Mayor-Council discussion board

mayor-council paper
Paper must be 150 words to 200 words, See attached topics.

Mayor-Council vs. Council-Manager City Discussion Board

Prompt:

In a response of 150 words to 200 words, please explain whether you feel local government functions most effectively with a Mayor-Council form of government or a Council-Manager form of government?  Consequently, do you prefer the model of having legislative and executive functions separated?  Does the Mayor-Council system with separated executive and legislative functions adhere to the separation of powers seen between the Governor and State Legislature at the state level and President and Congress at the federal/national level?  Alternatively, does the Council-Manager system with a fusion of legislative and executive powers by the Council who hire a City Manager adhere more to the style of government found at the County level with the County Board of Supervisors who hire a CAO (Chief Administrative Officer) and within school districts (i.e. the School Board who hire a Superintendent) and college districts (i.e. the Board of Trustees who hire a Chancellor)?

With respect to the Council-Manager system, does it present an improvement on the Commission style of government or Galveston Model?  Basically, does it make sense to have a city council made up of commissioners that oversee specific departments such as the police, fire, sanitation, etc., or is it preferable to have a council that oversees all departments equally?  Just as Presidents and Governors oversee their cabinets and hence the bureaucracy at the Federal and State levels respectively, do council members have the necessary expertise to oversee complicated departments, or is it better to rely on trained individuals to head such departments such as a Chief of Police, Fire Chief, etc.?

ANSWER

Mayor-Council Discussion Board

I feel the council-manager system is more effective than the mayor-council approach. It is important to have legislative and executive functions independent of each other at the state and national level but necessarily so at the local government. Furthermore, the mayor-council form of local government does not necessarily adhere to the form of separation of powers seen at the state and the national level. The council-manager fused legislative and executive system adheres to the one found at the county level. In this model, for instance, the Chief Administrative Officer and the Superintendent are hired by the County Board of Supervisors and the School Board respectively. Similarly, the council chairperson and the city manager or mayor are elected by the council members.

The council-manager style is an improvement to the council style as it fuses the executive and the legislature together. There is a decision-maker (the city manager) elected by the members of the council but at the same time, there is wide consultation among the members. It is also effective as different council members are allocated specific departments to oversee. Trained bureaucrats can advise the head of departments on expertise.