Structure of Governments in Illinois
By NORMAN WALZER*
In recent years, and especially since the November
elections, there has been much discussion about downsizing, or right-sizing government. Residents seem tired
of paying taxes for programs for which, in some instances, they no longer see a need. This discussion has
many facets, some structural and some philosophical,
but the end result is a move to eliminate funding for
certain public programs.
While the main focus of the downsizing efforts has
been at the Federal level, state and local governments
are feeling the effects, directly and indirectly. Cutbacks
in Federal spending and elimination of programs affect
the intergovernmental support received by many local
governments. In addition, efforts are underway to limit
the revenues received by local governments from
property taxes. In Illinois, for instance, a major effort
has been started to cap property taxes in Cook County
with some interest in extending these caps to downstate
governments. The downsizing thrust is not limited to
funding, of course, and may change the entire structure
of government. Unfunded mandates are a major concern for local governments, for example, and efforts are
underway to address this issue.
Not discussed as much during the current debate,
even though it has been debated extensively in prior
times, is the structure of governments providing public
services. Illinois has the largest number of governmental units of any state. Because of the limited revenue-raising powers available to special districts, by type, a
fragmented government is more dependent on property taxes to finance services. A study of local governments in the 1980s, for instance, revealed a positive
relationship between number of governments per population and property tax collections though not necessarily level of expenditures. 1
This article examines the number of governments in
Illinois as reported by the 1992 Census of Governments
and compares trends since the early 1980s. Illinois is also
compared with other states. The findings are somewhat
encouraging because, while the number of governments has increased in Illinois, the percentage increases
is approximately one-half of the national average.
However, decreases in number of school districts have
been more than offset by increases in special districts.
Factors Affecting Governmental Structure
Many factors determine arrangements for providing local public services. First, settlement patterns affect government formation and delivery systems.
Within Illinois, 85 counties have township government
1. David L. Chicoine and Norman Walzer, Governmental Structure and
Local Public Finance (Boston, MA: Oelgeschlager, Gunn, and Hain, Inc., 1985).
*The author is professor of economies and director of the Illinois
Institute for Rural Affairs at Western Illinois University. He thanks
Lori York and Stacey Swisher for their assistance in tabulating the
results.
Government Type
|
1962
|
1982
|
Year
1987
|
1992
|
Percent
Change
87-92
|
Counties
|
102
|
102
|
102
|
102
|
0.0
|
Municipalities
|
1,251
|
1,280
|
1,279
|
1,282
|
0.2
|
Townships
|
1,438
|
1,434
|
1,434
|
1,433
|
-0.1
|
School Districts
|
1,540
|
1,049
|
1,029,
|
985
|
-4.3
|
Special Districts
|
2,126
|
2,602
|
2,783- -
|
2,920
|
4.9
|
Fire Protection
|
620
|
771
|
801
|
804
|
0.4
|
Highways
|
13
|
25
|
26
|
20
|
'-23.1
|
Health
|
18
|
18
|
22
|
24
|
9.1
|
Hospitals
|
37
|
28
|
30
|
26
|
-13.3
|
Housing and Community Dev.
|
107
|
98
|
114
|
114
|
0.0
|
Libraries
|
16
|
107
|
183
|
262
|
43.2
|
Drainage and Flood Control
|
870
|
815
|
814
|
801
|
-1.6
|
Irrigation, Water Conservation
|
103
|
92
|
99
|
102
|
3.0
|
Parks and Recreation
|
179
|
318
|
334
|
356
|
6.6
|
Sewerage
|
76
|
133
|
125
|
121
|
-3.2
|
Water Supply
|
34
|
60
|
67
|
83
|
23.9
|
Utilities Other Than Water
|
1
|
14
|
14
|
25
|
78.6
|
Cemeteries
|
19
|
23
|
52
|
59
|
13.5
|
Sewerage and Water Supply
|
4
|
18
|
11
|
34
|
209.1
|
Other
|
29
|
82
|
73
|
69
|
-5.5
|
Total
|
6,453
|
6,467
|
6,627
|
6,722
|
1.4
|
Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census. 2987 and 1992 Census of Governments
— Government Organizations. Washington, DC 1987
and 1994. U.S. Bureau of the Census.
County and City Data Book, Washington, DC 1994.
April 1995 / Illinois Municipal Review / Page 9
whereas 17 do not. This occurred partly because settlers
in northern Illinois favored town governments but
settlers in southern Illinois were more familiar with
centralized local governance. Second, the presence of
restrictive taxing limits promotes creation of additional
governments when tax rate limits are reached. Third,
education is financed by a separate unit of government
in Illinois while these services are provided by general
purpose governments in many other states. Fourth, especially in rural areas, it may be difficult to provide
public services such as ambulances or fire protection to
areas of low population density unless the service is
provided through a special district with boundaries
beyond a city.
Statewide, Illinois had 6,627 units of government in
1987 and 6,722 units in 1992, according to the Census of
Governments (Table 1). The 1.4 percent increase compares with a 2.1 percent increase nationwide. A closer
examination, however, shows a noticeable shift between school districts and special districts. In 1987,
there were 1,029 school districts but this number decreased to 985 in 1992, a decline of 4.3 percent. Special
districts, on the other hand. numbered 2,783 in 1987 and
2,920 in 1992, an increase of 4.9 percent. Of substantial
interest is that 1,189 of the 2,920 special districts in
Illinois do not have property taxing authority.
The decrease in school districts and growth in special districts is part of a national trend. The 4.3 percent
decline in school districts in Illinois compares with a 2.0
percent decline nationally and the 4.9 percent increase
in special districts compares with a 6.9 percent increase
nationwide. The changes were not evenly distributed
among states, however. New Jersey reported a decline
of 23 percent in special district governments whereas
substantial increases were reported in other states, including Delaware (31%), Louisiana (25%), Ohio (25.1%),
South Dakota (23.6%), Utah (39.1%) and Wyoming
(49.2%). These comparisons are affected by the number
of special districts in 1987. Even small changes in states
with few districts represent relatively large percentages. Thus, the increase of 137 districts in Illinois represents a 4.9 percent growth while an increase of 123
districts in Wyoming is 49.2 percent.
Natural resource districts (drainage and flood control and soil and water conservation districts) represent
the largest number (903) of special districts in Illinois.
Table 2. Governments by
State
|
State, 1992
1992
No. of
Governments
|
1992
Population
(000)
|
Residents per
Governmental
Number
|
Unit
Rank
|
New England
|
|
|
|
|
Maine
|
797
|
1,236
|
1,551
|
11
|
New Hampshire
|
528
|
1,115
|
2,112
|
20
|
Vermont
|
682
|
571
|
837
|
6
|
Massachusetts
|
844
|
5,993
|
7,101
|
43
|
Rhode Island
|
126
|
1,001
|
7,944
|
45
|
Connecticut
|
564
|
3,279
|
5,814
|
39
|
Middle Atlantic
|
|
|
|
|
New York
|
3,299
|
18,109
|
5,489
|
38
|
New Jersey
|
1,513
|
7,820
|
5,169
|
35
|
Pennsylvania
|
5,159
|
11,995
|
2,325
|
21
|
East North Central
|
|
|
|
|
Ohio
|
3.524
|
11,021
|
3,127
|
28
|
Indiana
|
2,899
|
5,658
|
1,952
|
17
|
Illinois
|
6,722
|
11,613
|
1,728
|
14
|
Michigan
|
2,722
|
9,434
|
3,466
|
30
|
Wisconsin
|
2,739
|
4,993
|
1,823
|
.16
|
West North Central
|
|
|
|
|
Minnesota
|
3.580
|
4,468
|
1,248
|
9
|
Iowa
|
1,881
|
2,803
|
1,490
|
10
|
Missouri
|
3,310
|
5,191
|
1,568
|
12
|
North Dakota
|
2,765
|
634
|
229
|
1
|
South Dakota
|
1,786
|
708
|
396
|
2
|
Nebraska
|
2,924
|
1,601
|
548
|
3
|
Kansas
|
3,892
|
2,515
|
646
|
5
|
South Atlantic
|
|
|
|
|
Delaware
|
276
|
691
|
2,504
|
22
|
Maryland
|
402
|
4,917
|
12,231
|
47
|
Virginia
|
455
|
6,394
|
14,053
|
49
|
West Virginia
|
692
|
1,809
|
2,614
|
23
|
North Carolina
|
938 .
|
6,836
|
7,288
|
44
|
South Carolina
|
698
|
3,603
|
5,162
|
34
|
Georgia
|
1,298
|
6,773
|
5,218
|
36
|
Florida
|
1,014
|
13,483
|
13,297
|
48
|
Page 10 / Illinois Municipal Review / April 1995
Table 2. Governments by State, 1992 (cont.)
|
State
|
1992
No. of
Governments
|
1992
Population
(000)
|
Residents per
Governmental
Number
|
Unit
Rank
|
East South Central
|
|
|
|
|
Kentucky
|
1,321
|
3,454
|
2,615
|
24
|
Tennessee
|
924
|
5,025
|
5,438
|
37
|
Alabama
|
1,122
|
4,138
|
3,688
|
31
|
Mississippi
|
870
|
2,615
|
3,006
|
27
|
West South Central
|
|
|
|
|
Arkansas
|
1,447
|
2,394
|
1,654
|
13
|
Louisiana
|
459
|
4,279
|
9,322
|
46
|
Oklahoma
|
1,795
|
3,205
|
1,786
|
15
|
Texas
|
4,792
|
17,683
|
3,690
|
32
|
Mountain
|
|
|
|
|
Montana
|
1,276
|
822
|
644
|
4
|
Idaho
|
1,087
|
1,066
|
981
|
8
|
Wyoming
|
550
|
465
|
845
|
7
|
Colorado
|
1,761
|
3,465
|
1,968
|
18
|
New Mexico
|
342
|
1,582
|
4,626
|
33
|
Arizona
|
591.
|
3,832
|
6,484
|
41
|
Utah
|
627
|
1,811
|
2,888
|
25
|
Nevada
|
208
|
1,336
|
6,423
|
40
|
Pacific
|
|
|
|
|
Washington
|
1,761
|
5,143
|
2,920
|
26
|
Oregon
|
1,451
|
2,972
|
2,048
|
19
|
California
|
4,393
|
30,895
|
7,033
|
42
|
Alaska
|
175
|
588
|
3,360
|
29
|
Hawaii
|
21
|
1,156
|
55,048
|
50
|
Average
|
1,702
|
4,984
|
4,908
|
|
Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census. 1992 Census of Governments — Government Organizations. Washington, DC 1994.
April 1995 / Illinois Municipal Review / Page 11
Fire protection districts (804) represent the second
largest type, followed by parks and recreation (356)
and library districts (262). Between 1987 and 1992, the
largest increases were library districts from 182 to 262 in
the five-year period. This represents a conscious effort
to extend library services to unserved areas of rural
Illinois. Numerically, the other increases were relatively small.
Governments Per Population
Comparing arrangements for providing public services using only numbers of government can be misleading. While Illinois has the largest absolute number
of governments, it does not lead states when number of
governments is adjusted for population. In fact, rather
than ranking first among states, when adjusted for population, Illinois ranks 14th, the same rank as in 1987. In
Illinois, there is one government unit for every 1,728
residents, compared with an average of 4,908 nationwide.
The main factors explaining differences in governmental concentration among states are population density and size. A cemetery district, for instance, can serve
1,000 residents or 100,000 residents. In the former case,
more likely to occur in sparsely populated rural areas,
the concentration of governments will be much higher
than when the fixed costs are spread over a larger
population base such as in urban areas.
The highest density of governments is found in rural
states such as North Dakota, Nebraska, and Kansas.
The fewest governments per residents are found in
Florida, Maryland, and Rhode Island. Thus, governmental structure is affected both by preferences for
ways in which public services are delivered and by the
density of population served.
Effects of Governmental Structure
Estimating the effects of differences in structure of
government is not easy because many governments
have no full-time employees and finance services
through user charges or based on benefits received. In
addition, a case can be made for small local govern-
Page 12 / Illinois Municipal Review / April 1995
merits providing an opportunity for involving citizens
in decision-making.
On the other hand, providing services through a
complex structure of local governments, rather than
general purpose units, can disguise decision-making
practices and the costs of services provided. It is more
difficult for residents to identify those responsible for
public services and funding decisions in a fragmented
system of governments. Inability to assign responsibility for decisions can ultimately bring higher tax collections.
More indirect effects can occur also. Property tax
increases often are blamed on the largest or most visible
unit of government, in most cases municipalities. While
residents tend to blame municipal officials for these
increases, in practice, the growth may result from additional special districts or other units of government.
While this information is a matter of public record, it
can be time-consuming and frustrating for voters to
obtain a complete picture of who is responsible for the
changes.
Summary
Illinois clearly retains its title for the largest number
of local governments and probably will for a long
while. At the same time, compared with other populous
states, it is in only about the 75th percentile. For residents who favor smaller (or fewer) governments, the
trend between 1987 and 1992 was in the wrong direction. Compared with the national average, however,
the percentage increase in Illinois was about one-half.
There was a decided shift in Illinois in types of
governments. The number of school districts decreased
while the number of special districts increased. Especially noteworthy was the growth in number of library
districts.
While number of governments is interesting to
compare, the real issue is cost of government and the
relative importance of each type of government in
property tax collections or other revenues collected. A
subsequent article will examine this question in more
detail.
April 1995 / Illinois Municipal Review / Page 13
|