Local Government 1.Cities, Counties, Towns, Townships 2.Supremacy Clause: Laws passed by local governments can’t contradict state or federal laws. 3.County Governments – NC has 100 counties.  Each county has a County Board of Commissioners 1. Serve as executive and legislative branches 2. Elected for two 4-year terms 3. Administer state-wide programs. Every county in NC is governed this way.

4.Other elected officials –Sheriff - chief law enforcement for county – School Board - council for local school districts –*County Clerk/Register of Deeds - Keeps records for county (Marriages, births, deaths) –Counties can zone or redistrict uses of land.

5. City and Town Governments State must grant a charter (plan of government) to a city or town. Charter is issued by the General Assembly The City or Town is then incorporated and can pass laws, buy land, and sign contracts. Annexation is the means by which a city can extend its land. Ordinances are laws passed by local governments.

6. Two types of city governments Mayor – Council Plan - Council elected to perform - Mayor elected to perform 1. Strong-Mayor Plan - Mayor appoints department heads 2. Weak Mayor Plan - Council appoints heads

7. Council – Manager Plan * Council - to perform legislative duties – Council appoints the manager * Manager - for executive duties * Chief of Police - to run Police Department

8. Other Forms of Local Governments: Township - a subdivision of a county Municipality - includes cities, villages, and boroughs Metropolis - A group of municipalities that function together. Example: Charlotte and its surrounding towns.

9. State Agencies: State Agencies are part of the executive branch. They address special areas of the government. Agency Head can be either be appointed by the governor, or elected. N.C. Department of Health and Human Services - Largest Agency (Child development, mental health, social services)

10. Agencies: Department of Parks and Recreation - maintains NC Parks Department of Transportation - DOT, regulates ferries, buses, roads, driver licenses

11. Funding *Like most states, N.C. has to have a Balanced Budget to prevent from going bankrupt (like California has). *Therefore, state and local government must have taxes to raise revenue.

Income Tax - Tax that people pay based on their annual income. This is a primary source of revenue for the federal government. Corporate Tax - Tax that requires companies to pay a portion of their yearly profits. Sales Tax - What everyone must pay when they buy goods, such as clothing. This is a percentage (7.5%) of the total price of the goods. Excise Tax - Tax placed on “non- essential” goods like cigarettes and alcohol

Local governments charge a Property Tax which is a tax on land someone owns or lives on. This is the primary source of income for local governments. When government takes in more money than it spends, it has a surplus. When government is spending more money than it takes in it has a deficit. What a government spends money on is called its expenditures.

Progressive Tax: When people with more money are charged more in taxes. Regressive Tax: When people who make less money are taxed more than or equal to those who make more. One of the taxes above is a regressive tax. This is the sales tax.