Government Foundations

Internet Activities: State and Local Government

Just the Facts, Please :: Exploration

Just the Facts, Please

1. Go to the Stateline site. (http://www.stateline.org)

Define and discuss the major state legislative issues in the coming year, according this website?

2. Go to the National Conference of State Legislators site. (http://www.ncsl.org)

Chart out the legislative calendars and agendas for the 2001 legislative season.

3. Initiative and Referendum Institute (http://www.iandrinstitute.org)

Define the two types of initiatives and two types of referendum. Which states use the different initiatives and referendums? What other countries, besides the U.S., use initiatives and referendums?

4. Using your state’s constitution, answer the following questions. For state constitutions: (http://www.findlaw.com/11stategov/indexconst.html) What provisions exist for the executive, legislative, and judicial branches? What are the duties and functions of each of these branches? In what ways can each document be amended? In what ways do each provide for individual, or civil, rights?

5. Using FindLaw.com (http://guide.lp.findlaw.com/11stategov/), open up your state’s website.

What is the current budget for your state government, county and city governments (where applicable)?

What kind of system does your city and council use (i.e., council-manager, etc). Are these offices partisan or non-partisan? What is their term of office, and are they subject to term limits? What are the pros and cons of term limits?
Regarding your state legislature, is it a bicameral or unicameral body? What are the pros and cons of bicameral and unicameral systems? How many serve in the legislature, and what is their term of office? Are they subject to term limits? What are the pros and cons of term limits?

6. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is online at the following Web site: http://ftc.gov

Access this site, browse through it, and then answer these questions

What are the vision, mission, and goals of the FTC?
What legislation established the FTC? What areas of activity is the agency authorized to regulate?
In what circumstances might the FTC bring an action against an organization? When it does so, what procedures does it follow?
From the home page, select "Current News Releases." What topics do these releases address?

7. The Center for Education Reform’s Web sites offers an abundance of articles on school reforms that are being undertaken in various areas of the country. Access its site at http://www.edreform.com/choice.htm

Select the article entitled "Around the Reform World in 30 Days." What types of reforms are being considered in each of the four states discussed?

Go back to the main page and select the article entitled "Florida Brings Accountability home." Describe Florida’s recent educational reform. Why does it stress "public school improvement and accountability"?

In your opinion, should similar legislation be passed in other states?

8. Learning More About State Legislators, Governments, and Governors

URLs:

http://www.ncsl.org/
http://www.statesnews.org/
http://www.nga.org/

Go to the first URL, which is NCSLnet—The Electronic Information Network for State Legislatures—created by the National Conference of State Legislatures. Go to the top bar where "state legislatures" is located, open the window with your mouse, and click on "about state legislatures." Now go down under the "Contents" to "term limits" and click on this link.
Read the material entitled "Term Limits for State Elected Officials" and answer the following:

How many states limit the terms of their legislators?
Does your state have term limits? If not, what state closest to your own does?
What will be the effect of term limits in the 2000 elections?

Now go to the second URL, which is the home page of "States News," a site run by The Council of State Governments. What are the "top stories" in "Today’s State News"? Now go to the left-side of the page, and hit "FAQ about CSG." Summarize the mission of CSG and explain where CSG’s headquarters is located.

Now, go to the third URL, which is the home page for the National Governor’s Association. Go to the top of the left-side bar and hit the link entitled "Information on the Governors, State-of-the-State Addresses." Now find your state and the specific date (from 2000) of your governor’s address. Click it on, read it, and summarize its main policy concerns. Now click on the "1999 state of the state address" link. Read that address. Was your governor concerned about similar policy issues or were there significant differences in policy priorities compared to the 2000 speech? Finally, click-on the link, "Did you know? Facts about the Governors." Then scroll down and hit the two links, "Governors who became President" and "Women who have served as Governors."

Name the last five governors who became President of the United States.
Name the last five women governors.

return to top

Exploration

1. Analysis of County Governments in America

Instructions:

Goal: To analyze how forty large counties around the nation rank on managing the tasks of government, i.e., more specifically on the criteria of financial management, human resources management, information technology management, capital management, and managing for results. This will be done by using a website relating to the Government Performance Project, a study conducted by Syracuse University and Governing Magazine.

URL:

http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/gpp

Select the "Government Performance Project" link on the website and other appropriate sub-links to answer the questions below.

Now hit the "County Grade Report" sub-link.

Which of the 40 large U.S. counties received "A" grades? Which received "Cs," "Ds" and "Fs"?

Now hit the "How We Grade Them" sub-link.

Briefly summarize what specific questions/concerns were addressed under the five criteria of Financial Management, Capital Management, Human Resources, Managing for Results, and Information Technology.

Which of the five criteria do you consider the most important and why?

Now look at the "County Report Cards" sub-link on the website and choose one county that received high grades on the five criteria, and one county that received relatively poor grades.

After reading the reports, what specific actions/management strengths were related to the highly-rated county and similarly what specific actions/strengths were related to the poorly-rated county?

From your reading, why do you believe it is so difficult for county leaders to manage their governments effectively?

2. Go to http://www.statelocalgov.net/index.cfm and you will find the Piper Resources Guide to government sponsored Internet sites. Scroll down and select the link to your state.

Does your state have a home page?
List the Statewide Offices that have home pages in your state.
Does your state legislature have a home page? If so, follow the link and briefly summarize the information available on the website. Is your state legal code on-line?
Does your state judicial system have a home page?
What Executive Departments in your state maintain websites?

Scroll down to the Cities section and see if your city has an internet link. Follow the link to your city’s home page. Can you e-mail your city government from the website?

return to top