Local Government :

Madeira
By Alex Parra
 Madeira's Government
 Madeira’s form of government is a city.
Under Ohio law, a city is defined as:
 Any municipal corporation with a
population over 5,000 people.
 Madeira’s government has a charter,
written in 1959, which lay’s out how
Madeira is governed today.
History of Madeira Government
 Madeira was incorporated in 1910 as a
village.
 During this time Madeira’s government
consists of a village council.
 In 1959, a charter is approved, and in
1960 Madeira officially becomes a city.
 After this, Madeira’s government takes the
form it has today.
 Election’s
 The elected officials of the Madeira City
government are the 7 councilmen. The
election process is as follows:
 The council is elected to a term of four
years.
 Elections are held every two years on odd
numbered years.
 The elected councilman can serve no more
than three consecutive terms.
Structure of Madeira’s Government
 The Government of Madeira, as stated in the Charter,
consists of:
 The Council: which includes the Mayor and Vice Mayor
 The City Manager: the chief executive and administrative
officer of the city
 The Clerk: attends all council meetings and keeps records of
the meetings.
 The Treasurer= the fiscal and accounting officer of the
municipality.
 The Law Director= the legal advisor to the municipality
 The Planning Commission: is in charge of all regulation of
city planning, such as buildings, etc.
 The Civil Service Commission: determines whether a person
is fit for a job within the municipality
 Madeira City Council
 The council consists of 7 members elected to four year
terms. The council chooses a mayor and vice mayor
from the members of the council.
 The mayor is the official ceremonial head of the municipality,
and has jurisdiction in civil and criminal case given to him by
law. The vice mayor is the mayor’s fill in when the mayor is not
available
 All council members must be voters in the municipality
and have resided in the municipality since the last
election.
 The council meets once a month.
 The job of the council is to make the ordinances of the
city, and to appoint the other members of the Madeira
government
 The City Manager
 The city manager is the chief executive and administrative
official of the city government.
 He is appointed by the city council to an indefinite term.
 His job is to:
 Enforce all law and ordinances, and properly administer the
township.
 Attend all council meetings
 Make the annual budget and submit it to council
 Give council a report of all finances at the end of the fiscal year
 Report monthly to the council about all appropriated funds
 Serve as chief executive over all departments, except those of
treasurer and clerk.
 Issue all licenses and permits that the council makes hi
 The Clerk
 The clerk is appointed by council. The clerk
must be a resident of the municipality.
 The job of the clerk is to attend all council
meetings, keep a record of the meetings,
and perform all duties assign to him by the
council or by law.
 The clerk is appointed for two years, and
his term is concurrent with that of the
council that appoints him.
 The Treasurer
 The Treasurer is appointed by the council, and must
be a resident of Madeira.
 The treasurer is the city’s fiscal and accounting
official.
 The treasurer’s job is to:
 Keep track of all of the city’s funds.
 Collect all money due to the city.
 Sign all checks and vouchers for the city.
 Work with the county treasurer to collect the taxes and debts
that are due to the city.
 He handles all payment of city officials.
 He handles all financial tasks given to him by the city.
 The Treasurer serves for two years, at the same time
as the council that appoints him.
 The City Law Director
 The council must appoint a law director who
is an attorney in the state of Ohio, and a
resident of Hamilton County.
 The law directors job is to:
 Be the legal advisor to the city.
 Advise and litigate for all city officials on matters
related to their jobs.
 Prosecute in mayor’s court.
 Prepare all contracts and legal documents for
the city.
 Perform all legal duties the council tells him to.
 He serves a two year term, with the council that
appoints him
 The Planning Commission
 The planning committee is made of 9 members
appointed by the council. One council member is
appointed and is the only paid member of the
committee.
 The job of the planning committee is to oversee all
zoning and building regulation in the municipality.
It meets once a month, and keeps a public record
of all its business.
 The members of the commission serve on the
commission for three years, except for the council
member who serves his council term.
 The Civil Service Commission
 The Civil Service Commission is made
up of 3 members, 2 chosen by the City
council, and one chosen by the Board
of Education.
 The job of the Civil Service
Commission is to determine whether a
person is fit for office in the
municipality.
 The term for the Civil Service
Commission is for six years.
 Madeira Police and Fire
Departments
 Madeira’s Police Dept. is made up of
12 officers. These 12 officers
monitor an area that is 3.4 square
miles in area.
 The Fire Department is a joint fire
department with the Village of Indian
Hill. There are Stations in both
Madeira and in Indian Hill
 Schools and Parks
 Madeira City School’s are divided into
three schools:
 Madeira Elementary
 Madeira Middle School
 Madeira High School
 The school district has received a grade of
“excellent” every year that it has been
graded
 The City has three parks”
 Sellman Park
 McDonald Commons Park
 The Nelle V. Hosbrook Bird Sanctuary
 Budget
 The budget for the 2010 Fiscal year is:
 $11.5 million dollars in expenditures
 $9.5 million dollars in revenue

 The revenue mainly comes from taxes

on the multitude of businesses, and also
from the homeowners in Madeira.
 The money is spent on the Police and
Fire departments, Parks, Public Works,
and to keep the different departments
to the municipal government running.
 How Government Impacts Me

 The different street repairs that are currently

happening within the city of Madeira effect
me, because they are done on streets that I
regularly drive on.
 Another thing that impacts me is the fact that
the municipal government wants every
business in the city limits to be a bank, at least
that is the general perception within the city.
 Finally the government impacts me because
my brother and sister both ride Madeira
busses to school.
 Sources
 http://www.madeiracity.com/documents/City%20Chart
 http://www.madeiracityschools.org/district_board.aspx
 http://oh-madeira.civicplus.com/index.aspx?NID=58
 http://www.madeiracity.com/index.aspx?nid=118
 http://madeiracity.com/documents/Community/About%
 http://oh-madeira.civicplus.com/index.aspx?NID=13