Contract city

Last updated May 21, 2024

Contract city is a term used in some U.S. states for a city that contracts for the provision of one or more municipal services with another unit of government or with a private or commercial organization.

Lakewood

Lakewood, California was incorporated in 1954 as the first contract city.^[1] It was not the first city to enter into a contract with a county government to have services provided by the county.^[1] At that point in time, Los Angeles County already "had over 400 service agreements with 45 cities."^[1] What distinguishes Lakewood and other contract cities from traditional full-service cities is their reliance on "contracting as a way of life."^[1]

In Lakewood's case, it outsourced services so thoroughly back to the Los Angeles County government that early on, it only needed three employees: "an attorney, a city manager, and a secretary."^[1] This raises the obvious question of why it needed to incorporate in the first place.^[1] In the early 1950s, Lakewood was an unincorporated area facing a hostile annexation from adjacent Long Beach, California.^[1] American cities traditionally impose additional taxes on top of county taxes, but often provide higher levels of service and a wider range of services than county governments.^[1] However, unlike the vast majority of American counties, Los Angeles County had already developed a tradition of providing relatively high levels of service to unincorporated urban areas.^[1] Lakewood residents were satisfied with the status quo and were uninterested in paying even higher taxes to support both the Los Angeles County government and the Long Beach city government.^[1] Conversely, the county government had an interest in maintaining its traditional service-delivery role, as did its employees.^[1] Lakewood's use of municipal incorporation and extensive intergovernmental contracting to maintain local control became known as the Lakewood Plan and has served as a model for contract cities ever since.^[1]

In contrast, independent cities are cities which provide basic governmental services themselves, without contracting (this usage is not to be confused with the more common usage of independent city as a city that is not part of any county). Most older cities are independent cities. In practice, many cities today are hybrids of both. For instance, they may directly operate parks programs, but contract with the county for police and fire services. Most contract cities do their own land use planning, since they were usually incorporated to exert local control over land use.

Notable contract cities

In the 21st century there has been a significant increase in the number of contract cities. Several that have received attention from the media include:

External links

Related Research Articles

Cerritos is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, and is one of several cities that constitute the Gateway Cities of southeast Los Angeles County. It was incorporated on April 24, 1956. As of 2019, the population was 49,859. It is part of the Los Angeles–Long Beach–Anaheim, California Metropolitan Statistical Area designated by the Office of Management and Budget.

Hawaiian Gardens is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is the smallest city in the county in area and was incorporated on April 9, 1964. The population was 14,149 at the 2020 census, down slightly from 14,254 at the 2010 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maywood, California</span> City in California, United States

Maywood is a gateway city in Los Angeles County. At 1.18 square miles (3.1 km²), Maywood is the third-smallest incorporated city in Los Angeles County. It is bordered by the cities of Bell on the south, Vernon on the north and west, Huntington Park on the southwest, and Commerce on the east.

Sandy Springs is a city in northern Fulton County, Georgia, United States, and a suburb of Atlanta. The city's population was 108,080 at the 2020 census, making it Georgia's 7th most populous city. It is the site of several corporate headquarters, including UPS, Newell Brands, Inspire Brands, Focus Brands, Cox Enterprises, and Mercedes-Benz USA's corporate offices.

An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. There are many unincorporated communities and areas in the United States and Canada.

Centennial is a home rule municipality located in Arapahoe County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 108,418 at the 2020 United States Census, making Centennial the 11th most populous municipality in Colorado. Centennial is a part of the Denver–Aurora–Lakewood, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Front Range Urban Corridor.

Most U.S. states and territories have at least two tiers of local government: counties and municipalities. Louisiana uses the term parish and Alaska uses the term borough for what the U.S. Census Bureau terms county equivalents in those states. Civil townships or towns are used as subdivisions of a county in 20 states, mostly in the Northeast and Midwest.

State Route 19 is a state highway in the U.S. state of California, running along Lakewood Boulevard and Rosemead Boulevard in the Los Angeles area. An additional "hidden" state highway, State Route 164, is also signed as part of SR 19, despite having a legal description separate from Route 19. The combined route is a north–south four-to-six lane suburban roadway, lying east of the Long Beach Freeway and west of the San Gabriel River Freeway, and connecting the eastern parts of Long Beach and Pasadena via the Whittier Narrows. Under their legal descriptions, SR 19 runs north to Gallatin Road in Pico Rivera, then SR 164 goes from Gallatin Road to Pasadena. Since 1998, several pieces have been relinquished to local governments, and more transfers are authorized by state law.

The economy of the State of California is the largest in the United States, with a $3.89 trillion gross state product (GSP) as of 2023. It is the largest sub-national economy in the world. If California were a sovereign nation (2024), it would rank in terms of nominal GDP as the world's Sixth largest economy, ahead of the United Kingdom. California Poised to Become World's 6th Biggest Economy Additionally, California's Silicon Valley is home to some of the world's most valuable technology companies, including Apple, Alphabet, and Nvidia. In total, 11 of the Fortune 100 companies and 53 of the Fortune 500 companies are headquartered in California.

The administrative divisions of Virginia are the areas into which the Commonwealth of Virginia, a U.S. state, is divided for political and administrative purposes. Some are local governments; others are not. However, all local governments are political subdivisions of the state.

In the United States, the meaning of village varies by geographic area and legal jurisdiction. In formal usage, a "village" is a type of administrative division at the local government level. Since the Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibits the federal government from legislating on local government, the states are free to have political subdivisions called "villages" or not to and to define the word in many ways. Typically, a village is a type of municipality, although it can also be a special district or an unincorporated area. It may or may not be recognized for governmental purposes.

Municipal annexation is a process by which a municipality acquires new territory, most commonly by expanding its boundaries into an adjacent unincorporated area. This has been a common response of cities to urbanization in neighboring areas. It may be done because the neighboring urban areas seek municipal services or because a city seeks control over its suburbs or neighboring unincorporated areas.

The Irvine Police Department is the local law enforcement agency of the city of Irvine, California, United States. The department's jurisdiction includes the entire city of Irvine, which covers nearly 70 square miles (180 km²) and a population of over 270,000, as well as the Orange County Great Park.

In the United States, a sheriff is the chief of law enforcement of a county. Sheriffs are usually either elected by the populace or appointed by an elected body.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lakewood, California</span> City in California, United States

Lakewood is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The population was 82,496 at the 2020 census. It is bordered by Long Beach on the west, northwest and south, Bellflower on the north, Cerritos on the northeast, Cypress on the east, and Hawaiian Gardens on the southeast. Major thoroughfares include Lakewood, Bellflower, and Del Amo Boulevards and Carson and South Streets. The San Gabriel River Freeway (I-605) runs through the city's eastern regions.

A voluntary group or union is a group of individuals who enter into an agreement, usually as volunteers, to form a body to accomplish a purpose. Common examples include trade associations, trade unions, learned societies, professional associations, and environmental groups.

The government of California has an extensive system of local government that manages public functions throughout the state. Like most states, California is divided into counties, of which there are 58 covering the entire state. Most urbanized areas are incorporated as cities, though not all of California is within the boundaries of a city. School districts, which are independent of cities and counties, handle public education. Many other functions, especially in unincorporated areas, are handled by special districts, which include municipal utility districts, transit districts, health care districts, vector control districts, and geologic hazard abatement districts.

The Government of Los Angeles County is defined and authorized under the California Constitution, California law, and the Charter of the County of Los Angeles. Much of the Government of California is in practice the responsibility of county governments, such as the Government of Los Angeles County. The County government provides countywide services such as elections and voter registration, law enforcement, jails, vital records, property records, tax collection, public health, health care, and social services. In addition the County serves as the local government for all unincorporated areas.

The government of Alameda County, California, is defined and authorized under the California Constitution, California law, and the Charter of the County of Alameda. Much of the Government of California is in practice the responsibility of county governments such as the Government of Alameda County. The County government provides countywide services such as elections and voter registration, law enforcement, jails, vital records, property records, tax collection, public health, and social services. In addition the County serves as the local government for all unincorporated areas. County services are provided to residents by more than 9,000 employees working in 21 different agencies and departments with an annual budget expenditure of $2.4 billion.

References

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Lavery, Kevin (1999). Smart Contracting for Local Government Services: Processes and Experience. Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers. pp. 99–104. ISBN 9780275964283 . Retrieved 16 November 2019.
↑ "Public-Private Partnerships for Local Governments: The Sandy Springs Model". 29 January 2010.
↑ "Centennial, Colorado: Incorporated and Thriving Since 2001". 19 December 2010.
↑ Streitfeld, David (20 July 2010). "A City Outsources Everything. Sky Doesn't Fall". The New York Times.
↑ "Reason Foundation's Annual Privatization Report 2009". 6 August 2009.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[Lavery-1] 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Lavery, Kevin (1999). Smart Contracting for Local Government Services: Processes and Experience. Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers. pp. 99–104. ISBN 9780275964283 . Retrieved 16 November 2019.

[2] "Public-Private Partnerships for Local Governments: The Sandy Springs Model". 29 January 2010.

[3] "Centennial, Colorado: Incorporated and Thriving Since 2001". 19 December 2010.

[4] Streitfeld, David (20 July 2010). "A City Outsources Everything. Sky Doesn't Fall". The New York Times.

[5] "Reason Foundation's Annual Privatization Report 2009". 6 August 2009.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]