LGL3702 EXAM PACK 2024
LOCAL GOVERNMENT LAW
Hunter - (ANSWER)Re: incorporation, annexation, secession
General Rule: There is no constitutional right to local government...states have power to change
local governments as they will
Holding: Municipalities are delegees of state power-they have no inherent right to exist. So, the
state can set rules for how they are created, governed, annexed, etc. accordingly without there
being a violation of rights. The State are in the Constitution; cities are not!
Implies - These claims are reviewed under rational-basis review. See City of Herriman v. Bell for
the application for this.
Note - re: who makes the decision on incorp, annex, secess? Sometimes it's a local vote. And, per
this case, there is no constitutional requirement that there be a vote - can allow property owners
power to create governments. BUT a vote is almost always required (either popular, or by the
city council) if the area to be annexed is already incorporated - and in general for any annex.
City of Herriman v. Bell - (ANSWER)Re: incorporation, annexation, secession
Facts: city within a big district wants to breakaway - only gives city residents a vote in that.
Outside residents say that's a violation of our rights
General Rule: State can change a local government - or give that power to parts of the locality -
however it deems fit
Rational basis review
,Dillon's Rule - (ANSWER)Where is the LG power coming from? Direct enabling law from the
state:
Dillon's Rule, which says that we should assume that a city has NO power that the state does not
grant to it. Only three powers:
1) Granted in express words;
2) Necessarily or fairly implied in or incidental to the powers expressly granted (Remember,
Southern Contractors, Early Estates, and Tabler are all hitting here)
3) Those essential to the accomplishment of declared objects and purposes of the corporation -
not simply inconvenient (this prong doesn't really have much bite)
4) Any fair doubt should be resolved against LG
Gomillion v. Lightfoot - (ANSWER)Re: incorporation, annexation, secession
Facts: AL redraws voting map - 28 sided map, only 1 black person districted in the city
Exception to general rule: There is no constitutional right to local government...EXCEPT if the
revision violates an independent constitutional right (aka don't draw lines that exclude on the
basis of race or religion, otherwise, state can do what it wants)
Electoral district boundaries drawn only to disenfranchise blacks violate the right to vote without
regard to race (15th Amendment)...[but today, it's treated more as a 14th Amendment/EPC
understanding]
Kiryas Joel v. Grumet - (ANSWER)Re: incorporation, annexation, secession
Facts: NY intentionally drew boundaries in accordance with boundaries of the Village of Kiryas
Joel, a religious enclave of Satmar Hasidim.
Exception to general rule: There is no constitutional right to local government...EXCEPT if the
revision violates an independent constitutional right (aka don't draw lines that exclude on the
basis of race or religion, otherwise, state can do what it wants)
,NY had gone too far in favoring religion when it created a public school district for the benefit of
a village of Hasidic Jews/broke the establishment clause of the Constitution because it was a
public school
Avery - (ANSWER)Re: incorporation, annexation, secession
Facts: County Court is split up in such a way that the City is much less proportionally
represented. Why would they say this? The County Court mostly serves the county (roads
primarily), matters more to the people in the county, and people in the city may dominate them.
Rule: there is a federal constitutional right to equal representation in districts in local government
-- if state creates an elected government, it cannot unequally apportion districts
The Court says 1p1v-the right to broadly equal representation-applies to local government too
once it is created. A municipality or county cannot democratically exclude within its own
boundaries even if government is primarily aimed in policy matters at one part of the
jurisdiction.
Board of Estimates of City of New York v. Morris - (ANSWER)Re: incorporation, annexation,
secession
Facts: When New York is created, it sets up the Board of Estimate, which at the time, is way
more powerful than the Mayor. Over time, as populations diverge, certain burrows are
significantly more represented than others.
Rule: However, there is a federal constitutional right to equal representation in districts in local
government -- Even if the government may not have been formed yet.
Court says you can't violate 1p1v - no reason staten island (least populous borough) should be 5x
more represented than Brooklyn (most populous borough!
, Note: this puts constraints on State gov's ability to organize their jurisdictions - NYC argued it
never would've been combined into greater NYC if some places weren't given more power in the
senate than others - Court says nope you need equality. Why doesn't this apply to Senate? B/c
that's a specially created Constitutional body, no one else gets that treatment.
Holt Civic Club v. Tuscaloosa - (ANSWER)Re: incorporation, annexation, secession
Facts: Holt is small, unincorporated town outside Tuscaloosa. It's within Tusc's police jdx -- but
AL statute did not allow Holt residents to vote in Tuscaloosa city elections
General Rule: There is a federal constitutional right to equal representation in districts in local
government -- BUT the right to vote is limited to people who are residents. Does NOT apply to
people who are merely governed by many rules created by city (unless it seems like effective
annexation) who "reside beyond the geographic confines of the governmental entity concerned."
Holding here: Must consider whether the restrictions on the right to vote are rational and relevant
to a legitimate state purpose. Here, it was rational to restrict the right to vote to residents of the
city - and exclude non-residents who are impacted by the city's gov decisions.
It's rational here b/c 1) police jdx residents are not residents of the city, 2) State has an interest in
extraterritorial exercise of municipal powers to ensure areas like Holt have basic municipal
services
Town of Lockport - (ANSWER)Re: incorporation, annexation, secession
Facts: charter for Niagara County - majority of city voters approved the charter, majority of
noncity voters disapproved. Charter was not enacted because the noncity majority disapproved.
General Rule: There is a federal constitutional right to equal representation in districts in local
government -- BUT the right to vote does not apply in anticipation of city formation (there is a
distinction between the creation of the government and a local government that is already formed
for 1p1v)
LOCAL GOVERNMENT LAW
Hunter - (ANSWER)Re: incorporation, annexation, secession
General Rule: There is no constitutional right to local government...states have power to change
local governments as they will
Holding: Municipalities are delegees of state power-they have no inherent right to exist. So, the
state can set rules for how they are created, governed, annexed, etc. accordingly without there
being a violation of rights. The State are in the Constitution; cities are not!
Implies - These claims are reviewed under rational-basis review. See City of Herriman v. Bell for
the application for this.
Note - re: who makes the decision on incorp, annex, secess? Sometimes it's a local vote. And, per
this case, there is no constitutional requirement that there be a vote - can allow property owners
power to create governments. BUT a vote is almost always required (either popular, or by the
city council) if the area to be annexed is already incorporated - and in general for any annex.
City of Herriman v. Bell - (ANSWER)Re: incorporation, annexation, secession
Facts: city within a big district wants to breakaway - only gives city residents a vote in that.
Outside residents say that's a violation of our rights
General Rule: State can change a local government - or give that power to parts of the locality -
however it deems fit
Rational basis review
,Dillon's Rule - (ANSWER)Where is the LG power coming from? Direct enabling law from the
state:
Dillon's Rule, which says that we should assume that a city has NO power that the state does not
grant to it. Only three powers:
1) Granted in express words;
2) Necessarily or fairly implied in or incidental to the powers expressly granted (Remember,
Southern Contractors, Early Estates, and Tabler are all hitting here)
3) Those essential to the accomplishment of declared objects and purposes of the corporation -
not simply inconvenient (this prong doesn't really have much bite)
4) Any fair doubt should be resolved against LG
Gomillion v. Lightfoot - (ANSWER)Re: incorporation, annexation, secession
Facts: AL redraws voting map - 28 sided map, only 1 black person districted in the city
Exception to general rule: There is no constitutional right to local government...EXCEPT if the
revision violates an independent constitutional right (aka don't draw lines that exclude on the
basis of race or religion, otherwise, state can do what it wants)
Electoral district boundaries drawn only to disenfranchise blacks violate the right to vote without
regard to race (15th Amendment)...[but today, it's treated more as a 14th Amendment/EPC
understanding]
Kiryas Joel v. Grumet - (ANSWER)Re: incorporation, annexation, secession
Facts: NY intentionally drew boundaries in accordance with boundaries of the Village of Kiryas
Joel, a religious enclave of Satmar Hasidim.
Exception to general rule: There is no constitutional right to local government...EXCEPT if the
revision violates an independent constitutional right (aka don't draw lines that exclude on the
basis of race or religion, otherwise, state can do what it wants)
,NY had gone too far in favoring religion when it created a public school district for the benefit of
a village of Hasidic Jews/broke the establishment clause of the Constitution because it was a
public school
Avery - (ANSWER)Re: incorporation, annexation, secession
Facts: County Court is split up in such a way that the City is much less proportionally
represented. Why would they say this? The County Court mostly serves the county (roads
primarily), matters more to the people in the county, and people in the city may dominate them.
Rule: there is a federal constitutional right to equal representation in districts in local government
-- if state creates an elected government, it cannot unequally apportion districts
The Court says 1p1v-the right to broadly equal representation-applies to local government too
once it is created. A municipality or county cannot democratically exclude within its own
boundaries even if government is primarily aimed in policy matters at one part of the
jurisdiction.
Board of Estimates of City of New York v. Morris - (ANSWER)Re: incorporation, annexation,
secession
Facts: When New York is created, it sets up the Board of Estimate, which at the time, is way
more powerful than the Mayor. Over time, as populations diverge, certain burrows are
significantly more represented than others.
Rule: However, there is a federal constitutional right to equal representation in districts in local
government -- Even if the government may not have been formed yet.
Court says you can't violate 1p1v - no reason staten island (least populous borough) should be 5x
more represented than Brooklyn (most populous borough!
, Note: this puts constraints on State gov's ability to organize their jurisdictions - NYC argued it
never would've been combined into greater NYC if some places weren't given more power in the
senate than others - Court says nope you need equality. Why doesn't this apply to Senate? B/c
that's a specially created Constitutional body, no one else gets that treatment.
Holt Civic Club v. Tuscaloosa - (ANSWER)Re: incorporation, annexation, secession
Facts: Holt is small, unincorporated town outside Tuscaloosa. It's within Tusc's police jdx -- but
AL statute did not allow Holt residents to vote in Tuscaloosa city elections
General Rule: There is a federal constitutional right to equal representation in districts in local
government -- BUT the right to vote is limited to people who are residents. Does NOT apply to
people who are merely governed by many rules created by city (unless it seems like effective
annexation) who "reside beyond the geographic confines of the governmental entity concerned."
Holding here: Must consider whether the restrictions on the right to vote are rational and relevant
to a legitimate state purpose. Here, it was rational to restrict the right to vote to residents of the
city - and exclude non-residents who are impacted by the city's gov decisions.
It's rational here b/c 1) police jdx residents are not residents of the city, 2) State has an interest in
extraterritorial exercise of municipal powers to ensure areas like Holt have basic municipal
services
Town of Lockport - (ANSWER)Re: incorporation, annexation, secession
Facts: charter for Niagara County - majority of city voters approved the charter, majority of
noncity voters disapproved. Charter was not enacted because the noncity majority disapproved.
General Rule: There is a federal constitutional right to equal representation in districts in local
government -- BUT the right to vote does not apply in anticipation of city formation (there is a
distinction between the creation of the government and a local government that is already formed
for 1p1v)
