I was in an “early in my profession” job, working for a village government in New York. In New York, a village is a separate government within a town, which is within a county. Equivalent to a small city from a local government structure, but sits from a physical and legal/structural boundaries perspective within the town—the donut hole to the town’s donut.

We had some oft-challenging dealings with the town on a few issues and it bred animosity with some on the respective boards. I needed help with a grant and, through my research, noted the county would likely be helpful, to which a village board member commented, “Oh God, no, they’re worse than the town!”

My next job, a few years later, saw me moving from village to county administration. From police, water, volunteer fire, public works, and codes (and that’s about it) to public defense, a hospice program, mental health services, and a nursing home that relies on the county government for the livelihood and care of 266 residents—oh, and all of the other core local government services that one would expect to operate at the municipal level.

This small commentary is in praise of counties.

Counties have been called the “default” of local governments—the Big Brother and the local government that operates the “offices of unfunded requirements.” They have unique qualities and often large boards, more than 20 people sometimes, and local elected official department heads, such as the sheriff and county clerk. Per the pun above, usually, counties have more mandated services (social services, health, criminal justice, education, transportation, and so forth) than their other local government peers.

Counties certainly range in size. The National Association of Counties considers the largest county by land area in the lower 48 to be San Bernardino County, California, at 20,105 square miles and the smallest to be Arlington County, Virginia, at just 26 square miles. The 3,069 counties in the United States represent the best of public administration and local government excellence. In fact, counties—of all the types of local governments in the country, from villages to towns to cities to boroughs—oversee the most expansive, complex, diverse breadth of services and programs in the entire spectrum of local government.

Residents, tourists, businesses, and all types in between trust counties because they are the backstop. They are the safety net. They are the provider of the last resort. They provide cradle-to-grave, true life-cycle services from A to Z. Emergency management? Check. Jail operations? Check. Economic development? You bet. Meals on wheels? Yes, believe it or not. Emergency medical services? Yes, and this is a growing area of service for many counties. Public health clinics? Yes—remember us during the pandemic? 

And, perhaps most importantly, think about how and where and through what mechanisms democracy at its core is most often exercised here in the United States. At the voting booth, with elections administered by county Boards of Elections. (Elections are usually administered at the county level, though in some New England and Midwestern states, this duty falls to cities or townships.)

Including both internships and formal job placements, I have worked in city, town, village, public authority, county, state, and federal government positions. In my consulting work, I have consulted with scores of local governments of all types and sizes. Counties are indeed a special group, and I am proud of my county service and pleased that PM is dedicating an issue to celebrate the amazing work of these dedicated public servants.

DR. IAN M. COYLE, ICMA-CM, is founder and president of Pracademic Partners.