Introduction: Symposium on Special District Management

摘要: Special districts are a profoundly important form of government, having experienced significant growth over the last several decades (US Census Bureau, 2019). Though generally receiving less attention than general-purpose local governments, including cities, towns, townships, or villages, special districts are often charged with providing core public services that impact the day-to-day lives of citizens (Foster, 1997). These services include common functions like education, fire protection, emergency medical services, library, water, and sewer services. Special districts are unique in their single functional focus, potentially complex and overlapping geographical boundaries that may not be conterminous with other units of local government (Bollens, 1957), and in the churning that comes through special district creation and dissolution (Goodman & Leland, 2012). Despite the growth and prevalence of special districts …