What Does Rule Class City Mean

In the United States, Home Rule refers to the authority of a constituent part of a U.S. state to exercise governmental powers delegated to it by its state government. In some states known as autonomous states, the state constitution gives municipalities and/or counties the ability to enact laws to govern themselves as they see fit (as long as they obey state and federal constitutions). In other states, local governments have been granted limited powers by passing laws by the state legislature. In these states, a city or county must obtain authorization from the state legislature if it wishes to pass a law or ordinance that is not expressly authorized by existing state law. The following chart shows which of the 50 U.S. states are self-governing states and states follow the legal principle of Dillon`s rule to determine local authority for determining local authority [3] A state in this table with “limited” autonomy may grant autonomy to certain cities and municipalities individually, but does not have a constitutional amendment guaranteeing self-government. A state that is both a self-governing state and a Dillon state applies the Dillon rule to matters or governmental entities that are not reflected in the constitutional amendment or self-government legislation. Forty of the fifty states apply a form of principle known as the Dillon Rule, which states that local governments may exercise only those powers that the state expressly grants them to determine the limits of a municipal government`s legal authority. [1] The National League of Cities identifies 31 Dillon Rule states, 10 Home Rule states, 8 states that apply Dillon`s Rule only to certain municipalities, and one state (Florida) that applies Home Rule to everything but taxes. [2] Each State defines its own powers to local authorities. In the local sphere, there are four categories in which the state allows discretionary powers:[2] The District of Columbia has a limited form of autonomy granted by the federal government; For more information, see District of Columbia Home Rule.