2. Vocabulary Unicameral – one house – legislative branch
Bicameral – two houses – legislative branch
Segregation – separation of races. In NC, this deals mostly with blacks and whites after the Civil War to the 1960s.
Census – official population account to show population shifts
Commute – reduce a sentence. A power of the NC governor
Ordinances – local laws
Incorporate – to receive a state charter, officially recognizing the government of the locality.
Municipality – either a city, town, or village in NC
Charter – basic rules for a municipality
Annexation – process of bringing unincorporated land into a municipality.

3. North Carolina History
“First in Freedom”
First Provincial Congress (August 1774) – elected people to the Continental Congress
Mecklenburg Declaration (May 1775) – citizens of Mecklenburg County stated that the only lawful government was the provincial government, not the British.
Halifax Resolves (April 12, 1776) – NC was the first state to call for complete independence from Britain.
Sent 3 delegates to the 2nd Continental Congress
Did not ratify Constitution until 1789 when Bill of Right added

4. North Carolina History cont.
Three Constitutions in NC’s history
Very small number compared to other states
1st – Constitution of 1776
Very similar to the US Constitution
1835 Changes
Voters now allowed to elect governor, approve or reject constitutional amendments
Took away rights of free men of African and Indian decent
2nd – Constitution of 1868
All Confederate states had to create new Constitution after Civil War
Slavery abolished, all men over 21 could vote
3rd – Constitution of 1971
All elections free, freedom of speech, equal protection of laws

5. Suffrage in North Carolina
After Civil War, next 2 decades African Americans got to vote.
Hiram Revels – 1st African American to vote
By 1900, General Assembly set up discrimination test to keep minorities (Blacks and Indians) from voting
Women fought for suffrage (voting) in NC, but to no success until the 19th amendment in 1920
Voting Requirements:
Citizen
18 years old by the next General Election
Lived in voting precinct for 30 days
Not serving felony sentence
Registered to vote

6. Legislative Branch
The Legislative Branch of North Carolina’s state government is called the General Assembly
Makes two types of laws:
Statutes – apply to everyone in the state
Local or Specific laws – just to certain areas in the state
Major power deals with finances. How much to spend and how much to tax?
Legislative Oversight – review of government operations

7. The NC General Assembly
SENATE
50 Members
Presiding Officer:
Lieutenant Governor
Elected Chamber Leader:
President Pro Tempore
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
120 Members
Presiding Officer:
Speaker of the House
Elected Chamber Leader:

8. Executive Branch of North Carolina State Government
4 year terms, 2 consecutive – can come back for another 2 after a 4 year
Must be 30 years old, US citizen for 5 years, lived in NC for 2 years
Lt. Governor elected also. Must meet governor qualifications. Head of the NC Senate.
Council of the State – 8 state agencies, people elected to these 4 year positions, unlimited
Offices of the Council -

9. Superintendent of Public Instruction Commissioner of Insurance
Governor
Pat McCrory
Lieutenant Governor
Dan Forest
Elected Officials
Comm. Of Agriculture
State Treasurer
Superintendent of Public Instruction
Secretary of State
Attorney General
Secretary of Labor
Commissioner of Insurance
State Auditor

10. Superior Court District Court
Supreme Court
Other
Court
Officials
Court of
Appeals
Superior Court
TEACHERS: Click on the court that you want to discuss and the appropriate Power Point slide will open up; when you are ready to return from that slide to this graphic organizer, click on the purple arrow.
District Court

11. State Government Each state has its own constitution.
All states have three branches of government.
Voters ratify amendments in all states except for Delaware.
All states have bicameral legislatures except for Nebraska.
Each state must accept the validity of all other state laws and contracts (Full faith and Credit).
Extradition: Governor orders a suspect to be returned to the state where the crime was committed.

12. Executive Branch Led by a governor.
In most states a person must be 30 years old, US citizen, and a resident of the state for five years.
Serve a four year term.
Recall: An election where voters can remove state officials.
Lieutenant Governor: Takes over for the governor and is head of the state senate.

13. Powers of the Governor
Chief Executive, Chief Legislator, Judicial Leader, Commander in Chief, Party leader, Ceremonial leader.
As judicial leader a governor can:
Commute: Reduce a sentence.
Parole: Early release from prison.
Can offer pardons and reprieves.

14. Executive Officials Most officials are elected by voters.
There are many different departments led by a secretary.

15. Legislative Branch State is divided into districts.
Reynolds vs. Sims (1964): All election districts must be equal in population. “Each person one vote”.
Apportionment: Distribution of seats according to population.
Legislators must be US citizens, live in the district, and meet an age requirement. Fairly low pay.
Legislative process is the same as the national level.

16. Judicial Branch Misdemeanors: Minor crimes handled by lower courts.
Felonies: Serious crimes handled by higher courts.
Trial courts: Use juries. Judge decides punishment.
Appellate courts: Panel of judges. Appellate jurisdiction.
State Supreme Court: Highest level.
Plea Bargain: Defendant pleads guilty for a reduced sentence.

17. County Government
Local governments are established by state governments.
Charter: Plan that explains the power of a local government.
All counties provide services for their citizens.
County board has legislative powers.
Ordinance: Law passed by a county board.
Provide law enforcement, set up hospitals, improve transportation, and set up public libraries.
Collect revenue through property tax and sales tax.
Have executive power to enforce laws (Inspectors).

18. County Officials
Sheriff: Law enforcement. Keeps peace and manages the jail.
District attorney: Investigates crime and prosecutes in court.
Coroner: Establishes the cause of death.
County clerk: Keeps official records.
Assessor: Determines the value of property for tax purposes.

19. Town Governments Some counties are divided into towns.
In the northeast, town government is more important than county.
Town govt. began in New England as a form of direct democracy.
Other northern states divided into smaller units called townships.
In the Midwest, townships were established during expansion by Congress.

20. Village Government Smallest unit of local government.
A group must get permission from the state.
Villages have a board and an executive elected by the voters.

21. Special Districts
Provides a solution for a single issue or provide a service.
An elected board runs the district.
User fees: Rates paid for services.

22. City Government Must get a charter from the state government.
Home rule: Allows cities to write their own charters.
Crime, medical problems, drug abuse, and homelessness are problems.
Ward: Voting district in a city.

23. Mayor-Council Government
Separate legislative (city council) and executive (mayor) branches.
There are strong and weak mayor plans.

24. City Council – City Manager
Voters elect a city council.
City manager runs the city. Appointed by the city council.

25. Commission Government
Began in Galveston, Texas in 1901 after a natural disaster.
Separate departments led by a commissioner. The commission has executive and legislative powers.

26. Community Problems
Public Policy: Decision that effect people. They can come from lawmakers, citizens, interest groups, and the media.
Must plan for the future. Involves educated guessing.
Short term: Decisions effecting the next few years.
Long term: Decisions effecting the next fifty years.
Must have priorities and evaluate resources.
Communities develop a master plan of goals.

27. Zoning A zoning board decides what land will be used for.
Different zones for residential, business, and public land.
Provides a map for the community.

28. Financing Taxes: Sales, property and income.
User fees: Fares paid for the use of services.
Bond: Borrow the money and pay it back later.

29. Education and Housing
Education is the most expensive service provided by state and local governments.
Magnet school: Students focus on a particular field of study.
Vouchers: Help parents send children to private schools.
Urban renewal: Re-building old neighborhoods.
The government provides low income housing.

30. Shortages and Pollution
Many places have shortages on power and water.
Conservation: Using less of our resources.
Disposing of garbage is a problem (landfills).
Recycling: Using old materials to produce new ones.

31. Federalism National government shares power with the states.
This gives Americans freedom to provide for their own needs.
The main reason is sectional differences.
Types of Power:
Enumerated: Powers given to the national government. Can be expressed or implied (Elastic clause).
Reserved: Powers given to the state governments.
Concurrent: Powers shared between national and state.

32. Federal Aid to the States
Spending is roughly related to population of the state (from census numbers)
Additional demographic questions to find out where children are located (education), minorities (grants for minorities), and population density (highways)

33. New Federalism
Recently shift of some programs/authority for decision- making on the implementation of the programs back to the state and local governments.
Started with President Nixon and continued with President Reagan

34. Types of Aid
Categorical Grants – funds for some specific closely defined purpose.
Like money for school lunches
Usually have strings attached
Block Grants – funds for much more broadly defined purposes
Fewer strings attached, more freedom for state/local to decide how to spend money
Project Grants – funds for specific organizations or governmental bodies
For research, job training programs, etc.

35. Fiscal Federalism
Most interactions between national and state government involve monetary considerations
Fiscal Federalism
Carrot and Stick Approach
Unfunded Mandates
Coercive Federalism
South Dakota v. Dole

36. Understanding Federalism
Advantages for Democracy
Increases access
to government
Local problems can
be solved locally
Hard for political
parties or interest groups
to dominate all politics
Disadvantages for Democracy
States have different levels of service
Local interest can counteract national interests
Too many levels of government and too much money

37. Understanding Federalism cont.
Federalism and the Scope of Government
What should the scope of national government be relative to the states?
National power increased with industrialization, expansion of individual rights, and social services
Most problems require resources afforded to the national, not state governments

38. Summary of Federalism
Federalism is a governmental system in which power is shared between central government and the 50 state governments.
The US has moved from dual to cooperative federalism; fiscal federalism to new federalism.
Federalism leads to both advantages and disadvantages to democracy.
Most interactions today have a monetary component.
There are still struggles and conflicts over power sharing in this relationship.