city charter
Town's founding document
A city charter is the foundational legal document that establishes a municipality's government structure, powers, and boundaries.
It functions like a constitution for a city, defining how officials are elected, what authority local government holds, and how ordinances may be passed.
Cities operating under their own charter rather than general state law are often called charter cities or home rule cities.
- incorporationForming a legal entity
- town councilMunicipal governing body
- mayorElected head of municipality
- constitutionInherent physical or structural makeup
- statuteEnacted written rule
ordinances · bylaws · municipal code · legislative body · codification · amendment · self-governance · land use · referendums · ballot measure · voter initiative · ratification · petitions · special election · zoning · alderman · jurisdiction · budgeting
- city termsmayor, zoning laws, urban sprawl, public works, incorporation
- chartersroyal charters, town charters, Magna Carta
- City Documentszoning laws, building permits, meeting minutes, public notices, municipal codes
- city governmentmayor's office, public servants, civil servants, municipal employees, mayors
- city lawshousing laws, traffic rules, zoning laws, property laws, curfew laws
- city ordinancesnoise ordinance, noise ordinances, code enforcement, municipal codes, civic codes
city charterstate constitution
Regional government's founding document
federal constitution · national constitution · U.S. Constitution · international treaty · federal law