What are the funcitons of the city vs the county in the same area? (Portland: city hall, attorney)

[VTHokieFan]

I'm used to living in a state where cities and counties are totally separate geographically and with regards to governance. Take Alexandria, VA, for example. It's a city and it's completely separate from Fairfax/Arlington with no overlap at all.

So if you live in Portland, you also live in Multnomah County, and I've never lived where there are two local entities like this. So my question is, how are responsibilities delegated between these two? What's the purpose of a city vs a county and what roles do each play? Might seem like a dumb question, but honestly I've never lived in an area governed by both city hall and a county courthouse.

Or maybe there's some reading someone could refer me too

[SETabor]

All states are setup where State -> County -> City. Except for Louisiana where they have Parishes. Where I grew up there were also townships which are like a small collection of towns too small to have their own school system and sewer system.

In most cases, there are city functions, like parking and water and then there are county functions like the county clerk or assessor. City cops operate only in their cities while county sheriffs operate in the city and county so for Portland, the Multnomah sheriffs can be in Portland, Gresham and in unincorporated areas that aren't part of any city.

And then there are a handful of independent cities such as Alexandria, which are mostly in Virginia. If you've lived in Arlington or Ballston, you lived in Arlington County also. Think of it kind of like DC where the city does city stuff but also hands out drivers licenses, etc. In Alexandria, the city does city stuff but the state does drivers licenses. So, if there was an Alexandria county, the city would still do city stuff but property records would be controlled by the county.

[EnricoV]

Originally Posted by VTHokieFan

I'm used to living in a state where cities and counties are totally separate geographically and with regards to governance. Take Alexandria, VA, for example. It's a city and it's completely separate from Fairfax/Arlington with no overlap at all.

So if you live in Portland, you also live in Multnomah County, and I've never lived where there are two local entities like this. So my question is, how are responsibilities delegated between these two? What's the purpose of a city vs a county and what roles do each play? Might seem like a dumb question, but honestly I've never lived in an area governed by both city hall and a county courthouse.

Or maybe there's some reading someone could refer me too

Actually, you have. Political boundaries are all just descending areas of government. Just like the state is within the country, the county within the state, the city within the county. Independent cities just skip the county step.

But actually, you have an additional step here in Portland, as well. We have Metro, which is, essentially, a coalition of the counties in the Portland area. They control things like land-use planning, parks, and garbage & recycling. The county controls the taxation, the courts, the licensing, the libraries, and oddly enough, the bridges.

[NWbyNW]

Every state in the union is set up pretty similar except for Louisiana and Alaska. Even still, a parish and borough still are meant to act as a county. Things are a tad different on the east coast and midwest were they have townships. But in the west it is pretty straight forward. State, county, then municipal.

And easy way to understand this is through law enforcement. Every state has a state level law enforcement agency. Within each state there are counties. Each county has a county sheriff. Within each county there are municipalities (towns, cities) which have their own police forces. So it is like this....

STATE ( County ( municipality

So for Portland, it is within the state of Oregon and in the county of Multnomah. They are two different government entities, but the county government focuses on area not incorporated as towns and cities. They function as a base level of law and government in the county. The county sheriff is the base law force the for county. So the sheriff's office patrols in towns without their own municipal level police force. This doesn't mean you won't see county units in the city, because you will. Just like you will see state units too. The only ones that stay within jursidiction for the most part are city police, unless they are needed elsewhere due to lack of officers.

So hopefully with that law enforcement explanation, the county and city will make more sense. They are just political boundaries. State umbrella's county, and county umbrella's city.

[jjpop]

Echoing what the others have said. It's all about jurisdiction. If you are in the Portland city limits, services are handled through (or contracted by) the city government. If you cross over the line into the Gresham city limits, services are handled by that city's government.

When you cross from an incorporated city into an unincorporated part of a county, the services are handled by the county government.

Governments can contract with other governments or private contractors to provide services. For example, the incorporated city of Wood Village contracts with the MCSO for law enforcement responsibilities. Interestingly, Wood Village contracts with the Gresham Fire Department for fire services.

The county frequently acts as a coordinator for the various city governments within the county. And as EnricoV states, we also have Metro which coordinates with all of the cities and counties in our region (sometimes they include Clark Co., WA as a fourth county).

[Steve Pickering]

It is based on tax collection in Oregon but ...... Local government in the United States - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


* County government in Oregon is a political subdivision of state government, responsible for providing basic services to citizens who live in unincorporated (outside city boundaries) areas. Many of these services are the same as those provided by cities: police, fire, building and safety inspections, road repair, etc. However, county government also handles many other functions for all residents, regardless of whether they live within a city or in the unincorporated area. These include: the county coroner's office; courts (civil, criminal, family law and juvenile); the district attorney and public defender's offices; the probation department; health services for the poor and indigent, including the operation of a county hospital and clinics; animal control; environmental health; mental health programs, including alcohol and drug abuse; an office on ageing; job training programs; welfare, which includes dispensing of federal welfare funds and food stamps; tax collecting and property assessments; conducting elections, and handling, storing and dispensing all official records, such as birth certificates, marriage licenses and death certificates.

Paraphrased from; http://www.americansc.org.uk/Online/county.html

[hamellr]

Realistically, if you're living in Portland, other then elections you're usually not going to see much from or about the County.

[Steve Pickering]

Originally Posted by hamellr

Realistically, if you're living in Portland, other then elections you're usually not going to see much from or about the County.

And Taxes. Don't forget the taxes.

[VTHokieFan]

So allow me to propose a scenario where all of Multnomah County is incorporated. What would happen to Multnomah County then?

[Steve Pickering]

Originally Posted by VTHokieFan

So allow me to propose a scenario where all of Multnomah County is incorporated. What would happen to Multnomah County then?

Nothing. They would still run the health department, records, taxes, voters, and jail among others. Same as if they were not incorporated. There is little duplication of service other than Law Enforcement.