In this Essentials Edition of Governing States and Localities, authors Kevin Smith and Alan Greenblatt retain the hallmarks of their bestselling introductory text by blending the latest scholarship with engaging journalistic writing, crisp storytelling, and class-tested pedagogy. Based on market feedback, the authors distilled core topics and cut out policy coverage some instructors do not have time to cover, but kept the ever-important finance chapter and a beautiful full-color interior design. This value-priced, ten-chapter text utilizes the comparative approach to ensure that students walk away from the course understanding how and why states and localities are both similar and different in institutional structure, culture, history, geography, economy, and demographics