Its Time for Michigan People to Support Michigan People.

The Government of Detroit

With a charter adopted on July 1, 1974, the government of Detroit, Michigan, is run by a mayor, nine-member city council, and clerk elected on a nonpartisan ballot. Detroit has a "strong mayoral" system, with the mayor approving departmental appointments. The council approves budgets, but the mayor is not obligated to adhere to any earmarking. The city clerk supervises elections and is formally charged with the maintenance of municipal records. City ordinances and substantially large contractsmust be approved by the council. Municipal elections for mayor, city council and city clerk are held every year congruent to 1 modulo 4 (meaning 1993, 1997, 2001, 2005, 2009).

Detroit consistently supports the Democratic Party in local and national elections. Elected first in 2001, Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, son of Democratic congresswoman Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, has been dubbed as "America's hip-hop mayor" because of his fondness for youth culture, flashy dress (fur coat) and a diamond stud earring as well as his sponsorship of a "hip-hop" summit. Since taking office, the mayor has been dogged by accusations of impropriety although in 2005 he was re-elected to a second four-year term.

Suburb baiting is a common feature in Detroit politics. In his 1974 inaugural address, former Mayor Coleman Young told the city's criminals to "hit Eight Mile Road" (the most prominent dividing line between Detroit and northern suburbs). When Kilpatrick found himself behind in the polls in the 2005 election, his campaign tried to draw attention to his opponent's support in the suburbs. "In Birmingham and Bloomfield Hills and all these places, they do more meth, they do more Ecstasy and they do more acid than all the schools in the city of Detroit put together," said Kilpatrick while debating his opponent, Freeman Hendrix.

Courts

Detroit's courts are all state-administered and elections are nonpartisan. The Circuit and Probate Courts for Wayne County are located in the Coleman A. Young Municipal Center (formerly the "City-County Building"). Circuit and probate judges are elected county-wide, with circuit judges handling all cases where more than $25,000 is in dispute, felonies, divorce/custody actions, and matters of general equitable jurisdictions. Probate Court is responsible for estate administration, guardianships, conservatorships and juvenile matters. The divorce/family court docket is run jointly with the Circuit Court.

The 36th District Court, with judges elected city-wide, handles civil disputes where less than $25,000 is in dispute, landlord-tenant matters, misdemeanors, and preliminary examinations of criminal defendants charged with felonies prior to being bound over to circuit court. The 36th District Court incorporated the city's common pleas, traffic court, and misdemeanor prosecutions.

Taxes

In addition to property tax, the city levies an income tax of 2.65% on residents, 1.325% on non-residents, and 1.6% on corporations. Revenue is also obtained from utility taxes, hotel excises and from the Detroit-owned Water and Sewer system that provides most of the fresh water and wastewater treatment facilities within the metropolitan area. Detroit has had to fight off legislative efforts to turn control of the system to the suburbs.

Under Mayor Kilpatick's administration, the city's streamlined government has a balanced budget and is seeing new growth in business and tourism.[9]. With a decreased population from prior decades, the city planned a reduced workforce and more consolidated operations. In addition, Detroit had asked for pay cuts and other "give backs" from the municipal unions that represent city employees.

Detroit is hampered not only on continuing decline in its tax base and the lack of private business activity within the city, but also criticism of widespread mismanagement.