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It should come as no surprise no two counties across the 3,069 in the United States are the same. Beyond the obvious differences like physical size, population and economic factors, there are also subtle, yet important, differences on how local decisions are made which impact our day-to-day lives.
Counties throughout the United States operate under one of three governmental authorities. Most operate under Dillon’s Rule, which gives State Legislatures the authority to determine both the form and function of county government. Other counties are structured under home rule authority, which gives counties the ability to determine their own structure and assert legislative authority in aspects of government where the state has not asserted power. A few examples of this include Weld County’s ability, through a home rule charter, to determine which county government positions will be elected, and how many county commissioners will represent residents.
A much rarer form of government structure, Hutchinson’s Rule, exists only in Utah. Granted by the state supreme court, Hutchinson’s Rule allows Utah’s municipalities and 29 counties to develop different sets of rules and ordinances than the state in matters where general welfare is concerned.
Most Colorado counties operate under Dillon’s Rule with two exceptions: Weld and Pitkin Counties operate as home rule. The desire for Weld to become a home rule county began in 1974 with the election of a 21-member committee which drafted the county’s own set of county governance rules through the creation of a home rule charter. The charter passed a public vote in September and went into effect on Jan. 1, 1976. Pitkin’s home rule charter passed a public vote in 1978.
Some of the changes brought to Weld County through the charter include:
- Expansion of the board of county commissioners from three to five.
- Consolidating the number of county departments from 12 to five, with each being coordinated by an elected commissioner.
- Establishment of a five-member, non-partisan, unpaid Weld County Council.
While home rule government at the county level may be rare in Colorado, one third of counties nationwide are home rule counties.
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 Click the image above to view it larger; screen readers scroll down for information.
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 There are a total of 3,069 counties in the United States, and there are three types of governmental authority under which counties operate.
 95% of states have counties which can levy property taxes; only half of states permit counties to levy general purpose sales taxes (Weld County does levy property taxes but does not have a county sales tax).
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 County authority: 2,069 counties operate under Dillion's Rule; 29 counties operate under Hutchinson's Rule; and 944 counties operate under Home Rule.
 92% of states have counties which have zoning authority (Weld County has this authority).
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 Prior to the passage of Weld County’s Home Rule Charter in 1976, Weld County had three county commissioners representing three districts within the county. After the passage of the charter, the number of commissioners increased to five by adding two At-Large positions.
 Unlike other county governments, Weld County does not have a county manager. Instead, the board of commissioners, along with the respective department head, oversees the day-to-day operations of the county.
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 The passage of Weld County’s Home Rule Charter created a non-partisan, non-paid five-member county council, which is charged with several tasks including setting the salaries of the county’s elected officials.
 In addition to an elected board of county commissioners, Weld County has four other elected positions: Sheriff, District Attorney, Assessor and Clerk and Recorder.
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For more information about Weld County's Home Rule Charter,
please click here. |
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By Baker Geist & Shaley Dehner, Weld County Communications Specialists |
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This month, the Weld County Board of Commissioners approved the 25th Small Business Incentive Program Application - a program that helps offset permitting fees for new businesses locating in unincorporated Weld County. In the next issue of County Roots, we catch up with the first business to receive funding through the program and we learn more about how the program works and why it is important to the local economy.
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Welcome to County Roots, the official newsletter of Weld County Government. For those of us who work in county government, we think what we do is pretty interesting. So the goal of this newsletter is to highlight some of the partnerships, technology and efficiencies we are using to make government stronger and more effective for its residents.
Our goal is to establish regular communication with residents, spur interest in county projects, highlight county accomplishments and provide meaningful information to the public. In fact, our goal is to live up to the name “County Roots.” Want to know more about the meaning behind the name? Please visit our webpage, where you can also find previous editions of this newsletter.
If you have a topic idea or general feedback about this new venture, please let us know at jfinch@weldgov.com.
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