Government

Montesano is a strong Mayor-Council form of government with a City Council of 7 elected positions at large.

In the mayor-council form of government, policy and administration are separated. All legislative and policy-making powers are vested in the City Council. The administrative authority, including veto power, is vested in the Mayor. In Montesano, the Mayor and seven Council members are elected by the registered voters of the City to staggered four-year terms.

Meet the Mayor and City Council

The City of Montesano provides what are considered general governmental services authorized by state law, including public safety, streets, parks and recreation, planning and zoning, permits and inspections, general administration and water, sewer, and stormwater services.

Sewer and Stormwater Services

Montesano City Government Primer
Like the federal and state governments, a city government’s powers are distributed among three separate branches: legislative, executive, and judicial. The city council is similar to the state legislature or the Congress; the mayor is like the governor and the President, heads the executive branch; and the municipal court exercises judicial functions, although in a much more limited way than the state or federal courts.

Under the “separation of powers doctrine,” each of the three branches exercises certain defined powers, free from unreasonable interference by the others; yet all three branches interact with each other as part of a “checks and balances” system. The powers of these branches in city government are defined for the most part by state statute. See Revised Code of Washington (RCW) 35A.12 for authorizations of the non-charter Code City with a Mayor-Council form of government.
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