1. 1 Presented by: Victor K. Tervala, Esq. 410-396-3293 victor.tervala@baltimorecity.gov October 17, 2013 Solomons Island, Maryland

2. 2 Upon completion of the Structure of Municipal Government, participants will be able to: Understand the nature of municipal charters Understand the difference between your charter and your code of ordinances Describe the various forms of municipal government

3. 3 Charter: your local constitution. It establishes the basic components and organization of your government and the basic rules under which it operates Don’t govern without knowing the rules your government has established. It’s your job to know them Comply with your charter or a court of law may strike down all the acts taken in violation of your charter

4.  If you don’t like certain charter provisions, change them  Amendment process – top down and bottom up. The favored top down process  Government by the people or by the government ? 4

5.  Official acts of government are distributed in 2 documents: your charter and code of ordinances  What’s the difference between the two documents? Can everything you record in your code instead be recorded in your charter and vice versa?  Charter material vs. legislative material 5

6.  Any act that establishes the basic elements of governance – the fundamental components, organization, processes and policies of your government – belongs in your charter  The code of ordinances houses “legislation,” which records the actual acts of governance  One establishes the mechanisms - the rules - of your government. The other records the acts – the details - of government  One is controlled by the people; the other is controlled by the governing body 6

7.  Major components * Size of body, qualifications, term, duties * Mayor (if any), qualifications, term, duties * Administrator/Manager duties * Powers of government  Major processes * Election process – frequency, by wards, at-large? * Legislative process * Budgeting process  Major policies * Debt – can you acquire? 7

8.  Administrative processes and organization  Examples  Establishing departments, offices, boards and commissions  Establishing administrative processes (e.g., licensing procedures, collection and bill-paying procedures, procurement processes, etc.)  Often better to house administrative processes and organization in your code of ordinances and not your charter 8

9.  2 types of legislation:  (1) Legislation establishing administrative processes and organization  (2) Exercises in police power – no, this does not refer to the cop on the beat enforcing the law, but a legislative act  Police power: acts of government that seek to promote, protect and enhance the public safety, health and community welfare 9

10.  Police power at work - examples: * Zoning * Regulating the use of streets, alleys and sidewalks * Establishing building standards * Regulating behavior and personal conduct(e.g., noise levels, heights of shrubbery, weeds and grass, etc.) 10

11.  Question – Can you put legislation found in your code of ordinances into your charter?  Legislation resulting from an exercise in police power cannot exist in a charter  Why? Because the act of legislating via the police power is a responsibility delegated to the governing body, not the voters  If legislation existed in a charter, the charter amendment process would enable voters to add, delete or revise the legislation – but voter control of this legislation is prohibited 11

12.  Question - can you house charter material in your code of ordinances?  It’s not illegal. But if charter material is in a code, it can no longer be controlled by the voters. Unlike a charter, only the governing body can amend a municipal code.  Most people would agree that the rules and fundamental mechanisms of government should be voter-controlled and not placed our of reach of the voters.  Keep charter-material in your charter  It’s not illegal. 12

13.  To distinguish proper charter material from legislative material, ask if the topic is as fundamental or as important to your government as, say, how a bill becomes a law  Ask if the average voter would care about the topic because the average voter cares about typical charter material  Ask if the average voter would be able to form an opinion about the topic at issue. Expert knowledge of typical charter material usually is not required, unlike the amount of knowledge required for legislation 13

14. 14 Forms revolve around the relationship of the legislative function to the executive function Form is determined from charter provisions describing executive and legislative duties – don’t expect to see a clear statement of the form of government in your charter Change of form requires a charter amendment, which in turn requires sufficient political support for the change

15.  Change of form usually is triggered by dissatisfaction with the working relationships among members of the governing body  The belief is that by changing the form of government the formal relationships between elected officials (primarily) will be altered and improved.  The goal of change is to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of decision-making and of the government generally 15

16.  Commission  Weak Mayor  Strong Mayor  Council-Manager  Hybrid 16

17. 17 All elected officials perform both executive and legislative functions. No one but the commissioners are given responsibility for managing day-to-day affairs. Often each elected official is responsible for management/oversight of a particular department (e.g., police commissioner or public works commissioner) Typical charter is silent on the distribution of functions among elected officials. Usually functions are delegated informally

18. 18 Strength * traditional organization, * easy to explain, * good accountability to voters Weakness * leadership by committee * conflict with professional managers * uncertain ability of commissioners to manage or oversee a particular department, especially on a part-time basis

19. 19 All elected officials perform both executive and legislative roles except mayor is deemed to be the head of government for ceremonial purposes Mayor is not usually elected as by the voters. Mayor is elected from and by the governing body or appointed by agreement of the elected body Strength/Weaknesses: generally the same as Commission form but the role of the mayor often is misunderstood by both municipal residents and officials, which can lead to confusion about the proper role of other elected and appointed officials

20. 20 Separation between legislative and executive functions. Charter gives day-to-day control over government operations to the Mayor. Mayor is the chief executive Council operates at arms-length from day-to-day affairs; it is not involved in running daily operations. Mayor runs them Council controls operations through the budget and by making policies that impact on operations. Council provides necessary oversight over the executive function to serve as a check and balance against the executive’s power.

21. 21 Strengths * excellent division of labor as Mayor focuses on daily needs while council focuses on longer-term issues * clear accountability for functions of government * leadership – provides energy and direction Weaknesses * strains in mayor-council relations occur easily and result in government disruptions * mayor may not prove to be a competent manager (but this weaknesses can be offset by a competent professional manager serving to support the office)

22. Professional manager hired as chief executive to manage municipal operations. Lots of towns have full-time professional managers. Only those in which the charter expressly delegates day-to-day operational control to the appointed manager are considered council-manager governments Council operates at arms-length from daily operations. It controls operations only through the policies and legislation it adopts. Provides important oversight functions. 22

23. 23 Strength * Professional management, selected from a broader pool than available for strong mayors * Decouples politics from daily administration and management * Excellent division of labor Weakness * The form can frustrate elected officials who do not control daily operations and yet are accountable to the voters for them. These concerns tend to encourage elected officials to interfere in daily operations, making this form difficult to sustain and may exist only on “paper” or in theory

24.  Elements of one form combined with elements of another (e.g., elements of the strong-mayor form combined with elements of a council-manager form)  Strength: Ability to pick and choose exactly the elements best suited to solve local problems  Weakness: care must be shown in the selection of elements. Certain elements may not support one another resulting in conflicting structures (e.g. a strong mayor element housed in a council-manager form may prove challenging to the mayor, to the manager or to both parties) 24

25. The municipal charter establishes the rules and the basic building blocks of your government. You can change your charter, but you must always follow it Don’t legislate in a charter; don’t house charter material in your code of ordinances No form of government is ideal; all forms have strengths and weaknesses. Expect interest in changing the form of government to coincide with how divided an elected body may be 25