Municipal Law & Governance Flashcards

Under Dillon's Rule, a municipal corporation may exercise only those powers that are:

Answer: Expressly granted, necessarily implied, or indispensable to declared objects

Dillon's Rule strictly limits municipal power to those expressly granted by the state, necessarily implied from granted powers, or essential to the municipality's declared purposes.

A home rule charter gives a municipality the authority to:

Answer: Override state statutes on matters of local concern

Home rule charters grant municipalities broad self-governance authority over local affairs, allowing them to legislate on matters of local concern even without specific state authorization.

Which doctrine holds that a municipality cannot be held liable for acts performed in its governmental capacity?

Answer: Sovereign immunity

Sovereign (governmental) immunity historically shielded municipalities from tort liability for governmental functions, though many states have partially waived this immunity by statute.

An ordinance is considered 'ultra vires' when it:

Answer: Exceeds the legal authority granted to the municipality

An ultra vires act is one beyond the legal powers of the governmental entity, making it void and unenforceable.

In municipal law, a 'special act' is a state law that:

Answer: Applies to a specific municipality by name or class

Special acts target one or a few named municipalities or a narrowly defined class, contrasted with general laws that apply statewide.

Which of the following best describes the 'police power' of a municipality?

Answer: Authority to regulate for the health, safety, morals, and general welfare of citizens

Police power is the broad governmental authority to regulate private conduct and property to protect public health, safety, morals, and welfare.

A municipality that acts without any legal authority is said to have acted:

Answer: Ultra vires

Ultra vires actions are those taken outside the scope of granted legal authority and are generally void ab initio.