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Government Of Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is governed by a set of political tenets laid down in its state constitution. Legislative power is held by the bicameral General Court, which is composed of the Senate and House of Representatives. The governor exercises executive power with other independently elected officers: the Attorney General, Secretary of the Commonwealth, and Auditor. The state's judicial power rests in the Supreme Judicial Court, which manages its court system. Cities and towns act through local governmental bodies to the extent that they are authorized by the Commonwealth on local issues, including limited home-rule authority. Although most county governments were abolished during the 1990s and 2000s, a handful remain. Massachusetts' capital city is Boston. The seat of power is in Beacon Hill, home of the legislative and executive branches. The Supreme Judicial Court is in nearby Pemberton Hill. Federal government Congressional delegation For Congressi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Great Seal Of The Commonwealth Of Massachusetts
The Great Seal of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts contains the coat of arms of Massachusetts. The coat of arms is encircled by the Latin text "Sigillum Reipublicæ Massachusettensis" (literally, ''The Seal of the Republic of Massachusetts''). The Massachusetts Constitution designates the form of government a "commonwealth", for which '' respublica'' is the correct Latin term. The seal uses the coat of arms of Massachusetts as its central element. An official emblem of the state, the coat of arms was adopted by the Legislature in 1775 and then reaffirmed by Governor John Hancock and his Council in 1780. The present rendition of the seal was drawn by resident-artist Edmund H. Garrett and was adopted by the state in 1900. While the inscription around the seal is officially in Latin, a variant with "Commonwealth of Massachusetts" in English is also sometimes used. History The first seal of Massachusetts Bay Colony showed a nude American Indian with a bush covering his genitals. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Judiciary Of Massachusetts
The judiciary of Massachusetts is the branch of the government of Massachusetts that interprets and applies the law of Massachusetts, ensures equal justice under law, and provides a mechanism for dispute resolution. The judicial power in Massachusetts is reposed in the Supreme Judicial Court, which superintends the entire system of courts. Courts The Massachusetts court system consists of the Supreme Judicial Court, the Appeals Court, and the seven Trial Court departments. Supreme Judicial Court The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court is the court of last resort. An appeal from a conviction of first degree murder goes directly to the Supreme Judicial Court. The Supreme Judicial Court can also elect to bypass review by the Appeals Court and hear a case on "direct appellate review." Appeals Court The Massachusetts Appeals Court is the intermediate appellate court. The court hears most appeals from the departments of the Trial Courts of Massachusetts and administrative tribu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Forrest Dillon
John Forrest Dillon (December 25, 1831 – May 6, 1914) was an American attorney in Iowa and New York, a justice of the Iowa Supreme Court and a United States circuit judge of the United States Circuit Court for the Eighth Circuit. He authored a highly influential treatise on the power of states over municipal governments. Education and career Born on December 25, 1831, in Northampton, (then part of Montgomery County, now part of Fulton County), New York, Dillon received a Doctor of Medicine in 1850 from the University of Iowa. He read law in 1852. He entered private practice in Davenport, Iowa from 1852 to 1853. He was county attorney for Scott County, Iowa from 1853 to 1858. He was a Judge of the Iowa District Court for the Seventh Judicial District from 1858 to 1862. He was a justice of the Iowa Supreme Court from 1862 to 1868. Federal judicial service Dillon was nominated by President Ulysses S. Grant on December 9, 1869, to the United States Circuit Court f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Town
A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative status, or historical significance. In some regions, towns are formally defined by legal charters or government designations, while in others, the term is used informally. Towns typically feature centralized services, infrastructure, and governance, such as municipal authorities, and serve as hubs for commerce, education, and cultural activities within their regions. The concept of a town varies culturally and legally. For example, in the United Kingdom, a town may historically derive its status from a market town designation or City status in the United Kingdom, royal charter, while in the United States, the term is often loosely applied to incorporated municipality, municipalities. In some countries, such as Australia and Canada, distinction ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Massachusetts State Auditor
The state auditor of Massachusetts is an elected constitutional officer in the executive branch of the U.S. state of Massachusetts. Twenty-six individuals have occupied the office of state auditor since the office's creation in 1849. The incumbent is Diana DiZoglio, a Massachusetts Democratic Party, Democrat. Election Term of office The state auditor is Direct election, elected by the people on Election Day in November to four-year terms, and takes office on the third Wednesday of the January following a general election. There is no term limit, limit to the number of terms a state auditor may hold. Institutionally speaking, the state auditor is thus completely Auditor independence, independent of both the Governor of Massachusetts, governor and General Court of Massachusetts, General Court for the purpose of performing their official duties. These constitutional protections notwithstanding, the state auditor may still be Impeachment, impeached for misconduct or maladministration b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Massachusetts Secretary Of The Commonwealth
The secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a constitutional officer in the executive branch of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Originally appointed under authority of the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, English Crown pursuant to the Charter of the Massachusetts Bay Company, the office of secretary of the Commonwealth (equivalent to "Secretary of State (U.S. state government), secretaries of state" in other U.S. jurisdictions) became an Direct election, elective one in 1780. Twenty-seven individuals have occupied the office of secretary of the Commonwealth over the ensuing centuries. The incumbent is William F. Galvin, a Massachusetts Democratic Party, Democrat who has held the office since 1995. Election Term of office The secretary of the Commonwealth is Direct election, elected by the people on Election Day in November to four-year terms, and takes office on the third Wednesday of the January following a general election. There is no term ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Massachusetts Attorney General
The Massachusetts attorney general is an elected constitutionally defined executive officer of the Massachusetts government. The officeholder is the chief lawyer and law enforcement officer of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The officeholder also acts as an advocate and resource for the Commonwealth and its residents in many areas, including consumer protection, combating fraud and corruption, protecting civil rights, and maintaining economic competition. The current attorney general is Andrea Campbell. Qualifications Any person seeking to become the attorney general of Massachusetts must meet the following requirements: * Be at least eighteen years of age * Be a registered voter in Massachusetts * Be a Massachusetts resident for at least five years when elected * Receive 10,000 signatures from registered voters on nomination papers * Be a member of the Massachusetts Bar History When the 1780 state constitution was first enacted, the attorney general was appointed by the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bicameralism
Bicameralism is a type of legislature that is divided into two separate Deliberative assembly, assemblies, chambers, or houses, known as a bicameral legislature. Bicameralism is distinguished from unicameralism, in which all members deliberate and vote as a single group. , roughly 40% of the world's national legislatures are bicameral, while unicameralism represents 60% nationally and much more at the subnational level. Often, the members of the two chambers are elected or selected by different methods, which vary from Jurisdiction (area), jurisdiction to jurisdiction. This can often lead to the two chambers having very different compositions of members. Enactment of a bill, Enactment of primary legislation often requires a concurrent majority—the approval of a majority of members in each of the chambers of the legislature. When this is the case, the legislature may be called an example of perfect bicameralism. However, in many parliamentary and semi-presidential systems, th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
State Legislature (United States)
In the United States, the state legislature is the legislative branch in each of the 50 U.S. states. A legislature generally performs state duties for a state in the same way that the United States Congress performs national duties at the national level. Generally, the same system of checks and balances that exists at the federal level also exists between the state legislature, the state executive officer (governor) and the state judiciary. In 27 states, the legislature is called the ''legislature'' or the ''state legislature'', while in 19 states the legislature is called the ''general assembly''. In Massachusetts and New Hampshire, the legislature is called the ''general court'', while North Dakota and Oregon designate the legislature the ''legislative assembly''. Legislature overview Responsibilities The responsibilities of a state legislature vary from state to state, depending on state's constitution. The primary function of any legislature is to create ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Massachusetts
Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode Island to its south, New Hampshire and Vermont to its north, and New York (state), New York to its west. Massachusetts is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, sixth-smallest state by land area. With a 2024 U.S. Census Bureau-estimated population of 7,136,171, its highest estimated count ever, Massachusetts is the most populous state in New England, the List of U.S. states and territories by population, 16th-most-populous in the United States, and the List of states and territories of the United States by population density, third-most densely populated U.S. state, after New Jersey and Rhode Island. Massachusetts was a site of early British colonization of the Americas, English colonization. The Plymouth Colony was founded in 16 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Boston
Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeastern United States. It has an area of and a population of 675,647 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the third-largest city in the Northeastern United States after New York City and Philadelphia. The larger Greater Boston metropolitan statistical area has a population of 4.9 million as of 2023, making it the largest metropolitan area in New England and the Metropolitan statistical area, eleventh-largest in the United States. Boston was founded on Shawmut Peninsula in 1630 by English Puritans, Puritan settlers, who named the city after the market town of Boston, Lincolnshire in England. During the American Revolution and American Revolutionary War, Revolutionary War, Boston was home to several seminal events, incl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Suffolk County Courthouse
The Suffolk County Courthouse, now formally the John Adams Courthouse, is a historic courthouse building in Pemberton Square in Boston, Massachusetts. It is home to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (the state's highest court) and the Massachusetts Appeals Court. Built in 1893, it was the major work of Boston's first city architect, George Clough, and is one of the city's few surviving late 19th-century monumental civic buildings. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1974. Description The John Adams Courthouse is located on the west side of Pemberton Square, now little more than an open plaza bounded by the courthouse on the west, and the backside of the curved Center Plaza building, which faces Tremont Street opposite the Boston City Hall plaza. The courthouse is a six-story granite structure, fifteen bays wide, with an eclectic stylistic composition. Its first 1-1/2 floor function by appearance as an elevated basement, with small arched window ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
