Constitutional Authority. As a home rule unit of government under Section 6(a), Article VII of the 1970 Constitution of the State of Illinois (the AState@), the City has the power to regulate for the protection of the public health, safety, morals and welfare of its inhabitants, and pursuant thereto, has the power to encourage private development in order to enhance the local tax base, create employment opportunities and to enter into contractual agreements with private parties in order to achieve these goals.
Constitutional Authority. As a home rule unit of government under Section 6(a), Article VII of the 1970 Constitution of the State of Illinois (the “State”), the City has the power to regulate for the protection of the public health, safety, morals and welfare of its inhabitants, and pursuant thereto, has the power to encourage development in order to enhance the local tax base, create employment opportunities and to enter into contractual agreements with parties in order to achieve these goals. In addition, under Section 10, Article VII of the 1970 Constitution of the State, units of local government, such as the City and CTA, may contract or otherwise associate among themselves, to exercise, combine, or transfer any power or function, in any manner not prohibited by law or by ordinance.
Constitutional Authority. Nothing in this Agreement constitutes an event of forfeiture, nor does any portion of this Agreement violate any provision of the Texas Constitution;
Constitutional Authority. Missouri’s Constitution lays the framework for how local governments may expend public funds in Article 6, Section 23 and 25. However, Missouri courts have stated that “no violation of sec. 23 or 25, art. VI, Missouri Constitution, occurs where the expenditure of public funds is for a public purpose.”9 Therefore, to maintain constitutionality under the public purpose doctrine, it is necessary to determine what qualifies an expenditure of public funds by a local government in Missouri as being put toward a public purpose. The central test for what constitutes a public purpose lies with the Missouri legislature. The Supreme Court of Missouri has stated that, “determination of what constitutes a public purpose is primarily for the legislative department and it will not be overturned unless found to be arbitrary and unreasonable. The public purpose being apparent, it is unimportant that incidental benefits may accrue to private interests.”10 Where the Missouri legislature has passed legislation authorizing local governments to expend money for specific reasons, those reasons, unless arbitrary and unreasonable, are deemed a public purpose and, as a result, constitutional. 4 Id. 5 Id.
