Deck 10: State-Local Relations

Question 1

In the United States, the closest thing to regional governments are

A)special districts.
B)citi-states.
C)urban villages.
D)city-county consolidations.

Answer 1

D

Question 2

The rule that limits the powers of local governments to those expressly granted by the state or those closely linked to expressed powers is known as

A)Donald's rule.
B)Dillon's rule.
C)the Peter Principle.
D)the Iron Law of Oligarchy.

Answer 2

B

Question 3

The majority of land use decisions occur at the

A)state level.
B)federal level.
C)local level.
D)subterranean level.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

City-county consolidations are efforts to provide a regional government,

A)but the primary functions of local government-public safety, public works, and health and human services-are generally kept separated along county and city lines.
B)where area jurisdictions are merged into a single countywide government.
C)and counties and cities within their boundaries generally get to create the rules of the game.
D)and they were increasingly popular at the polls in the 1960s and 1970s, when twenty-three such governments were created.

Question 5

Among the fifty states, the degree of authority granted to local governments

A)is specified in the U.S.Constitution.
B)has been standardized based on model legislation written by the U.S.Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations (ACIR).
C)is clearly stated in Dillon's Rule.
D)varies widely.

Question 6

The use of state mandates is a process wherein

A)local governments are given freedom to solve problems and are provided funding.
B)the state tells local government how to solve a problem and, at the same time, ensures uniformity of policy among its local governments.
C)the state only repeats the guidance it has received from the federal government.
D)the state provides guidance but then defers to local government preferences.

Question 7

Use of the term edge cities conveys the notion that

A)the states, in guiding growth to selected areas, have created new cities to absorb the growth.
B)the forces of rapid, unplanned growth have created new developments on the urban fringes.
C)"bedroom communities" on the city's edge now seek annexation to the central city.
D)the central cities have been key players in determining where such developments occur but would like to disclaim such credit.

Question 8

The state that in 1997 enacted a law called the Smart Growth Areas Act to combat urban sprawl was

A)Maryland.
B)New York.
C)Arizona.
D)California.

Question 9

All of the following are instances where states have a tendency to give their localities comparatively more power EXCEPT

A)states that operate with traditional citizen-style, part-time legislative bodies.
B)states with slower rates of population growth.
C)states with robust economies.
D)states who have adopted a home provision.

Question 10

Local governments want state governments to

A)continue current funding levels but increase autonomy.
B)improve the quality of technical assistance used in meeting their obligations.
C)allow more local authority and, more importantly, greater financial assistance.
D)follow the statutory patterns on local authority recommended by most state officials.

Question 11

The term smart growth refers to

A)government efforts to limit urban sprawl by managing growth.
B)the movement to revitalize the inner city using enterprise zones.
C)the resurgence of mass transportation in the cities.
D)the development of more suburban office space to keep up with the creation of suburban malls.

Question 12

Urban sprawl is sometimes called

A)leapfrog development.
B)turtle development.
C)intercity redevelopment.
D)inelastic development.

Question 13

The term urban sprawl refers to

A)new and rapid development on the outskirts of established cities.
B)downtown redevelopment.
C)redeveloped riverfront areas in cities.
D)shopping malls built in downtown areas.

Question 14

An evolving relationship between the states and local government appears now to reflect a

A)growing distance and coolness between the two.
B)growing recognition that stronger local governments can be important partners with the state.
C)jealousy over federal funding that has made the local governments independent-minded entities.
D)well-coordinated process of assistance and empowerment.

Question 15

The term that refers to development beyond the central city that is characterized by low population density, rapid land consumption, and dependence on the automobile is

A)edge cities.
B)edge sprawl.
C)inelastic cities.
D)urban sprawl.

Question 16

Although local governments generally want increased autonomy, state governments have shared their policymaking sphere with

A)reluctance.
B)great enthusiasm.
C)cooperation and compromise.
D)indifference.

Question 17

A shift in power from state government to local government is known as

A)second-order devolution.
B)home rule.
C)city-county consolidation.
D)a horizontal power arrangement.

Question 18

What was the outcome of a survey given to Minnesota local officials about their views on state mandates?

A)Local officials generally agree that mandates for infrastructure, public safety and environmental protection are not necessary.
B)Mandates for economic development and general government administration are overwhelmingly supported by local officials.
C)Resistance to mandates is uniform and consistent among local officials.
D)Support for mandates by local officials depends on the policy area affected.

Question 19

Departments of community affairs (DCAs)have been created in

A)all fifty states.
B)three-quarters of the states.
C)about half of the states.
D)twelve states.

Question 20

The process of adding unincorporated adjacent territory to a municipality is called

A)smart growth.
B)annexation.
C)urban sprawl.
D)municipal consolidation.

Question 21

Three types of state-local organizations are common: task forces, advisory commissions on intergovernmental relations, and departments of community affairs.

Question 22

The term home rule refers to allowing localities to manage their own affairs as much as possible.

Question 23

Because of the increased tax dollars that come with growth, urban sprawl does not cause infrastructure pressures for cities.

Question 24

The idea of edge cities was a popular concept during the 1980s, but by the late 1990s, political scientists replaced that concept with urban sprawl.

Question 25

Regional governance

A)has worked well in Europe but has never been considered in the United States.
B)has always been popular in the United States.
C)is popular in the United States and is increasingly used as counties and cities eagerly surrender their political power to the newly formed regional governments.
D)has never been popular in the United States.

Question 26

Councils of governments

A)involve a formal merger or combination of governments.
B)have been established to clearly define the powers of local governments.
C)provide a neutral forum in which local leaders can come together to identify and discuss issues of concern.
D)serve to consolidate area jurisdictions into a single countywide government.

Question 27

Local officials express concern that neither their policymaking power nor their financial authority has kept pace with the increased administrative responsibilities placed on them by state governments.

Question 28

An inelastic city is characterized by

A)unlimited potential for growth into the areas outside the city.
B)the presence of few edge cities near its boundaries.
C)the presence of few shadow governments near the city.
D)limited (if any)potential for growth into areas outside the city due to the presence of other cities or jurisdictions.

Question 29

In the United States, the closest thing to regional government is city-county consolidation and, to date, there are ______ cities and counties that have consolidated.

A)forty-one
B)fifty
C)eleven
D)thirty-three

Question 30

Usually, the term infrastructure refers to the physical network of a community-which includes streets, schools, water and sewer systems, and so on.

Question 31

Dillon's rule holds that local governments are "creatures of their states."

Question 32

City-county consolidations are

A)rare, and efforts to consolidate are usually defeated by voters.
B)becoming increasingly common, and about seventy-five consolidations have occurred since 1970.
C)common and are quickly replacing county governments across the nation.
D)very rational and popular among voters in most states.

Question 33

The city that has joined with its suburbs and outlying jurisdictions to develop a region-wide vision aimed at accommodating orderly growth while maintaining a desirable quality of life in the region for the future (called the 2040 Plan), is

A)Missoula, Montana.
B)Seattle, Washington.
C)Portland, Maine.
D)Portland, Oregon.

Question 34

The arguments for city-county consolidation include the idea that

A)people will support such a system more than they support separate governments.
B)such a government is more likely to protect the political status of minorities.
C)problems can be attacked on an area-wide basis, and service delivery will benefit from economies of scale.
D)taxes will inevitably be lower.

Question 35

Unfunded mandates were once a constant source of friction between the states and their local governments, but today the tension is less because most states provide adequate funds to pay for the mandates.

Question 36

From the perspective of state government, mandates are necessary to ensure that vital activities are performed and desirable goals achieved by local governments.

Question 37

In an effort to reverse population loss, twelve small towns in _____offered free land to families who would build a home on the parcel.

A)Kansas
B)Nebraska
C)Idaho
D)Alaska

Question 38

A city's "elasticity" or "inelasticity" is an indication of its

A)ability or inability to coordinate programs with the cities located on its edge.
B)ability or inability to expand its jurisdiction to capture suburban growth.
C)ability or inability to consolidate functions with neighbors without losing its political identity.
D)willingness or unwillingness to participate in federal programs to solve the local metropolitan area's transportation problems.

Question 39

Under regional government, local jurisdictions

A)give up some of their political power in exchange for area-wide solutions to local problems.
B)usually gain power because states provide additional funding and incentives to join such arrangements.
C)usually gain additional power because of the new regional charters approved by states.
D)usually do not experience any loss of political power.

Question 40

Local governments want three things from the state: more money, more mandates, and removal of the restrictions forcing them to raise additional revenues themselves.

Question 41

To public choice theorists, consolidating cities and counties or creating regional governments robs people of important choices and creates inefficiencies.

Question 42

What problems does urban sprawl create for state and local governments?

Question 43

Discuss local government complaints about state government treatment of them and the steps being taken by various states to respond to those complaints.

Question 44

Area-wide planning is the most common activity of councils of government.

Question 45

What are edge cities? Do they pose any particular problems for local governments?

Question 46

The term elastic cities refers to cities that are able to capture suburban growth by adjusting their boundaries through annexation.Inelastic cities, by contrast, get trapped in existing boundaries and suffer from population loss and tax-base erosion.

Question 47

What do Bowman and Kearney mean when they point out that there is typically a "state-local tug-of-war" in the states?

Question 48

Discuss some of the new problems that state and local governments face in dealing with metropolitics.

Question 49

Urban sprawl has become a major issue in state-local relations, and states have begun to adopt "smart growth" laws that are designed to help localities manage growth.

Question 50

One way for states to encourage the right kind of growth in rural areas is to reform state tax codes so that jurisdictions can share locally generated tax revenues.

Question 51

City-county consolidations-the merger of city and county governments into a single jurisdiction-have been popular during the past forty years.To date, more than one hundred cities and counties have consolidated.