Mayor-Council Act of 1955

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The Mayor-Council Act of 1955 is the Alabama State Law which establishes and defines the structure and powers of municipal government for the City of Birmingham under the Alabama Constitution of 1901. It was created to give citizens greater representation in local government and to establish a balance of power between the city's executive and legislative branches.

Specifically the movement to change the form of government was shepherded by business leaders who wanted to give the city's political leadership a more progressive voice during a time of heightened racial tensions. The Birmingham Chamber of Commerce's Senior Citizen Council asked the Birmingham Bar Association to study various forms of government and propose the form that would "best serve Birmingham and provide greater representation than the ... three-member commission." The BBA found that a, "strong Mayor-Council form of municipal government is best suited to the present and future needs of a greater and better Birmingham."

Birmingham citizens voted in a referendum on November 6, 1962 to adopt the Mayor-Council Act. The March 5, 1963 Birmingham municipal election attracted four mayoral candidates and 76 hopefuls for the nine at-large council seats. Albert Boutwell defeated incumbent Commissioner of Public Safety Bull Connor in a runoff to become the first mayor under the new act.

He was sworn in on April 15 of that year, but For the first five weeks of his administration the former City Commission continued to meet, refusing to recognize the new government. As their legal challenge proceeded through the courts, the city operated with two governments. It was during this contentious transition period that Bull Connor, acting as Police Commissioner, turned Police dogs and fire hoses on demonstrators participating in the Birmingham Campaign for Civil Rights.

In recent years certain provisions of the Act have been criticized. Bills have been introduced in the Alabama Legislature that would change the terms of office of the Mayor and City Council so that both were elected in the same cycle. (Currently sitting Council members are able to campaign for mayor without resigning unless they win the election.)

Articles

  • Article I: Adoption of the Mayor-Council Form of Government; Election and Term of Council
  • Article II: Legal Status, Form of Government, Powers
  • Article III: The Council
  • Article IV: Mayor
  • Article V: Budget
  • Article VI: Department of Finance
  • Article VII: Succession in Government
  • Article VIII: General Provisions
  • Article IX: Abandonment of Mayor-Council Form of Government
  • Article X: General Statutory Provisions

References

  • Act No. 452, Alabama Acts of 1955, as supplemented by Act No. 294, Alabama Acts of 1965
  • Vann, David (1988) "The Change from Commission to Mayor-Council Government and the Racial Desegregation Agreement in Birmingham, Alabama 1961-1963" UAB Center for Urban Affairs
  • Stock, Erin & Joseph D. Bryant (April 15, 2008) "Birmingham's Mayor-Council Act turns 45". The Birmingham News

External links

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