In government administration and leadership, rural community leaders face unique challenges in delivering public services including (but not limited to) education, health care, and public safety. Meanwhile, residents who live in smaller and more isolated rural settings often face greater difficulties accessing provisions and services or commuting to work, among other economic development challenges. These factors may affect a community’s resiliency to and recovery from shocks such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Local Government Administration in Small Town America devotes some overdue scholarly attention to the governance and administration of public programs in small towns and rural communities in the United States.

The chapter contributors to this volume analyze some of the unique challenges rural communities face, as well as the policy tools that their governments employ to address them. The book explores ways that small town governments collaborate with one another, the state, and the federal government, and examines how local government officials use knowledge of people and place to improve policy performance. The chapters are designed to provide cases and strategies for students and practitioners in public administration to use in a small town environment, while also considering a community’s distinctive social and political culture, which determines how local political leaders and government practitioners might respond to demands and challenges they face. Local Government Administration in Small Town America is an essential resource for undergraduate and graduate students studying local government, as well as for rural practitioners navigating evolving challenges unique to their communities.

Part I: Government Structures 1. The Network of Interests, Institutions, and Individual Interactions in Small Town Governance [Case Study: Starting Out as a Professional Administrator in a Small Town] 2. The Origin and Persistence of American County Boundaries: Courthouse Competition and the Road to Reapportionment Part II: Public Functions in Rural Government Systems Subsection: Economic and Community Development 3. Placemaking as an Economic Development Strategy for Rural Governments Subsection: Election Administration 4. The Mechanics of Democracy: The Critical Role of Local Governments in Supporting Election Operations Subsection: Public Budgeting and Finance 5. Public Budgeting in Small Local Governments 6. Using Financial Statements to Improve Fiscal Strength and Make Policy Decisions 7. Small Town Revenues for Big Time Public Services [Case Study: Crowdfunding Local Government: Belmont’s Bicycle Sunday Program] Subsection: Healthcare, Parks and Recreation and Wellness 8. Rural Communities and Access to Health Care [Case Study: Maternal Health and the Healthy Start Program] 9. Rural Parks and Recreation: Understanding and Meeting the Needs Subsection: Human Resources 10. Human Resources: Recruitment and Retention in Small Cities and Towns [Case Study: Volunteer Fire Departments in Small Town America] Subsection: Infrastructure and Highway Services 11. Gateway Towns: Loving our Rural Communities to Death Subsection: Nonprofits and Social Services 12. Nonprofit Organizations and Arts Education in a Rural Community 13. Guthrie KY and Civic Engagement: How Small Groups of People Make a Difference Subsection: Technology, Internet, and Broadband Availability 14. The Where of Small-Town Governance: Charting the Path from Technocracy to Democracy 15. Broadband Availability and Adoption in Rural America Subsection: Public Safety and Emergency Management 16. Public Safety in Rural and Small Town America [Case Study: Personal Reflections on Small Town Policing] 17. Challenges in Rural Emergency Management Part III: Partnerships 18. Enhancing Rural Capacity and Public Service Values through Intergovernmental and Intersectoral Collaboration [Case Study: Personal Diplomacy and the Importance of Local Mayoral Networking] 19. Solution or Trouble? Privatization and Rural Governments 20. The Role of Federalism in the Attainment of Collaborative Sustainability Outcomes in Small Communities [Case Study: One Food Basket at a Time: Addressing Food Insecurity] 21. Interlocal Economic Development Collaboration in Rural America: A Case of West Texas Conclusion for Managing Mayberry