My South Carolina County- Berkeley

In this assignment, you will analyze how power and responsibility are distributed, shared, and limited in our government. You will explain South Carolina’s government organization and how it functions within the American constitutional government by completing a graphic organizer (or chart) about the South Carolina state legislature and creating a presentation about your county of residence. BERKELEY COUNTY, SOUTH CAROLINA
Big Questions
How is the South Carolina state legislature organized?
How does your county provide services for residents?
Who’s in Charge Around Here?
There are often three ways to organize county government:
⦁ County Commission Only – County citizens elect several people to sit on a commission (also called a board). This board has some “legislative” power because it passes county laws (which are called ordinances) and figures out its budget. It has some “executive” power because it decides what the county’s policies will be and carries out the laws it passes. Commissions also share some of their power with elected officials who oversee specific departments, such as the sheriff, clerk, or county judge.
⦁ County Commission and Administrator/Manager – Under this system, the commission gives some of its “executive” power to an administrator. The commission chooses the administrator and has the power to fire that person. The administrator carries out the board’s decisions.
⦁ County Commission and Executive – Under this system, an elected person separate from the commission has the county’s “executive” power. This executive can sometimes veto decisions the board makes. This method is more like an actual legislative and executive branch because the commission and the executive can check each other’s power.
Instructions
⦁ Open the ⦁ My SC County document (MS PowerPoint 352KB, opens in new window) and download a copy of the document to your computer (click File > Download a Copy > Download button). You will answer all questions for this assignment in the My SC County document. You can open this document in Microsoft PowerPoint or Google Slides. If you do not have access to those apps, please contact your teacher.
⦁ Research the ⦁ South Carolina Legislature website (opens in new window) to gain a greater understanding of your representatives.
⦁ Describe the South Carolina state legislature by completing the graphic organizer (or chart).
⦁ Research the ⦁ South Carolina Association of Counties website (opens in new window) to gain a greater understanding of your local government.
⦁ Answer the county research questions found in the My SC County document.
⦁ Include a bibliography using at least two sources in MLA or APA citation format. Use ⦁ Easy Bib (opens in a new window) to help you create the citation.
Big Questions
How is the South Carolina state legislature organized?
How does your county provide services for residents?