Government of Saginaw, Michigan facts for kids
The Government of Saginaw, Michigan is a council-manager form of government with a mayor selected from members of the city council by members of the city council. Saginaw is classified as a home rule city under the Michigan Home Rule Cities Act which permits cities to exercise "home rule" powers, among which is the power to frame and adopt its own city charter which serves as the fundamental law of the city, in a manner similar to a constitution for a national or state government. The present charter was adopted in 1935 and took effect on January 6, 1936.
History
On June 28, 1889, the Michigan Legislature passed Act 455 to consolidate the City of Saginaw and the City of East Saginaw into a new city that also was named the City of Saginaw. The early government was fraught with geographic rivalries due to the forced merger of the two cities. Distrust between both sides led to 21 wards to be created each electing two aldermen to the city council and a mayor to be elected at large for a city with a population of approximately 42,323 at the time. After years of dysfunctional government, the citizens of the city changed the government to have five wards with a single member of the council elected from each ward. Each council person ran a specific department of the city: public works; finance; parks and cemeteries; health and safety; and water and sewer.
