Taxpayers must be protected from unchecked growth in local government spending. Statewide limits on tax increases would do that while forcing local governments to live within their means.
The payoff from effective personnel policies is a heightened sense of residents’ confidence in government and quality of life.
Sex abuse settlements, dwindling tourism dollars and downtown decline have created budget problems city leaders say will take years to repair.
The president’s deployment of the military to our cities undermines a critical constitutional safeguard for democracy. Just look at what’s happened in some other countries.
Seattle looks likely to reject a mayor yet again, while San Francisco voters are poised to recall a local supervisor.
There are plenty of strategies that have proven effective at dramatically reducing crime. Sending soldiers into the streets of our cities isn’t one of them.
Los Angeles County’s voters have demonstrated what a powerful tool these local constitutions are for self-governance. Home rule fosters experimentation — and a feisty and irreplaceable resilience.
Here are three of the latest takeaways from the agency’s efforts to rid the state of what it calls “egregious” government waste.
In 2024, public libraries and schools saw attempts to ban more than 5,800 titles. Now, California cities are providing direct online access to banned and challenged books.
Cuts in funding don’t change counties’ obligations to their residents. They will have to figure out how to raise new revenue, cut services or both. But success in navigating this new landscape won’t come from austerity alone.
There’s much to applaud in the ways Columbia now celebrates its Black heritage. But too much of that celebration is limited to Black residents.
It’s threatened with extinction in many places and the relationship can be fraught, but it has a lot of value both to communities and their governments. Social media alone isn’t a substitute.
The future of an EPA program for disadvantaged communities may be uncertain, but there are lessons for the future in how local governments have gone after the funds. Authentic, cross-sector collaborations are key.
New York City’s Democratic mayoral nominee has idealism and charisma. If he wins, he’ll need someone with a deep understanding of how a city works to translate passion into governance. There’s an obvious candidate.
Syracuse, N.Y., is having renewed success. Mayor Ben Walsh helped make it happen.
There’s a reason so many local governments rely on the council-manager system: It balances democratic accountability with operational expertise.
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