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County governments in the United States are the locally elected and appointed governments of the administrative subdivisions of state governments. They are the intermediate tier of unitary state government, between the statewide tier and the immediately local government tier. A county may be further divided into districts or townships.
County governments have powers that are specified by the constitutions and laws of their states, and by their charters if they have one. These powers are usually exercised by a county commission (called variously in various states a board of supervisors, county council, commissioners' court, fiscal court, board of chosen freeholders, or police jury), and its appointed agents and officers acting under its authority or the authority of the state laws, constitution, or county charter. These powers vary widely from state to state.
Most counties have a county seat, usually a city, where its administrative functions are centered.
Almost all states are divided into counties or county-equivalents for administrative purposes, although not all counties or county-equivalents have an organized county government. Connecticut and Rhode Island have completely eliminated county government, as have portions of Massachusetts. The Unorganized Borough in Alaska also does not operate under a county level government. Additionally, a number of independent cities and consolidated city-counties operate under a municipal government that serves the functions of both city and county.
In areas lacking a county government, services are provided either by lower level townships or municipalities, or the state.
Legislative
Main article: County commissionUsually, the legislative power of a county government is vested in a committee variously called a County commission, Board of Supervisors, County council, Commissioners' Court, or Board of chosen freeholders. The legislative body of a county government usually consists in between 3 and 9 members elected from districts within the county, or at-large county wide. Although, in Georgia, a sole commissioner holds the legislative power as well as the executive power. The individual members of the legislative body may variously be called county commissioner, county supervisor, justice of the peace, parish juror, or parish commissioner. In Kentucky, Texas, and Arkansas the members of the county legislative body are called county judges, although they hold no judicial powers.
In the event of a vacancy, usually the governor of a state will appoint a replacement to fill out the remainder of the term, unless state law or the county charter specifies otherwise.
Executive
Main article: County executiveThe chief executive officer of a county varies from county to county in the same way they vary from city to city. In a council–manager system, the executive power is vested in a county manager who is an appointed professional. Alternatively, in a council–manager system, a county executive may be a county mayor, also called a county judge in some places. In Georgia, a sole commissioner holds the legislative power as well as the executive power. In Louisiana, the chair of the parish commission is the parish president.
Judicial
A county government may or may not include a judicial branch. In some states, the judicial powers are reserved entirely by the state. Very often a county serves as a judicial district of the state, and any judges exercising jurisdiction in the county are elected or appointed from among the qualified residents of such districts. See also: Superior court.
County officials and agencies
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Depending on the jurisdiction, counties may be headed by one or more elected county commissioners, an elected or appointed county executive, or an appointed county administrator. Among the additional officers and functions found in county governments, either as appointed or elected officials, are:
- County clerk
- Treasurer
- District attorney or county prosecutor
- County corporation counsel
- County sheriff
- County coroner or medical examiner
- Tax collector
- Property assessor
- Register or Recorder of deeds
- Auditor or comptroller
- Surveyor
Variation in county government
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County government exists in 48 of the 50 states. Of these remaining 48 states, 46 use the term "county" while Alaska and Louisiana use the terms "borough" and "parish", respectively, for analogous jurisdictions. The other two states (Connecticut and Rhode Island) have abolished their county governments as functional entities, and Massachusetts is in the process of doing so.
Depending on the individual state, counties or their equivalents may be administratively subdivided into townships, or towns in the New England states, New York, and Wisconsin. In these cases, the township is generally subordinate to the county, which is generally subordinate to the state. Michigan, since 1947, has distinguished between "townships" (not self-governing) and "charter townships" (self-governing). In most states, municipal corporations (i.e. cities, villages or towns) file their reports to the state through the county. California has abolished its townships, though cities may choose to incorporate as "Town of" rather than "City of."
Connecticut and Rhode Island
Connecticut abolished its county government in 1960. County government in Rhode Island was abolished in 1842.
Louisiana
Louisiana has entities equivalent to counties called parishes.
Alaska
Alaska is divided into boroughs, which typically provide fewer local services than do most U.S. counties, as the state government furnishes many services directly. Some of Alaska's boroughs have merged geographical boundaries and administrative functions with their principal (and sometimes only) cities; these are known as unified city-boroughs and result in some of Alaska's cities ranking among the geographically largest "cities" in the world. Gevertheless, Alaska considers such entities to be boroughs, not cities. Alaska is also unique in that more than half the geographic area of the state is in the "Unorganized Borough", a legal entity in which the state also functions as the local government.
New York
Main article: Administrative divisions of New YorkNew York has a unique system where 57 of its 62 counties are independently-operated administrative divisions of the state, with normal county executive powers; while the remaining five are administrative divisions of the City of New York. These five are each called borough in context of City government – Manhattan, The Bronx, Queens, Brooklyn, and Staten Island (formerly Richmond); but are still called "county" where state function is involved, e.g., "New York County Courthouse", not "Manhattan". The county names correlate to the borough names as follows: New York County = Manhattan, Bronx County = The Bronx, Queens County = Queens, Kings County = Brooklyn, and Richmond County = Staten Island.
Virginia
Main article: political subdivisions of VirginiaIn Virginia the term "city" implies "independent city." There are 39 of these in the Commonwealth, which report directly to the commonwealth government whether or not they also function as a county seat. Other cities in Virginia, even ones large enough to be considered cities in other states, are not considered cities by the Commonwealth. They're called "towns" and are part of the county in which they are situated.
Consolidated city-counties
Main article: Consolidated city–countyIn several instances, a municipality has merged with a county into one jurisdiction so the county seat is coextensive with the county. This is the case in the City and County of San Francisco, California, and in the City and County of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. A similar arrangement is found in Tennessee's Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, which consolidated the governments of city of Nashville and Davidson County, although a few municipalities still exist with some governmental functions. Miami-Dade County, Florida, is an example of the merger of some functionality, resulting in a two-tier arrangement of governmental authority and administrative responsibility. New York City is coextensive with five counties or boroughs: the Bronx (which is Bronx County), Brooklyn (Kings County), Manhattan (New York County), Queens (Queens County), and Staten Island (Richmond County).
See also
References
- Osborne M. Reynolds, Jr., Handbook of Local Government Law, 2nd ed. (St. Paul, MN: West Group, 2001), 26.