Chapter 4: State and Local Government

Balanced Budget

(D) A budget in which the legislature balances expenditures with expected revenues with no deficit. Significance: Unlike the federal government, state and local government must ensure that they operate within a balanced budget. Balanced budgets are designed this way because of the deficit spending that has been allowed to happen at the federal level during progressive eras in politics. Even though deficit spending is permissible at the federal level, the question of balancing the federal budget raises important questions. Can the federal budget ever be balanced? And what will it take for the budget, and the deficit, to improve? Sentence: In contrast to private businesses, politicians aim to balance their spending and revenue instead of maximizing their profits.

nonpartisan election

(D) A contest in which political parties do not nominate candidates and ballots do not include any party identification of those running for office. Signfifgence - This is more personalized and thus may prompt more participation in the governmental process and elections. It also eliminiates some bias of parties as well as potential corruption. This gives the people more hand in the ballot and policies of local government. Sentence - In a non-partisan election, an official is more likely to be elected because they want to solve a specific problem, not because of affilitiation.

Charter

(D) A document that specifies the basic policies, procedures, and institutions of a municipality. Significance: Charters are similar to constitutions in the sense that they set the rules and significance of a city, town, or village. Like constitutions, they ensure that the these areas function correctly and function with good intention. These charters must be passed by state legislatures, and will grant these specific governments with the legitimacy they need to function. Without these documents, the idea of a constitution controlling the compass of a government is jeopardized. Sentence: There are various types of charters that all serve different purposes.

Compact

(D) A formal, legal agreement, as that between a state and a tribe. Significance: Various compacts have been made between the US and native american tribes for centuries. These compacts are significant simply because they are written, physical manifestations of the agreements made between Native Americans and the US government. These written documents are needed in order to basically ensure any true diplomatic relationship between the US and native american tribes. These compacts can grant various things, such as which tribes can have casino gambling on their reservation or land. Sentence: Compacts allow states the power to made decisions and discuss agreements between local native american tribes.

municipality

(D) A government with general responsibilities ,such as a city, town or village, which is created in response to the emergence of relatively densely populated areas. Signfigence- This applies law to a specific group, which makes it in important for certain groups. It also delegates responsibilities away from the states. This is especially true for large cities and states like New York. Sentence - A municipality is to a state as landlords are to a neighborhood.

special districts

(D) A local government that is responsible for a particular function such as schools, water, sewage, or parks. Significance:The reason why we learn this is to show a level of power in the state government. This also shows how small it goes down to. Sentence:The special district government tried to pass a law to change the budget of the railroad

Progressive movement

(D) Advocated measures to destroy political machines and instead have voters participate directly in the nomination of candidates and the establishment of public policy Significance: The progressive movement would eventually lead to the use of primaries in elections. This would lead to more direct voting and change political sway. It would also cause clash in the future when more regulation to State Constitutions was applied. Sentence: The progressive movement aimed to destroy political machines for a more democratic process.

Intiative

(D) An election that allows citizens to propose legislation or state constitutional amendments by submitting them to the electorate for popular vote. Significance: Initiatives are important because it allows the state to hear the citizens voices with the legislations they propose. It also helps benefit our cities and states because it addresses the problems citizens see and what they need. Sentence: Communities need to participate in the Initiative in order to fight social injustice.

referendum

(D) An election whereby the state legislature submits proposed legislation or state constitutional amendments to the vote for appeal. Significance: The referendum process is a way for voters to show disapproval when it comes to a bill that is being passed. This promotes public opinion and provides an infusion of the people's choice being that the people have a say on what's the "law of the land". When analyzed further, the majority in the populace may have a certain biased towards a subject and use a referendum to oppose a bill in question. Sentence: Referendum is used only in cases where the public shows disapproval, and is done by placing a ballot in order to oppose a bill.

political machine

(D) An organization designed to solicit votes from certain neighborhoods or communities for a particular political party in return for services and jobs if that party wins. Significance: In an attempt to avoid political machines, Western states prefered weak governments. This would lead to the rise of the progressive movement. Political machines, they believed, destroyed the true democratic process. This led to the modern method of primaries in elections. Signifigence - In an attempt to avoid political machines, Western states preferred weak governments. This would lead to the rise of the progressive movement. Political machines, they believed, destroyed the true democratic process. Because of political machines, we see widespread conservatism in the West and a zealousness for liberties. Sentence - Political machines were essentially a peer-pressure form of political corruption.

Mayors

(D) Chief elected executive of a city Significance: Mayors are of the utmost significance because they act as the primary leader of the city council. They check the legislature in city council. The mayor also enforces all laws of the city, manages the operations of the city, and recommends legislature to the city council. Sentence: The mayor acknowledged her contributions to the city and presented her with a medal.

At Large elections

(D) Election in which candidates for office must compete throughout the jurisdiction as a whole. Significance: At large, progressive politicians have paid attention to the effects of At-Large elections. These types of elections have shown to keep minority representatives from being elected into office. These types of elections are important because not only are they used at various levels In America, they are also used in many other countries such as Canada, Israel, the Philippines, and more. Sentence: At-large elections now raise concerns about discrimination against racial and ethnic minorities.

District Based Elections

(D) Election in which candidates run for an office that represents only the voters of a specific district within the jurisdiction. Significance: District based elections are significant in the respect that it identifies the how boundaries are drawn concerning At-Large elections. Its also important because it allows for minority ethnic communities the probability they will have representation on the city council. Sentence: In the district- based elections we elected our new representative.

town meeting

(D) Form of local government in which all eligible voters are invited to attend a meeting and vote on policy and management issues. Significance:Town meetings are just a smaller version of congress. This shows that the government has chains of power/ command. Sentence:At the town meeting the citizens debated about starting a petition to relieve the mayor of his position.

commission

(D) Form of local government in which several officials are elected to top positions that have both legislative and executive responsibilities. Significance: Commissions have been used in a couple instances in the united states. As it's been shown in Galveston texas, commissions have been extremely effective at helping a district's citizens during times of distress. After a hurricane passed that killed 1900 and injured 10,000, the local government decided to form a commission. The commission was extremely efficient, delegating task forces to be legislators and enforcers of laws. Sentence: The citizens of Galveston decided to amend their charter to replace their mayor and city council with a commission.

County

(D) Geographic district created within a state with a government that has general responsibilities for land, welfare, environment, and where appropriate, rural service policies. Significance: County's provide states with geographical borders mapping their influence, allowing states to know exactly which areas would have local governance. Without counties, the state government would simply be putting too much administrative work on its plate. Additionally, counties give various parts of states their own unique identity, as well as their own local governments and set of laws. Sentence: Honolulu, Hawaii has a consolidated county and city government.

public corporation (authority)

(D) Government organization established to provide a particular service or run a particular facility that is independent of other city or state agencies and is to be operated like a business. Examples include a port authority or a mass transit system. (A)Significance: The public corporations made by the government are important because each agency plays a key role in the facilitation of certain tasks. When you look at the scope in which they encompass it includes water, sewage, mass transit, etc. Without these corporations the public would not be as efficient as it currently is, and would be in need of the vital services each agency provides. Sentence: Public agencies facilitate certain tasks such as, waste management, under business-like conduct.

trust land

(D) Land designed in a treaty that is under the authority of an American Indian nation and is exempt from most state laws and taxes. Significance:The trust lands is an example of how the government doesn't have complete power. On these small chunks of land the government have a very weak hold on them. Sentence:The bill preventing people to gamble did not affect those on trust land, thus they were free to do as they wished.

reservation land

(D) Land owned by an American Indian nation and designated by the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs as exempt from most state laws and taxes. Significance: Because the land is considered to be under a treaty made by the United States gov., and that under law it is not required to be subject to taxation the reservations are it's own separate type of facilitation. This is crucial because they are exempt to certain laws and are considered to most Americans a grey area when it comes to where the laws apply and where they do not. Sentence: Reservation land is exempt from certain regulations by states, and if Congress were to enact something they would have to make a compact with the tribe in question.

segregated funds

(D) Money that comes in from a certain tax or fee and then is restricted to a specific use, such as gasoline tax that is used for road maintenance. Significance: Segregated funds in hand, works as a supplemental means of providing further funding towards different areas in need of support. This is crucial to the United States only because you cannot tax everyone and expect them to be okay with it going to something as menial as stocking streams. Furthermore, these funds are used only in specified areas, so the chances of them being misused is unlikely, thus making it easier for the allocation of funds to go where they need to go without interruption. Sentence: Segregated funds are taken from "user fees" that are then allocated to certain areas in need of financial support.

Commute

(D) The action of a governor to cancel all or part of the sentence of someone convicted of a crime, while keeping the conviction on the record. Significance: Commutes are important because they give governors flexibility and additional power. The 1960's and 1970's were pivotal points in the structure and balance of powers between the legislative and executive branches of state governments. Commutes, along with other interactions between criminals and the governor, allow the governor to save whoever he wants from having to serve time in prison. Sentence: The president commuted the sentence of Demaryius Thomas's grandmother.

Line Item Veto

(D) The authority of a chief executive to delete part of a bill passed by the legislature that involves taxing or spending. Ruled unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme court Significance: The Line-item veto was significant because it was created to control "Pork-barrel spending", by allowing chief executives to remove a particular expenditure from a budget bill. This would be important as it gives us the authority to enable governors to revise the work of the legislators in order to produce a balanced budget. Sentence: In 1994, Ronald Reagan wanted to establish the line-item vetoes in order to balance our economy.

package or general veto

(D) The authority of a chief executive to reject an entire bill that has been passed by the legislature. Significance: This is especially important when it is paired to budget creation, which is proposed by the governor. Combined with budget creation, package or general vetoes give the governor of a state considerable power in legislation. This allows governors to maintain a balanced budget. Sentence: Governors are given to power to reject an entire bill in order to maintain order and authority in legislation.

parole

(D) The authority of a governor yo release a prisoner before his or her full sentence has been completed and to specify conditions that must be met as part of the release. Signifigence - This provides certain inmates with the ability to repair their lives in an earlier time. This also gives incentive for criminals to behave and aspire for a shorter sentence. In addition, this lowers the number of individuals in prisons, as well as gains revenue. Sentence - The current parole system is accused of being ineffective due to many inmates returning to prison for arbitrary measures.

trust relationship

(D) The legal obligation of the federal government to protect the interests of American Indian tribes. Significance: This is how people kept order and kept the natives a little happy. This is an example of the US and state government have their boundaries. Sentence: The Native Americans and US citizens worked out a trust relationship after years of political strife.

City council

(D) The legislature in a city government Significance: City councils trace much of their significance back to the legislative duties of the state. These duties could've easily been portrayed during 1787 at New England. Many immigrants, including the polish, had trouble integrating into american culture. Polish people would often flock with the rest of their kind, never truly mixing with american culture. If certain politicians and city council officials were elected, then jobs and other additional services could've been provided to immigrants such as the polish. Sentence: Political machines often had control over politics, including politicians like city council members.

one- person, one- veto

(D) The principle that each legislative district within a state should have the same number of eligible voters so that representation is equitably based on population. Significance: Because of One-Person One-Vote, local legislatures became more representative. This meant that legislature of the states represented the people, thus deriving the power from the people. The agendas and laws of the state were more in tune with the needs of all people, respectively. Sentence: One-Person One-Vote created equal representation in State Legislatures.

progressive tax

(D) The tax level increases with the wealth or ability of an individual or business to pay. (A)Significance: The progressive tax is significant due to it's commonality as seen in the United States. It creates the mentality "the richer get richer while the poor remain poor" and Reaganomics is derived from this. Out of all taxes this tax is mainly based upon income and impacts different individuals more or less depending on their socioeconomic background. If you're financially well off the income tax is usually seen as the plague due to the harsh cut of your income that is taken by it. Sentence: Progressive taxes deals with the increase of tax levels based upon one's wealth.

regressive tax

(D) The tax levels increases as the wealth or ability of an individual or business to pay decreases. Significance: Regressive taxes usually encompass sale taxes. This is only due to the nature of sales taxes being based upon purchases and not income, so if the economy is doing poorly the financially disenfranchised don't receive a severe impediment. To counter the nature of these taxes and the decrease in revenue created by these taxes, some states exclude food, medicine, etc. thus balancing out the revenue. It is a way to ensure that the lower income individuals are represented equally. Sentence: Regressive taxes are sales taxes which is affected by purchases。

Extradite

(D) To send someone against his or her will to another state to face criminal charges. Significance: Extradition is important because it allows states to ship back criminals. Therefore criminals who committed a crime in that particular state must pay the consequences regardless of what state they are in, post offense. Sentence: In order to contain crime, states ought to extradite all criminals.

recall

(D) an election in which voters can remove an incumbent from office prior to the next scheduled election. Significance: The recall process is important because it gives voters in 18 states the right to basically replace who is in office at the time. This can be used if an official is corrupt, or if they enact policies that go against status quo of the state in which the official is being recalled in. It is a way to show that voters have certain rights when it comes to the election process of state officials. Sentence: Recall is used sparsely, however when it is enacted it gives voters the right to replace an official in the state's government.

term limits

(D) restrictions that exist in some states about how long an individual may serve in state or local elected offices. (A)Significance:In most states they have different turn limits giving some political power to the head of office. This may cause problems due to them being immune to being kicked out. Sentence:The president's term limit is eight years.

Dillion's Rule

(D)A court ruling that local governments do not have any inherent sovereignty but instead must be authorized by state government Significance:The significance of Dillon's rule is that it defines the difference in powers between state and local government. Dillon's Rule interprets grants of power to local governments very narrowly. The state government retains rights and duties under the constitution, as opposed to local governments which do not. The bottom law is -- if there is a question about a local government's power or authority, then the local government does NOT receive the benefit of the doubt. Under Dillon's Rule, one must assume the local government does NOT have the power in question. Sentence: Dillon's rule does not allow local governments to overpower the state

Missouri (merit) Plan

(D)A method of selecting judges in which a governor must appoint someone from a list provided by an independent panel. Judges are then kept in office if they get a majority of "yes" votes in general elections. Signfigence- This way, only preferred justices who the public find to be adequate can be kept in office. However, this has pros and cons -- including the ability to select judges who may discriminate against minorities or be too hard on crime in an effort to gain support. On the other hand, this is positive due to the democratic aspect. Sentence - The Missouri (Merit) Plan allows for a democratic selection of judges and determining their terms in a way that is meant to battle corruption.

Manager

(D)A professional executive hired by a city council or county board to manage daily operations and to recommend policy changes. Significance:Managers are significant because they manage daily operations and policy changes. They also are in charge of manipulating the media to portray the council or board in a positive light. Sentence: Every city council needs a manager to keep things running.

Domestic Dependent Nation

(D)A type of sovereignty that places an American Indian tribe in the US outside the authority of state governments but reliant on the federal government for the interpretation and application of treaty provisions. Significance: Domestic dependent nations are significant because it allows American Indians nations to retain its individual identity and sovereignty, at the cost that the nation must rely on the US federal government for the interpretation application treaties. Sentence: The native american tribes are the only domestic dependent nation in the USA.

pardon

(D)An executive grant providing restoration of all rights and privileges of citizenship to a specific individual charged or convicted of a crime. Signifigence - This grants governors the power to eliminate ALL penalties, as opposed to partial with commutes. This still means that the conviction stays on record. This gives governors considerable power of the state powers in criminal justice. Sentence - A may grant pardon when he believes the crime was for a good cause.

Govoner

(D)Chief elected executive in state government Significance: Governors are important because they act as the chief in state government. They overlook and control policies passed in the council while also representing our states. Governors also have the power to issue executive orders and take emergency actions Sentence: David Ige is a decent governor and fulfills his duties.

state constitution

(D)The document that describe the basic policies, procedures, and institutions of the government of a specific state, much as the U.S. Constitution does for the federal government. (A) Significance:This shows that the state has power to make their own laws. This shows that some of these laws don't add up or connect well with other state's laws. Sentence:The state constitution stated that there is to be no hunting in the spring months in Washington.(not real)