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Q: What is the history of the council-manager form? <br /> <br />A: Born out of the progressive reform movement at the beginning of the 20th century, <br />the council-manager system of local government is one of the few original American <br />contr/butions to political theory. In 1908, Staunton, Virginia, instituted the first position <br />legally defining, by ordinance, the broad authority and responsibility associated with <br />today's professional local government manager. Sumter, South Carolina, was the first <br />city to adopt a charter incorporating the basic principles of council-manager government <br />in 1912. Westmount, Quebec, introduced the form to Canada in 1913. The first large <br />city to adopt the plan was Dayton, Ohio, in 1914. The first counties to adopt it in the <br />1930s were ,~lington County, Virginia, and Durham County and Robeson County, North <br />Carolina. <br /> Since its establishment, the council-manager form has become the most popular <br />form of government in the United States in communities w~th populations of 5,000 or <br />greater. The form .also is popular in Canada, Australia, the Netherlands, New Zealand, <br />the United Kingdom, Honduras, Chile, and Brazil. For more than 94 years, <br />council-manager government has responded to the changing needs of citizens and their <br />communities. <br /> <br />Q: How can a community adopt this form of government? <br /> <br />A: Methods vary, but most communities can adopt council-manager government <br />through a charter, a local ordinance, or a state enabling law. In many cases, adoption <br />must be by vote of the local governing body. For information on how your community <br />can adopt council-manager government, contact your state municipal league or <br />association of counties. You can find the addresses of these organizations in ICMA's <br />Municipal Year Book at your local library, or on the Internet. <br /> <br />Q: How is the manager selected? <br /> <br />A: The vacancy usually is announced in the i'CMA Newsletter, and managers in other <br />communities are invited to apply if they are interested. Managers, assistants, and others <br />apply directly to the council, which reviews the applications and interviews qualified <br />candidates. ICMA makes no recommendations regarding candidates. Further ' <br />information is available in the handbook Recruitment Guidelines for Selecting a Local <br />Government Administrator, published by ICMA and available at http://iobs.icma.or~. <br /> <br />-36- <br /> <br /> <br />