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Home rule in the United States

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Home Rule in the United States.
  Home rule, no Dillon's Rule
  Home rule and Dillon's Rule
  Limited home rule, no Dillon's Rule
  Limited home rule, Dillon's Rule
  No home rule, Dillon's Rule

Home rule in the United States relates to the authority of a constituent part of a U.S. state to exercise powers of governance; i.e.: whether such powers must be specifically delegated to it by the state (typically by legislative action) or are generally implicitly allowed unless specifically denied by state-level action. Forty of the 50 states apply some form of the principle known as Dillon's Rule, which says that local governments may exercise only powers that the state specifically grants to them, to determine the bounds of a municipal government's legal authority.[1]

In some states, known as home rule states, the state's constitution grants municipalities and/or counties the ability to pass various types of laws to govern themselves (so long as the laws do not conflict with the state and federal constitutions). In other states, known as Dillon's Rule states, only limited authority has been granted to local governments by passage of statutes in the state legislature. In these states, a city or county must obtain permission from the state legislature if it wishes to pass a law or ordinance not specifically permitted under existing state legislation. Most states have a mix; for example, allowing home rule for municipalities with a minimum number of residents.

The National League of Cities identifies 31 Dillon's Rule states, 10 home rule states, 8 states that apply Dillon's Rule only to certain municipalities, and one state (Florida) that applies home rule to everything except taxation.[2] Each state defines for itself what powers it will grant to local governments. Within the local sphere, there are four categories in which the state may allow discretionary authority:[2]

  • Structural – power to choose the form of government, charter and enact charter revisions,
  • Functional – power to exercise local self government in a broad or limited manner,
  • Fiscal – authority to determine revenue sources, set tax rates, borrow funds and other related financial activities,
  • Personnel – authority to set employment rules, remuneration rates, employment conditions and collective bargaining.

Many states have different provisions regarding home rule for counties than for municipalities. The National Association of Counties says in 14 states all counties (or county equivalents) operate under Dillon's Rule, while 13 states allow all counties home rule authority and 21 states have a mix of home rule and Dillon's Rule. Connecticut and Rhode Island do not have independent county governments.[3]

Home rule and Dillon's Rule states

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The following chart indicates which of the 50 U.S. states are home rule states and which states obey the legal principle of Dillon's Rule for determining local government authority.[4] A state in this chart with "Limited" home rule may grant home rule to particular cities and municipalities individually but has no constitutional provision guaranteeing home rule. A state that is both a home rule state and a Dillon's Rule state applies Dillon's Rule to matters or governmental units not accounted for in the constitutional provision or statute that grants home rule.[citation needed]

Washington, D.C. is a federal city with a limited form of home rule granted by the federal government; see District of Columbia home rule for details.

State Home rule state? Dillon's Rule state? Comments
Alabama Limited Yes Limited home rule granted to cities and towns in Article XII, Sections 220-28 of the Alabama constitution. Counties are not delegated even a general grant of power under Dillon's Rule and must seek "local legislation" from the state legislature.[5]
Alaska Yes No
Arizona Yes Yes
Arkansas Limited Yes
California Yes Yes Cities that have not adopted a charter are organized by state law. Such a city is called a "general law city" (or a "code city"), which will be managed by a five-member city council. As of January 21, 2020, 125 of California's 478 cities were charter cities.[6][7]
Colorado Yes Yes Home rule provided for municipalities by constitutional amendment in 1902; for counties in 1970 (more limited than for municipalities).[8]

102 home rule municipalities, plus two consolidated city-counties that are home rule, and two home rule counties.[9][10][8]

All tax increases in Colorado must be voter-approved.

Connecticut Yes[11] Yes
Delaware No Yes
Florida Yes No Home rule specifically granted in Section 166.021(1) of Florida Statutes.
Georgia Yes Yes Home rule specifically granted in Article IX of Georgia Constitution
Hawaii Yes Yes
Idaho Yes Yes
Illinois Yes Yes
Indiana Limited Yes Dillon's Rule applies only to townships.
Iowa Yes No
Kansas Limited Yes Dillon's Rule does not apply to cities or counties.
Kentucky Limited Yes
Louisiana Yes Yes Home rule is more limited in charter municipalities established after 1974.[12]
Maine Yes Yes
Maryland Yes Yes
Massachusetts Yes No
Michigan Yes Yes Home rule applies to all cities, some villages, and two counties.
Minnesota Yes Yes
Mississippi No Yes
Missouri Yes Yes
Montana Yes No
Nebraska Limited Yes The Nebraska Constitution was amended in 1912 to allow cities with a population of more than 5,000 inhabitants to form a government under home rule. See Article XI, Section 2

Lincoln and Omaha are Nebraska's only home rule cities as of 2020.[13] Grand Island adopted a home rule charter in 1928; it was repealed by the voters on April 2, 1963. The city council subsequently repealed the charter on April 17, 1963, with Ordinance 3990.

Nevada No[14] Yes Home rule legislation SB29 took effect July 2015, and gave more power to county commissioners. However, local government including general improvement districts, special districts, fire districts, and school districts were not affected by this change.[14]
New Hampshire No Yes
New Jersey Yes No
New Mexico Yes Yes
New York Yes Yes
North Carolina Limited Yes
North Dakota Yes Yes
Ohio Yes No
Oklahoma No Yes
Oregon Yes No
Pennsylvania Yes Yes
Rhode Island Yes Yes
South Carolina Limited No
South Dakota Yes Yes
Tennessee Yes Yes
Texas Limited Yes Cities may adopt home rule once their population exceeds 5,000 and the voters adopt a city charter, the provisions of which cannot be inconsistent with either the Texas Constitution or "the general laws of the state." If the population subsequently falls below 5,000, the charter remains in force and may be amended.[15] Otherwise, cities with populations of 5,000 or less are governed by the general laws only.[16] School districts are generally governed by the general laws; a district may adopt a home rule charter,[17] but no district has chosen to do so.[18] Counties and "special districts" (other special-purpose governmental entities besides cities and school districts) are governed solely by the general laws and prohibited from adopting home rule.
Utah Limited No
Vermont No Yes
Virginia No Yes [19] All cities, which must have at least 5,000 residents and are independent from counties, and towns, which are not, are required to have a charter, although Dillon's Rule applies. See administrative subdivisions of Virginia.
Washington Yes Yes
West Virginia Yes[20] No Dillon's Rule was effectively abolished in the 1969 Municipal Code, §7, Article 1. Home rule was introduced in a pilot program in 2007 and made permanent in 2019.
Wisconsin Limited Yes
Wyoming No Yes

Home rule charter cities

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In the United States, a home rule city, charter city, or home rule charter city is a city in which the governing system is defined by its own municipal charter document rather than solely by state statute (general law). State law may require general-law cities to have a five-member city council, for example, as in California, but a city organized under a charter may choose a different system, including the "strong mayor" or "city manager" forms of government.[21][22] These cities may be administered predominantly by residents or through a third-party management structure, because a charter gives a city the flexibility to choose novel types of government structure. Depending on the state, all cities, no cities, or some cities may be charter cities.[23]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Lang, Diane (December 1991). "DILLON'S RULE...AND THE BIRTH OF HOME RULE" (PDF). New Mexico Municipal League. Retrieved November 16, 2021.
  2. ^ a b "Local Government Authority". National League of Cities. Archived from the original on August 4, 2016. Retrieved August 13, 2016.
  3. ^ https://www.naco.org/sites/default/files/2024-03/2024%20County%20Government%20Primer_v20_FINAL.pdf
  4. ^ Adam Coester (January 2004). "Dillon's Rule or Not?" (PDF). National Association of Counties. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-10-10. Retrieved 2010-09-07.
  5. ^ "Home Rule". Encyclopedia of Alabama. Alabama Humanities Alliance. Retrieved 19 April 2023.
  6. ^ "Charter Cities List". League of California Cities. February 22, 2013. Retrieved 2016-06-23.
  7. ^ "Charter Cities". League of California Cities. Archived from the original on 2008-11-14. Retrieved 2008-11-14.
  8. ^ a b https://leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/r20-540_issue_brief_on_home_rule_charters.pdf
  9. ^ https://dola.colorado.gov/lgis/lgType.jsf
  10. ^ https://test.ccionline.org/about/counties/
  11. ^ "The Connecticut Constitution". Connecticut State Library. April 2011. Archived from the original on 2009-03-23. Retrieved 2011-04-06.
  12. ^ https://app.lla.state.la.us › llala.nsf › CECBB689D15358A5862583EF005AD18F › $FILE › WP-Limitations of Home Rule Chtr Authority.pdf
  13. ^ See Dillon Rule and Home Rule: Principles of Local Governance, Nebraska Legislative Research Office, February 2020.
  14. ^ a b "OPINION NO. 2016-07" (PDF). ag.nv.gov. Nevada Attorney General. April 15, 2016. Retrieved February 15, 2024.
  15. ^ "Texas Constitution, Article XI, Section 5". statutes.legis.state.tx.us. November 8, 2011. Retrieved February 15, 2024.
  16. ^ "Texas Constitution, Article XI, Section 4". statutes.legis.state.tx.us. November 2, 1920. Retrieved February 15, 2024.
  17. ^ "Texas Education Code, Chapter 12, Subchapter B". statutes.legis.state.tx.us. May 30, 1995. Retrieved February 15, 2024.
  18. ^ https://allianceaft.tx.aft.org/files/home_rule_fact_sheet.pdf#:~:text=What%20is%20a%20Home%20Rule%20Charter%20School%20District%3F,never%20once%20been%20used%20anywhere%20in%20the%20state.
  19. ^ "Local Government Autonomy and the Dillon Rule in Virginia". Retrieved 2020-05-12.
  20. ^ "The West Virginia Municipal Home Rule Program". West Virginia Department of Revenue. 2021. Retrieved 2021-12-30.
  21. ^ "Charter Cities". League of California Cities. 2007-05-09. Retrieved 2008-04-17.
  22. ^ "California Government Code, Title 4 Government of Cities, Chapter 2 Classification". State of California. Archived from the original on 2010-03-30. Retrieved 2008-04-17.
  23. ^ Total charter cities by state, from Ballotpedia

Further reading

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