American Government State and Local Government Chapters 24/25 In Brief

Why is this important? Small groups or individuals have more influence Elected officials are more accessible Elected officials represent fewer constituents Elected officials are regular members of the community

Services Public Safety Fire, Police, Building Codes Education Meridian School District After school programs Largest State Budget Item Recreation Parks, Greenbelt, Transportation Busses, Subway

Revenue Streams Taxes Sin Tax, Income Tax, Property Tax Fees Vehicle Licensing, Business Licenses, Levies Special Taxes on certain things like media, property or can be used as debt payment Donations Governors Mansion, Land Donations Etc… Bonds Municipal Bond (Tax free returns) Lottery Bond (European)

Idaho Breakdown Idaho gets revenue from these areas: Property Taxes % General Sales Tax % Selective Sales Taxes - 8.9% Individual Income Taxes % Corporate Income Taxes - 3.9% Licenses and OtherTaxes - 7.3%

Leadership Governor- Butch Otter (R) Lieutenant Governor-Brad Little (R) State Senate 28 Republicans, 7 Democrats State House of Representatives 56 Republicans, 14 Democrats

Local Leadership Mayor of Meridian- Tammy de Weerd Mayor of Boise- David H. Bieter City Council Elected officials that act as a legislative body for the city Ada County Commissioners Board of Commissioners Vern Bisterfeldt (D-3), Sharon M. Ullman (D-1), Rick Yzaguirre (D-2)

JFAC Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee Controls the budget for the state of Idaho Made up of members of the House and Senate 20 Members 10 From each body

Initiative a process in which voters sign a petition, in order to get a proposal on the ballot.

Referendum A process by which a legislative bill is referred to the voters for final approval. A form of Direct Democracy Voters vote directly on an issue

Recall A process to remove a public official from office Very rare for a governor to be recalled

City Government Systems Mayor/Council System- Both Mayor and Council members are elected Mayor handles executive duties Council handles legislative duties Council/Manager System- Council is elected and appoints a professional manager Council wields much power Commission System- One commissioner is designated Mayor All have fairly equal responsibilities in different arenas

Native Americans Native Americans have sovereign rights in Idaho and other states State laws apply but are regulated by Tribal Commissions Native Americans have their own police on the reservations Receive additional funding for their schools