What is Local Government?
The term "local government" is used collectively to describe many levels of overlapping government jurisdictions, such as
- Counties
- Cities
- School districts
- Regional planning organizations (such as SCAG or MTA)
- Municipal cooperatives (such as MWD)
Different terminology is used in some states (for example, Lousiana has parishes rather than counties), but the general rule is that any government entity below the level of the state or territory is considered a "local" government.
City of Los Angeles Links
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City Charter, Rules, and CodesLooking to find out more about the laws of the city of Los Angeles? Here's where to start.
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City of Los Angeles Department of City PlanningLos Angeles City Planning includes information and statistics on the Los Angeles City General Plan, Zoning, Development, Community Plan Areas (CPAs), Land Use, Transit, and Historic Preservation. Search the UCLA Library Catalog for Los Angeles (Calif.). Department of City Planning as an Author List (lastname firstname) for more reports issued by the department.
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City of Los Angeles City CouncilHere you will find information on the current city council, including boundary maps for each district as well as the representative of each district.
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Search Council VotesFrom 1 July 2003 to the present, all votes taken by the city council are posted online here.
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Council File Management SystemA tracking system of all legislation considered and/or acted upon by the Los Angeles City Council, from 1979 to Current.
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City Ethics CommissionInterested to know who has been lobbying the city council? Start here.
Los Angeles County Links
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Los Angeles, California County CodeThis is where you will find the legal codes of the county. In other words, "the Los Angeles County Code is a compilation of County ordinances of a general nature which have been codified, chaptered and indexed."
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Citizens' Guide to the County Directory of Information and Services"The Citizens Guide is a directory of services under simply stated headings to help find the appropriated department or agency performing the service."
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Registrar-Recorder/County ClerkAlong with election information, one can also find vital statistics (birth, death, and marriage) here as well as business and other licenses.
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Cities of Los Angeles CountyLooking for more information on the cities that form the county of Los Angeles? Start here.
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Unincorporated Areas of Los Angeles CountyAccording to this page, 65% of the county is unincorporated. If you need more information on these areas, start here.
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County Budget InformationThis page has information on the budget of the county.
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County Lobbyist InformationInterested to know who is lobbying the county? Start here.
Regional Links
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Southern California Association of GovernmentsCovers the counties of Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino, Riverside, Ventura and Imperial. The region encompasses a population exceeding 18 million persons in an area of more than 38,000 square miles
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San Diego Association of Governments18 cities and the county of San Diego united together for regional planning
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San Bernardino Associated Governments"San Bernardino Associated Governments, known as SANBAG, is the council of governments and transportation planning agency for San Bernardino County"
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Western Riverside Council of GovernmentsRegional governmental body including major western cities in the county as well as the county government
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Association of Bay Area GovernmentsSan Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Solano, and Sonoma Counties' regional body
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Sacramento Area Council of Governments"An association of local governments in the six-county Sacramento Region. Its members include the counties of El Dorado, Placer, Sacramento, Sutter, Yolo and Yuba as well as 22 cities"
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South Coast Air Quality Management District"AQMD is the air pollution control agency for all of Orange County and the urban portions of Los Angeles, Riverside and San Bernardino counties, the smoggiest region of the U.S."
City and County History: Guides and Bibliographies
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A bibliography of American county histories
Call Number: Z1250 .F54 1985 -
Catalogue of Books Relating to the History of Various States, Counties, and Cities
Call Number: Z1250.C54u 1928 -
Consolidated bibliography of county histories in fifty States in 1961, consolidated 1935-1961
Call Number: Z1250 .P44c 1961 -
Directory of state and local history periodicals
Call Number: Z1250 .C884d
Los Angeles Region Government Information Research at UCLA
Los Angeles is a unique metropolitan area, with both the city and county intertwined together. It can often be difficult to determine whether you need to work with the city government documents or county government documents to find the information you want.
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City of Los AngelesThe official city web site contains a lot of useful information, including the city charter, interactive maps, and city council meetings.
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Los Angeles CountyThe official county web site is similar, with a list of the cities it serves, links to birth and death records, weather statistics, and more.