Equality Before the Law Chapter 5 Page 109-127

Local Government The purpose of government is to: 1. Protect the citizens 2. Provide an organized, safe, and fair society To do that, our government is a federalism- Government is divided at levels Federal- State- Local- All based on democratic system-

Local Gov’t cont. Smallest unit Divided into Municipalities, school districts, townships, counties, and agency districts Municipalities- towns and villages 536 municipalities Classified according to their populations (chart on page 110) Governed in 3 ways 1. mayor/council- 2. commissioner 3. council-manager Provide city with- police, fire department, street repair, street construction, water service, sewer service, libraries, parks and recreation

Local Government cont. School districts Counties and townships As of 1997- 656 school districts Use to be as high as 7,264 Why are there less? Counties and townships Nebraska has 93 counties Board of commissioners governs counties Some counties are further divided into townships County positions Assessor, attorney, clerk, sheriff, treasurer Jobs- to maintain roads, record keeping, supervise elections, collect taxes

Local Government cont. Special Districts Created for a limited purpose Airports, hospitals, irrigation, rural cemeteries Unique to Nebraska Public Power Districts- most states have private owned power companies, Nebraska are owned by the state 4 largest are- Loup River, Central Nebraska, Nebraska Public Power, and Omaha Public Power Most money to finance local government comes from real estate taxes

State Government Voting Nebraska only state to have unicameral system Must be a citizen of US 18 years old A resident of Nebraska Registered to vote Not convicted of a felony or treason Nebraska only state to have unicameral system State capitol holds The legislature The supreme court Government offices

State Government Statehood March 1st, 1867 Set up constitution- set of laws and rights, usually in written form, for a government Has been changed and amended- 180+ amendments passed Constitution set up 3 branches 1 2 3 Legislative Branch- Executive Branch- Judicial Branch-

State Government Legislative Article III set it up 49 senators in state legislator Senators are non-partisan- 4 year terms with half up every two years Criteria to be Senator US citizen Registered voter At least 21 years old Resident of district they are selected from Odd years, legislature meets 90 days Even number days legislature meets 60 days How a bill becomes a law page 118

State Government Legislature Makes laws Biggest duty is to pass a budget State money includes: state sales tax, income taxes, liquor and cigarette sales, motor fuel taxes, hunting and fishing licenses, tuition at state colleges, federal funds, etc. Lieutenant governor guides day to day operations 14 committees Initiate- Referendum- Recall-

State Government Executive Branch Governor is head of the executive branch Carries out the laws May serve 2, 4 year terms Lives in the Governor’s mansion Must be Citizen of US Resident of Nebraska for 5 years At least 30 years old Duties- page 122 Duties of different positions- page 123

State Government Judicial Branch- our system of state courts Interpret the laws Courts at county, district, and state level Each county has a court District courts- 12 districts Handle more serious cases Court of Appeals Hears cases from lower courts where they appeal the decision Supreme Court Highest court in Nebraska 7 members, leader is the chief justice To be a supreme court judge- 30 years old, resident of Nebraska for 3 year, and a citizen

Federal Government All laws and practices of Nebraska must follow the US constitution Federal govt is located in Washington D.C. Nebraska sends two Senators to Washington and 3 representatives To be a Senator you have to be: 30 years old, citizen for 9 years, and you serve a 6 year term To be a Representative you have to be: 25 years old, citizen for 7 years, and you serve 2 year terms Our representatives is decided by population and Nebraska gets 3

Federal Government Also divided into 3 branches Executive- enforce the laws, lead by president Judicial- interpret the laws, lead by Supreme Court Executive- make the laws- congressmen It is important to be an informed decision and make good decisions at the local, state, and federal levels.