City commission government

Part of the Politics series
Common forms of local government
Executive and legislature separate Mayor - Council Executive mayor elected by the people, elected legislative City council Council - Manager Executive city manager hired by the elected City Council
Executive and legislature fused City Commission Elected commission enacts laws and governs
Direct democratic forms Town meeting Citizens vote on policy, officers, and laws
Executive arrangements in England Leader and cabinet Executive leader elected by the council from among themselves Elected mayor and cabinet Executive mayor elected by the people Committee system Executive leader and executive committees elected by the council from among themselves
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City commission government is a form of local government in the United States. In a city commission government, voters elect a small commission, typically of five to seven members, typically on a plurality-at-large voting basis. The prevalence of this form of local government is less than one percent.^[1]

These commissioners constitute the legislative body of the city and, as a group, are responsible for taxation, appropriations, ordinances, and other general functions. Individual commissioners are also assigned executive responsibility for a specific aspect of municipal affairs, such as public works, finance, or public safety. This form of government thus blends legislative and executive branch functions in the same body.

One commissioner may be designated to function as mayor, but this largely is an honorific or ceremonial designation. The mayor principally serves as chairman or president of the commission, and typically does not have additional powers over and above the other commissioners. Chairing meetings is the principal role. Such a mayor is in many ways similar to the weak mayor form of mayor–council government, but without any direct election for the office. However, some cities with this form of government, such as Bismarck, North Dakota, have an elected mayor.