#local-government

#local-government

Of the more than 250 readers who responded, a 73% majority said gas-powered leaf blowers should be allowed, while 26% backed the bans.

Reorganisation presents a once-in-a-generation chance to make sure our councils match the modern realities of our places, making sure outdated boundaries are not constraining growth, particularly in our towns and cities.

Assemblyman Avelino Valencia's 'Home Run for Anaheim Act' aims to mandate that any new lease or sale of Angel Stadium requires the team to revert to the Anaheim Angels name, reflecting the city's support over the years.

Members of Kent County Council voted 45 in favor of a 3.8% increase in allowances, with 22 against and five abstentions, despite concerns over timing and optics.

"My campaign is over, but I still see the bullying. The only thing I have done in my life is help everyone and anyone that comes around me."

Rose and Chris Murray, whose home in Faughan Hill, Bohermeen, is set to be turned to rubble following a 20-year dispute, have claimed that the cost of knocking the 526 sq m house 'will come back on the taxpayer.'

Ross Drysdale, 73, constructed the sheltered walkway at his Christchurch bungalow in October 2024, aiming to provide his wife, Victoria, with greater independence following a severe stroke. Mr Drysdale was informed by a building inspector that the structure conformed with Building Regulations, but did not secure planning permission.

In the governor's proposed budget, $648 million is allocated for CHIPS to be divided among every town and the 62 counties in the state, while $4.5 billion is proposed for downstate transit and the New York City subway system.

The state of our city is resilient, disciplined and forward looking. We are not without challenges. But we also have remarkable strengths. Fiscal challenges placed tension between what we want to do and what we can afford to do.

Common Wealth cited the example of the Warmer Homes consortium, led by Portsmouth city council, which was allocated 22m among 31 authorities over three years. This breaks down to about 450-650 homes per year, or 15-20 homes per local authority per year.

A UK councillor has dubbed her local authority's data breach "crazy" after the personal details of individuals behind a series of complaints were revealed to her. Dulcie Tudor, an independent councillor for the Threemilestone and Chacewater area in Cornwall, England, publicized the data protection gaffe via social media following complaints about comments she made during a November council meeting. Cllr Tudor received ten complaints after asking fellow councillor Leigh Knight whether a trans woman was a real woman.

An incident report from the Richland county sheriff's Office details the accusations against Wesley Dingus, 48, who serves as mayor of Butler. The claims came from a juvenile who had been staying at his residence. According to investigators, the teen had hidden a small camera in a bedroom in the home. On 13 January, she reportedly received multiple motion alerts indicating recordings had been captured.

Sex trafficking has been a problem in Oakland for decades, but new legislation, a new mobile clinic, and a growing chorus of young survivors are reshaping how the city responds. Public safety reporter Roselyn Romero breaks it all down. Plus: Oakland's oldest queer bar becomes a site of immigrant resistance, Mayor Lee's philanthropic fundraising strategy, a West Oakland street safety project, new food spots, and a tribute to Betty Reid Soskin.

I can now say what I like about the Secretary of State, I've never met him or spoken to him but I know him to be a two-faced bully who doesn't care about Norfolk, who doesn't care about local government, who doesn't even care about his own Labour councillors.

(AP Photo/Matt Rourke) A Kansas mayor who has supported President Donald Trump for years is now facing years behind bars after state prosecutors said he voted as an illegal immigrant. The New York Times ran a feature on Joe Ceballos this week, who is currently facing multiple charges of voter fraud just months after being re-elected mayor of Coldwater, Kansas, which has a population of 687. The 55-year-old Ceballos is now battling three counts of election perjury and three counts of voting without being qualified.

Currently, the council's system involves 10pc of a household's overall income and a flat fee of €3. An additional 10pc is charged on any income from what are known as "subsidiary earners" - additional people in the household who earn over a certain salary range. It applies to those earning more than the council's social housing income eligibility threshold, which ranges between €40,000 and €47,000 depending on the number of family members.

In a statement on Friday, the council cited legislation that allows council bus drivers to refuse entry where a passenger's clothing is likely to dirty or damage the vehicle, or cause inconvenience or damage to other passengers or the driver. This can include circumstances where a passenger is wearing wet or sandy clothing that could impact the cleanliness and comfort of the shared transport environment, a spokesperson said.

"Holidays are for relaxing, not taxing," the groups wrote in a letter to Chancellor Rachel Reeves. The businesses say people "would face an extra 100 or more for a two-week holiday" if a tax of 2 per person, per night was introduced. "It could force families to shorten trips, skip travel altogether or head overseas, spending their money elsewhere," they say.

The current issue is whether Fremont controls the road that the Alameda County Board of Supervisors ceded to Christopher George, who has now blocked access with a gate. But it is part of a longer battle that has included the board considering George's request for the land after his company donated $10,000 to Supervisor David Haubert's campaign. The board granted his request ostensibly to save maintenance costs, but at the expense of constituents who have used that section of road recreationally for decades.

I am in support of abolishing ICE, and I'll tell you why. What we see is an entity that has no interest in fulfilling its stated reason to exist. We're seeing a government agency that is supposed to be enforcing some kind of immigration law, but instead what it's doing is terrorizing people - no matter their immigration status, no matter the facts of the law, no matter the facts of the case.

I think perhaps there is some work to be done in supporting and helping our councils to understand what powers they do have. And how they might use them going forward in this new world - where we are beginning to look quite seriously at proper devolution down to parish council level.

For Sam Smith, Thursday began as an ordinary day. The Conservative councillor was preparing for a budget scrutiny meeting at the Reform-led Nottinghamshire county council hall, where he is leader of the opposition, when he received a message from long-time friend Robert Jenrick. The MP's message to the Newark Conservative Association's group chat queried what local pubs they could visit to oppose Labour's hike on business rates.

His work is grounded in a rare combination of legal skill , land use law and direct experience in government. Galluccio grew up in Cambridge in a family shaped by public service. His father was a political figure who served as a campaign secretary to John F. Kennedy. When his father died at age 11, responsibility came early. That experience influenced his focus on discipline, consistency, and accountability.

Mayoral salaries range widely across the nation, with some in smaller towns earning as little as a couple of thousand dollars a year, to the six-figure salaries that many major city leaders earn. Since mayors' salaries are set at the local level by city councils and local legislatures, there are no centralized reports on what mayors earn across all cities and towns. And a larger city doesn't always mean a bigger payday for its mayor. Some high-earning enclaves with as few as 1,000 residents pay their mayors higher salaries than those in some of the nation's largest cities.