More on municipal government...

The Constitution of the United States of America does not mention local governments. Local governments are created by and regulated by the states. This means that to speak about cities or other forms of local government in the United States is to speak about fifty different legal and political situations. The states outline the powers of municipal governments in charters.

Historically, there are four forms for municipal government in the United States:

• the mayor-council;
• council-manager;
• commission; and
• town meeting.

A recent survey determined that the predominant forms are:

• Council-Manager form of government with 58%
• Mayor-Council form of government with 38%
• Other form of government with 4% (Including the commission and town meeting)

Recent studies indicate that the distinctions between the mayor-council and the council-manager forms are becoming smaller and smaller. City officials continually change the structure of the municipal government. Those cities with a primarily mayor-council form often adopt features to improve management, while council-manager cities adopt features to increase their political responsiveness, and leadership.