More Than Mayor Or Manager

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More than Mayor or Manager

Author: James H. Svara
language: en
Publisher: Georgetown University Press
Release Date: 2010-11-23
Different forms of city government are in widespread use across the United States. The two most common structures are the mayor-council form and the council-manager form. In many large U.S. cities, there have been passionate movements to change the structure of city governments and equally intense efforts to defend an existing structure. Charter change (or preservation) is supported to solve problems such as legislative gridlock, corruption, weak executive leadership, short-range policies, or ineffective delivery of services. Some of these cities changed their form of government through referendum while other cities chose to retain the form in use. More than Mayor or Manager offers in-depth case studies of fourteen large U.S. cities that have considered changing their form of government over the past two decades: St. Petersburg, Florida; Spokane, Washington; Hartford, Connecticut; Richmond, Virginia; San Diego, California; Oakland, California; Kansas City, Missouri; Grand Rapids, Michigan; Dallas, Texas; Cincinnati, Ohio; El Paso, Texas; Topeka, Kansas; St. Louis, Missouri; and Portland, Oregon. The case studies shed light on what these constitutional contests teach us about different forms of government—the causes that support movements for change, what the advocates of change promised, what is at stake for the nature of elected and professional leadership and the relationship between leaders, and why some referendums succeeded while others failed. This insightful volume will be of special interest to leaders and interest groups currently considering or facing efforts to change the form of government as well as scholars in the field of urban studies.
Governing States and Localities

The partisan and ideological polarization associated with federal government plagues states and localities too, bringing with it significant implications for public policy and intergovernmental relations. The trusted and proven Governing States and Localities guides students through these issues and continues its focus on the role economic and budget pressures play. With their engaging journalistic writing and crisp storytelling, Kevin B. Smith and Alan Greenblatt employ a comparative approach to explain how and why states and localities are both similar and different in institutional structure, culture, history, economy, geography, and demographics. A great blend of high-quality academic analysis and the latest scholarship, the Sixth Edition is thoroughly updated to account for such major developments as state vs. federal conflicts over immigration reform, gun control, and voter rights; health and education reforms aimed at improving the effectiveness of state and local government service delivery; and the lingering effects of the Great Recession.
Leadership and Change in Public Sector Organizations

Cover -- Title -- Copyright -- Dedication -- CONTENTS -- Acknowledgments -- About the Contributors -- List of Figures and Tables -- 1 Introduction: Beyond Reform-Leadership, Change, and the Role of Innovation -- PART I Ecology of Public Sector Innovation and Performance Literature -- 2 Reinventing and Redesigning Local Government -- 3 Innovation and Organizational Survival Research -- PART II Governance and New Frontiers in Public Policy -- 4 Cooperative/Collaborative Governance in a Networked Age -- 5 Chaos Theory, Disaster Policy, and Response: Achieving the New Normal -- PART III Leadership and Change in Governing Systems -- 6 Public Sector Compensation-School District Superintendents: Are We Getting Our Monies' Worth? -- 7 Implementing an Innovative Dream of Change: Lessons From Houston Community Colleges -- 8 Citizen Advisory Bodies: New Wine in Old Bottles? -- 9 Local Government Reform, Convergence, and the Hybrid Model -- PART IV Social Justice and Equality -- 10 Support for Gender Equality Duty Strategies Among Local Government Officials in Texas -- 11 Can Innovative Leadership Improve Community and Police Relationships? Lessons Learned From Youngstown, Ohio -- 12 Choice Points as a Framework for Decision-Making -- 13 Conclusion: Scenarios and Common Themes in Leadership and Change -- Index