City Government by Commission (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1911 edition. Excerpt: ...against spoils and favoritism. By the new charter the heads of the administrative departments are specifically required to be 1 experts in the performance of their official duties. The mayor is given the absolute power to appoint them without any restriction as to residence, but subject to the certification of their expert qualifications by the state civil service board. The mayor may remove at his pleasure, but the new appointee is subject to the same certification. In order to secure a constant publicity in the conduct of the city's business, a state board of inspection, called a Finance Commission, is created whose special duty is to find out and disseminate information. This board is given ample powers and has at its command a standing appropriation which may be increased but not diminished. To sum up: There is an authoritative consensus of opinion that two important and essential steps toward the solution of the problem of city government in the United States are the simplification of the structural plan of the government and the reduction of elective city officers to the minimum number adequate to perform the functions appropriate to elective officials in the conduct of the city's public business. There is a constantly strengthening sentiment that the successful solution of the problem of city government in the United States demands: (1) That the voters of a city should control the policy of its government and that practicable methods, adequate to accomplish this result, must be provided; (2) That the personnel of its purely administrative service should be selected, appointed, and retained without reference to their political opinions or affiliations and solely on account of their personal merit; (3) That the city's voters should be kept...