Section 1.2 Authorization of Charters by Article VI

• Library: Local Government Deskbook (2017 Ed.)

A. (§1.2) Authorization of Charters by Article VI

A significant direct grant of power to local governments by the Missouri Constitution is the Article VI authorization for governance by charter. Constitutional authority to adopt and amend a charter “intends to grant cities broad authority to tailor a form of government that its citizens believe will best serve their interests.” City of Springfield v. Goff, 918 S.W.2d 786, 789 (Mo. banc 1996); see also Mo. Bankers Ass’n, Inc. v. St. Louis Cnty., 448 S.W.3d 267, 272 (Mo. banc 2014) (“the police powers delegated to a charter county are constitutional grants of authority that are not subject to, but take precedence over, the legislative power”). A local government’s charter is its organic law, the equivalent of its constitution. State ex rel. St. Louis Fire Fighters Ass’n Local No. 73, AFL-CIO v. Stemmler, 479 S.W.2d 456, 457 (Mo. banc 1972). Under article VI, entitled “Local Government,” of the Missouri Constitution, charter government is authorized for both cities (§ 19) and counties (§ 18(a)), yet the history and classification of charter cities and charter counties have not been parallel.

Authorization for adoption of city charters first appeared in article 9, § 16, of the Missouri Constitution of 1875, which empowered cities with populations of more than 100,000 to frame charters for their own government “consistent with and subject to the Constitution and laws of this State . . . .” The threshold population necessary to frame a charter has been reduced over time—from the original 100,000 to 10,000 in 1945, and then to 5,000 by amendment in 1971. The effect of this...