Test #1 for State and Local Government

What is the General Framework of Tiebout

A model of local government based on market principles wherein a metro area is made up of a series of micropolitical jurisdictions that, on the basis of their services and costs attract or repel certain citizens

Consumer-voters

the ability to move freely between communities, the combined demand, from different communities that best match their preferences 

Local governments as producers

Consumers go to a community, the taxes and public services of that community reveal the price and product combination

Exit

leaving or contemplating leaving the jurisdiction or opting for privatized alternatives to government services - Active Destructive 

Voice

contacting officials, discussing political issue campaign work. Campaign contributions participation in neighborhood groups participation in demonstration active construction

Loyalty

voting speaking well of the community show support for the community by attending public functions Constructive Passive

Neglect

 nonvoting feeling that fighting city all has no impact distrust of city officials Passive Destructive

Traditionalistic

A political cultural that views politics and government as the means maintaining the existing social order 

Individualistic

Political culture that views politics and government as just another way to achieve this individual goals

Moralistic

Political cultures that view politics and government as the means to achieve the collective good

Texas model

Low taxes and combination individualistic/ moralistic

Laboratories of democracy

A metaphor that emphasizes the state's ability to engage in different policy experiments without interference from the federal government

Devolution

The process of taking power and responsibility away from the federal government and giving it to state and local government 

This is the power going back to the state. This started gaining traction around the 1990 and one big win for them was the states determining and dictating their own food assistance program. Another example of this would be this issue of Marijuana which is decided by the states and begins mostly as a ballot initiative. 

National functions

Defense & Foreign Policy, Currency & Economy, Citizenship

State functions

Education, Public Health, Licensing, Election

Local functions

Trash, police, firefighters, zoning, libraries 

Recall

This is a process which allows voters to remove an elected official from office before their regular term ends. This is a process which is allowed in California both locally and state wide but not allowed in Texas statewide but allowed locally. 

A way for voters to oust an incumbent politician prior to the next regularly scheduled election; they collect signatures to qualify the recall proposal for the ballot and then vote on the ouster of the politician 

Governor Gray Davis, 2023

Initiative

This is a process in which a person can propose a law and constitutional amendments. The person would write a law and or amendment and would need to get a certain amount of signatures to pass the initiative. This is a practice in the west of the nation and California participates in it but Texas does not.

Referendum

Procedure that allows the electorate to accept or reject a a law passed by the legislature

 direct public vote where citizens vote yes or no on a specific law, proposed rule or political question. Again this is a process which texas does not have however California does. In the process there must be a ⅔ vote in the senate and then a notice and then a majority of the voters.

Unitary

Nations in which legal authority is held exclusively by a central government. Ex United Kingdom

Confederal

A voluntary association of independent, sovereign states of governments Ex. The articles of Confederation- gives very little power to the federal government

Federal

A political system in which national and regional governments share powers and are considered independent equals.

Ninth Amendment

The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people

Protects rights not explicitly listed in the tex

Tenth Amendment

Any power not given to the federal government by the Constitution, nor kept from the states, belong to the states or to the people

Federalism

Supremacy clause

Located in Article 6 of the Constitution and establishes the constitution as the supreme law of the land and establishes that all federal law is supreme to any state law.

Full Faith and Credit clause

A constitutional clause that requires states to recognize each other’s public records and acts as valid

Privileges and Immunities clause

A constitutional clause that prohibits states from discriminating against citizens if other states

Thirteenth Amendment

Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction

Fourteenth Amendment

Grants US citizenship to all persons born or naturalized in the United States and guarantees them equal protection under the law.

Fifteenth Amendment

prohibits the federal government and the states from denying a citizen the right to vote based on that citizen's race, color, or previous condition of servitude

Seventeenth Amendment

established the direct popular election of U.S. senators by the voters of each state

Categorical grant

Federal grants in aid given for specific programs that leave states and localities with little discretion over how to spend the money

Block grant

Federal grants in aid given for general policy areas that leave states and localities with wide discretion over how to spend money within the designated policy area

less money, more autonomy - states would get less money then how they did in the past but could decide more how and where to use it

Revenue sharing

Nixon - would  share money with states without having string attached - didn't agree with the congress so he sent the money to the state so they can decide - has not come back as a practiced

Dual federalism

The idea that state and federal governments have separate and federal governments have separate and distinct jurisdiction and responsibilities

(1789-1933) Layer cake - represented a clear break in powers between the federal and state government

Cooperative federalism

The notion that it is impossible for state and national governments to have separate and distinct jurisdictions and that both levels of government

Marble cake - the clear separation is no longer there and the powers are merged together

Centralized federalism

 the federal government should take the leading role in setting national policy, with state and local governments helping implement the polices 

New federalism

The belief that states should receive more power and authority and less money from the federal government

Form of devolution where more power was sent back to the state with the brief that the state would know the needs of its people. Block grants which gave states money to use however they wanted became common.

No Child Left Behind

Federal law enacted in January 2002 that introduced new accountability measures for elementary and secondary schools in all states receiving federal education aid

National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius (2012)

The US supreme court upheld the bulk of the Patient and affordable care act however it was not allowed for the government to have full corrosion of the medical finding of a state because they did not agree with the expansion

Arizona v. U.S. (2012)

Affirmed federal authority over immigration law by striking down major parts oof Arizona’s restrictive SB 1070 enforcement statues

General difference and similarity: U.S. Constitution, state constitutions

The US constitution is a short cord document that grants and limits federal powers, whereas state constitutions are longer, detailed documents that restrict already powerful state governments and manage say to say local governance 

Direct democracy

A system  in which citizens make law themselves rather than relying on elected representatives

Dual constitutionalism

general term how legal rights and governess operate in the united states - national law cant violate then sates laws can not violate however state do have the power to establish local government us con supremacy however states have a lot of latitude to set up their power and the powers are listed below, state constitution are subordinate to the national gov.

Line-item veto

The power to reject a portion of a bill while leaving the rest intact. 

TX - governor can do this but it has to be a line item and on the budget

Judicial selection

The federal system appointed by the president and confirmed by the state

States choose their judge through various ways such as elections partisan and non partisan, legislative elections, governor appointment, and Missouri Plan

Missouri Plan is an independent, bipartisan commission vets applicants and dens a short list of names to the governor must pick a name from the list and after serving a term the judge runs unopposed yes/no retention election

Judicial Review

The power of courts to assess whether a law is in compliance with the constitution

Legislatures

49 states have a bicameral legislature, Nebraska is the one with a unicameral 

Texas Lieutenant Governor

Directly elected by the voters, —————— becomes governor if the governor resigns or cannot not serve or if the governor is out of state, he is also the president of the state senate, assigns committees, in Texas they run separate form the governor,

Texas Governorship

The Texas governor can run for a many terms as they please and there are a weaker from of governor, as there are several positions which are elected instead of appointed, and removal power is limited

Virginia difference - one term governorship, because of the 13 states in result to colonial scare

Regional Differences

Constitutions southern states reactions from reconstruction and tend to be longer,

western states have ballot initiatives,

New england short similar constitution to the us one filled in with interpretation of the court,

Florida Inititative

this states Initiative is different from other states as they require 60% of the voters who vote on the amendment to pass

State debt Limits

Most states have a restriction or limit on how much debt a state can acquire however Vermont has not debt restriction in their constitution most states ca not borrow to fund general purposes

Consumption taxes

Preferred for efficiency - taxed things at the store, Compare to income tax - which is harder to determine 

Complaint- people with lower income pay a higher percentage in sales tax because they spend more of their income instead of being able to save  smoking has declined in the US however it has declined among more educated people faster than the lower class which makes them double regressive 

Decline - people pay more of their services than they used to also sales over the internet can be harder to tax because the tax is different under the state, state taxes have not covered personal services and some states are adapting to that, so as people spend more on services, that can be a concern to tax consumption as well as internet sales and may and may not be able to collect Texas sales tax 

Sales tax

Taxes on alcohol, tobacco, and other similar products that are designed to raise revenues and reduce use; also known as sin taxes

Property tax

Primarily a local tax in Texas is their primary source of revenue

New Hampshire 

Only tax on dividends and do not relay on this tax instead they relay heavily on liquor tax as they (government) have a monopoly on liquor 

Also school districts depend heavily on this tax 

Political problem with equity - people with high property value will better fund their schools than other places 

Proposition 13 

California 1978 - seen as a win for the people against taxes and also became a turning point for propositions as they became more common after this 

This is a proportion that focused on capping this taxes

Progressive tax

A system of taxation in which the rate paid reflects ability to pay

Regressive

Taxes levied on all taxpayers regardless of income or ability to pay, placing proportionately more of a burden on those with lower incomes 

Fees

Auto Registration, Drivers License, Toll Roads, and Vices (Game room fees and Local eight liner fee)

Bonds

Certificates that are evidence of debts on which the issuer promises to pay the holders a specified amount of interest for specified length of time to repay the loans on their maturity 

“Sure thing” - investment does not exist you will have to pay back a loan no matter what are subject to higher interest and need to entice people to but the bonds

Tax capacity

Ability to pay - wealthier jurisdiction have a higher tax capacity and they can afford to pay more than others

Tax effort

Willingness to pay - how willing are the residents to pay the premium to live in a county

Municipal bankruptcy

Default - a local government can file for bankruptcy according to state lase however a state cannot 

States, Medicaid and Affordable Care Act

ACA expand medicaid for everyone making number and t of the poverty line and a group of states that congress could not make that a requirement and it became optional and some states accepted the expansion and some did not 

Prior to the ACA noon covered childless adults and some now cover them

Dillon’s rule

The legal principle that says local governments can exercise only the powers granted to them by the state government is the basis for why local governments are treated as creation of states. City of Clinton v Cedar Rapids

Home rule (also TX rules)

The right of a locality to self government usually granted through a charter 

Allow some cities additional lawmaking authority if they qualify, Texas allows them as long as they have a city charter, 5000 residents, and approved by the state and they can pass and laws that he states does not ban, - an example van be the panhandling rule in Beaumont which requires permit if you panhandles near a road, which requires permit if you panhandle near a road bu in Beaumont which requires

Special district

Local Governmental units created for a single purpose such as water distribution

Municipality

A political jurisdiction such as a city, village, or town incorporated under state law to provide governance to defined geographic areas; more compact and more densely populated than a county

County

A geographical subdivision of state government

Counties in Texas

All territory in a county but some territory is in a city

Unincorporated territory

Areas outside of cities, the Kranic family lived in incorporated territory in a county but not in a cities

Township

Local governments whose powers, governance structure and legal status vary considerably from state to state. In some states, ——-function as general purpose municipalities; in others they are geographical subdivisions of counties with few responsibilities and little power

Town meeting

Are an idea most practiced in the new England states functional only in small towns which include town meeting or call the formal borough of election, meet in local facilities and vote up and down on local rules

(Strong and Weak) Mayor-council system (city)

Strong Mayor - a lot of appointment and firing authority - the mayor is the chief executive and the council is the legislature and is usually seen in large cities  Houston: only city in TX

Weak mayor is the opposite and is where a mayor is only another vote on the city council 

A form of municipal governance in which there is an elected executive and an elected legislature 

Council-manager system (city)

Manager - Beaumont - roy west does have a vote however not overpower 

Frequently used in midsize cities and in Texas cities 

Appointed city manager - appointed by the city council and the mayor but they can also fire him 

Mayor is not CEO of city - the mayor is not the chief executive and the person who actually is in charge is the city manager 

A form of county governance in which the day to day administration of government is carried out by in an independently elected executive

Commission system (city)

Less common for Texas but the state let Galveston play with this after the 1900 hurricane

The commission works as a city council however each person on the council runs a part of city government and are elected by the people into each position 

But currently there are not cities in Texas using this model due to concerns of concentration of power of people being legislatures and executives and the only city still using it is Portland Oregon and Galveston stopped using it 1960s

Rural flight

The movement of youth and the  middle class from rural areas to more urban areas

White flight

less money to service the community and less property tax and other sources of revenue

A demographic trend in which the middle and upper classes leave central cities for predominantly white suburbs

Smart growth

Environmentally friendly development practices particularly those that emphasize more efficient infrastructure and less dependence on automobiles

Gentrification

The physical rehabilitation of urban ares which attracts investment from developers and drives up property values

Public choice model

A model of politics that views governments and public services in market terms; governments are seen as producers of public services and citizens are seen as consumers

Regional governance

Distinguish from the public choice model the idea that metro areas are defined communities with industries based on their clusters and these areas should coordinate there thing together and they corporate with each other such as water drought and trying to have the same rules

Sprawl

the rapid and often uncontrolled outward expansion of cities and towns into surrounding rural or undeveloped land

Single-use zoning

separate commercial and residential buildings and people would be living and working in different part of town

Low-density development

before people owned cars there was a limit of how far people could go and the population who worked there could only live so far from work which leads to more concentration in people living close compared to Houston and LA which grew after car is much more ——— and more spread out 

Leapfrog development

a reaction to low density, reacting to one thing and going a leap farther away from the center

Car-dependent living

Necessary - for low density areas 

Environmental issues: nonpoint pollution - car exhaust, runoff from pesticides, not as regulated and comes from the people

Urban growth boundary

A border established around an urban area that is intended to control the density and type of development

City-county consolidation

The merger of separate local governments in an effort to reduce bureaucratic redundancy and service  inefficiencies

Annexation

Add more land into a city and they do this so people can not benefit without paying for it and they do this more in the south and west

History of the two states (Spanish rule, Mexico, joining U.S. – similarities and differences)

The were both under Spanish rule and joined the US however Texas was reliant on being a slave state and California came in as a free state

Demographic differences – founding the two U.S. states

California has the gold rush and hollywood for its foundation and while originally there was a large mormon population they were outnumbered by the new people coming in while in texas there was only the oil boom which lead to a lot of blue collar workers coming along with traditional values

Texas centennial and the state’s image

During Texas Centennial it worked hard to rebrand itself to becoming more western than southern

Current partisan trifectas

2003 - TX - majority in the house, senate, and governorship 

2011 - Cali - democrats majority in the house, senate, and governor

California state budget

The state of cali used to have a ⅔ vote to approve the state spending budget that was removed

Term limits in the two state governments

Texas has no term limits for its state offices and California has term limits on their state offices such as Newsom is in his final term as governor

Spindletop

The largest oil boom in the 1900s

U.S. v. Paramount Pictures (1948

In is a landmark 1948 supreme court decision that ended movie studio monopolies and changed how Hollywood operated

Property taxes in Texas and California

Texas property taxes are actually higher than California property taxes due to prop 13 which was a ballot initiative and made it so property taxes are strictly limited and regulated, Property tax represent a big portion of the money of Texas revenue for local governments but not for California

Texas and sales tax

he Texas Federal government makes the most money from sales tax however this is a regressive tax