small town self government types of

When deciding which structure the new town government should have, several issues need to be taken into account. The nature of the local economy is important to consider. If town members are all working in the same basic sector such as agriculture, raw materials production, or industry, then that would inform a different type of town government than one that is more diverse and heterogeneous in terms of local business needs. Similarly, the demographics, the actual number of residents, and the potential for the town to grow even more in the future also needs to be taken into consideration. The town’s proximity to other towns would impact the decision as well, because of the likelihood of eventually merging two or more areas into a larger municipality.

If the town is truly rural and unlikely to grow exponentially any time soon, then a Town Meeting, or at least a Representative Town Meeting style would be appropriate (National League of Cities, n.d.). The Town Meeting style of local governance works for very small localities like this one, empowers voters to make the decisions that affect them personally, and allow equal input from homeowners, residents, and business owners in the area. Because the town is new, it would also be a good idea to begin with a method of local governance that welcomes active participation to encourage the principles of good citizenship.

The organization Citizens for a Responsible Government is an organization that empowers citizens and would therefore support the Town Meeting format of local governance (Citizens for a Responsible Government, n.d.). The framework for the Town Meeting style is inherently averse to corruption because each person has a greater degree of power than in a less direct method of local governance. If there are suspected problems or conflicts of interest, they are easier to resolve when neighbors simply need to band together to form informal coalitions to make decisions that promote the values and ideals of the community.