1. Local Government: City

2. The Concept of Federalism
Federal Government
Executive:
President, Vice President, Executive Departments
Legislative:
Congress (Bicameral)
Senate &
House of Representatives.
Vice President is President of Senate.
Judicial:
District Court (94 in U.S)
Appeals Court (12 in US)
Supreme Court “Top Dog”
State Government
Executive:
Governor, Lt. Governor, Executive Departments
Legislative:
State Legislature ( 49=Bicameral):
State Senate
State House
NEBRASKA: UNICAMERAL (1934)
Judicial:
Lower Courts: Hears minor trials
General Trial Court: Major Cases
Appellate Court: Reviews cases
State Supreme Court: Reviews cases.

3. Local Government Local government includes:
Local government is last level of Federalism
They are established by and get their power from state government.
Local government includes:
City government (ex: Lincoln)
County government (ex: Lancaster)

4. City Government
Main purpose of local government is to provide services for citizens.
These are the day to day activites that have the most impact on your life
Services provided:
Roads & Sidewalks
Water & Sewage
Trash collection/Landfill
Snow removal
Public Transportation (Star Tran)

5. Chris Beutler: Mayor of Lincoln
City Government
The oldest and most common form of city government is the mayor-council government.
In the mayor-council city government system the city council is the legislative body, while the mayor is the chief executive.
Chris Beutler: Mayor of Lincoln

6. Mayor Strong-Mayor Plan: Weak-Mayor Plan:
Under the strong-mayor plan, the mayor is the city’s chief executive and has the primary responsibility for running the cities government.
Ex. City government is divided into departments, each headed by a director who is appointed by mayor and approved by the city council the mayor can also veto city ordinances.
Weak-Mayor Plan:
Under the weak-mayor plan, the city council holds more power than the mayor.
Ex. The city council appoints the city department heads, who will report directly to the city council rather than the mayor.
Mayor

7. City Council
7 Members: Cyndi Lamm (NE), Jon Camp (SE), Jane Raybould (SW), Carl Eskridge (NW), Leirion Gaylor Baird, Roy Christensen, Trent Fellers (Three at large seats)
4 year terms
Makes city laws called ordinances
Meet on Mondays and are held open to the public

8. Ordinances & Resolutions
Ordinance = City Law passed by City Council
Before being voted on, presented at 3 council meetings
Mayor can veto but it can be overridden by 5 of 7 members
Resolution = Do not result in a law (ex: adopting the budget)