4)

Civil Procedure

219

(1)

Court Reform

220

(1)

The Ombudsman

221

(1)

Tort Liability of Governments

222

(2)

Barriers to Justice

224

(1)

Key Terms

225

(1)

Discussion Topics

225

(1)

Suggestions for Further Reading

225

(2)

Counties, Towns, Townships, Special Districts and Indian Reservations

227

(40)

Local Government in General

227

(6)

Counties

233

(13)

County Services

246

(5)

The New England Town

251

(2)

Townships

253

(2)

Special Districts

255

(4)

Open-Records Acts and Privacy Laws

259

(1)

Open-Meetings Laws

260

(1)

Indian Reservations

261

(4)

Key Terms

265

(1)

Discussion Topics

266

(1)

Suggestions for Further Reading

266

(1)

Cities and Metropolitan Areas

267

(38)

Municipal Corporations

267

(2)

City Charters

269

(2)

Forms of City Government

271

(4)

Mayors

275

(5)

City Councils

280

(3)

Elections

283

(5)

Rural Government

288

(3)

Metropolitan Government

291

(7)

Three Cities

298

(5)

Key Terms

303

(1)

Discussion Topics

304

(1)

Suggestions for Further Reading

304

(1)

Money Matters

305

(32)

The Budget

305

(6)

The Fiscal Year

311

(1)

Appropriations

312

(1)

Auditing

313

(3)

Expenditures

316

(6)

Revenue and Taxation

322

(13)

Key Terms

335

(1)

Discussion Topics

335

(1)

Suggestions for Further Reading

336

(1)

Civil Servants

337

(35)

How Many and How Hired?

337

(1)

The Merit System

338

(10)

Public-Service Unionism

348

(6)

Privatization of Public Services

354

(3)

Our Ruling Servants: Bureaucrats as Judges and Legislators

357

(5)

Courts within the Administration

362

(2)

Governmental Corruption

364

(4)

Ethics in the Public Service

368

(2)

Key Terms

370

(1)

Discussion Topics

370

(1)

Suggestions for Further Reading

371

(1)

Agencies, Functions, and Policy Issues

372

(38)

The Bureaucracy

372

(2)

The Politics of Organization

374

(1)

The Attempt to Reorganize

375

(1)

What Does the Bureaucracy Do?

376

(1)

Regulation of Commerce

377

(2)

Agriculture

379

(3)

Transportation

382

(1)

Labor

383

(1)

Public Schools

384

(5)

Colleges and Universities

389

(1)

The State Library

390

(1)

Health

391

(1)

Welfare

392

(1)

Federal Welfare Programs

393

(1)

Joint Federal-State (or Federal-Local) Welfare Programs

394

(5)

State and/or Local Welfare and Charity Programs

399

(1)

Environmental Protection

400

(3)

Corrections

403

(2)

Police

405

(2)

Fire Protection and Emergency Help

407

(1)

The Militia

407

(1)

State Police and Highway Patrols

408

(1)

Key Terms

408

(1)

Discussion Topics

409

(1)

Suggestions for Further Reading

409

(1)

Epilog

410

(2)

Appendix I Selected Journals and Yearbooks

412

(2)

Appendix II Some Basic State and Local Government Websites

414

(5)

Glossary

419

(16)

Index

435

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Preface"Cover the subject, but don't give us an encyclopedia." "Don't make it too long: we plan to use some supplementary reading." "Give us about three-fourths state and one-fourth local." "Above all, write a book that will hold the interest of the students, especially students enrolled in their first political science course, who may never take another." Those are some of the things I have been told by numerous teachers of state and local government. This book is an attempt to respond.From my point of view, the nicest thing anyone could say about this book is that it is accurate, that it is lucid, that it broadly covers the subject, and that (in places at least) it is fun to read. I know perfectly well that many will be forced to read this book at gunpoint, will read it because they have to--because it is assigned. Rest assured, you are with me in every paragraph. I understand you. I was a college student for eight years.It's not easy to study state and local government, or to teach the subject. The 50 states vary so much that professors have difficulty saying anything definite that applies to them all. Yet the states do have many fundamentals in common. In a sense our states are like a pack of dogs (pardon the comparison). They all have four legs, two eyes, one tail, and a nose. Yet they have great differences. The bull terrier's tail is different from the foxhound's, and the doberman's legs aren't like the chow chow's.And America's 87,000 local governments have lots in common, too, despite their differences. But in writing this book I often had to say "often"; frequently had to say "frequently"; commonly had to say "commonly." After hundreds of pages the sight of one of those fuzzy words was painful. I ached for something concrete and universal. But in the study of state and local government, nothing is as lonesome as a concrete universal truth.All purported conversations in this book, though entirely fictional, are based on actual conversations or on data acquired in other ways. They are simply a less formal way of presenting information. Any resemblance to persons living or dead is entirely coincidental.The English language has no singular third-person personal pronoun that is both masculine, and feminine. To correct this unfortunate circumstance we have used "he or she" rather than just "he," "his or hers" rather than just "his," and so on, except in passages where repeated use of double pronouns would impede the flow of language.If any person reading this book is moved to communicate with me about it, please do so. I want to know what you like or don't like about the book. Future editions may reflect your observations. Your communication will be gratefully received and answered if possible. You may write to me at the Department of Political Science, University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, CO 80933-7150. Or better yet, send me an E-mail: rlorch@mail.uccs.edu . At least those are mypresentaddresses. You may also contact me through Prentice Hall.Certainly I would not want to lay responsibility on anyone but myself for these pages, but I must acknowledge with gratitude the numerous helpful criticisms made by Steven D. Williams, Tennessee Technological University; Marty Wiseman, Mississippi State University; Joseph R Marbach, Seton Hall University; and Thad Beyle, University of North Carolina. Robert S. Lorch

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State and Local Politics The Great Entanglement

State and Local Politics The Great Entanglement

0130260061

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