Civics 101

Citizens generally have a desire to learn more about America's cities, including their own community's municipal government. This is true because people spend most of their lives living, working, and paying municipal taxes in cities. Many citizens, however, know more about their state and federal government, than they do about the city in which they live. This is primarily due to the extensive media coverage given to topical issues and news events, plus what they, as students, were never taught in high school civics classes many years ago. City government is the level of government of which citizens should be most informed. After all, the decisions made by the local elected public officials-mayors and city council members-have a more direct and greater impact on their lives than do those decisions made by elected leaders in higher levels of government. This thirst for knowledge is made apparent when speaking before community groups and professional organizations about how much municipal government works. Most citizens want to know more about the operations of their local government, including the roles of their elected officials, advisory bodies, chief administrative officer, and the various functional managers that make government work.