The City of Baton Rouge and Parish of East Baton Rouge are managed by a single, consolidated form of government. By having a consolidated government duplication of government services is eliminated, government efficiency is increased and cost is reduced. Basically, consolidated government is regarded as a more efficient way of running a metropolitan area. This form of government stems from 1947, when the people of the parish voted to consolidate the functions of local government so that the City of Baton Rouge and the rural, unincorporated areas of East Baton Rouge Parish would be served by a single government. The local government was further consolidated in 1982 when citizens voted to join the City and Parish Councils into a single governing body called the Metropolitan Council.

Mayor-President

As the name implies, the Mayor-President is the Mayor of the City of Baton Rouge and the Parish President for the Parish of East Baton Rouge. The Mayor-President sets the government's agenda, vision and manages its day-to-day functions. He appoints most of the department heads and supervises the services of those departments. While he does not set the city's public policy (that is the job of the Metropolitan Council) the Mayor-President influences policy through his relationships and his appointees.

Metropolitan Council

The East Baton Rouge Parish Metropolitan Council is responsible for setting the policy of the City-Parish government. The Metro Council is responsible for passing new legislation and approving how the city spends money. When it comes to passing new legislation, many of the items members introduce come first from their constituents. There are currently 12 Council Districts for East Baton Rouge Parish. If you do not know who your council member is, you can use the Council District Lookup and search using your street address.

Services

Realizing that many citizens may not know which department handles a certain service, we strive to make this site service oriented rather than just department oriented. Services provided by the City-Parish government have been grouped together by who the service applies to. Visit our Services page for more information.

Departments & Agencies

All City-Parish Departments are represented on our Department Directory. Several other Agencies that may not be under direct control of the City-Parish Government but do provide services to citizens of our area are also represented. The Staff Directory lists department name, director, phone number, email and web address, if applicable.

Agendas & Calendar

The Agendas page list the all of the agendas from various agencies available on the site. The Metro Calendar shows the current month's schedule of meetings.

Additional Resources

About Us

The About Us section of the site gives a brief history of Baton Rouge and a more detailed description on the Government.

Organizational Chart

The Organizational Chart (PDF) describes the layout of the Executive, Judicial and Legislative Branches, as well as State Constitutional Offices. It also shows the agencies that comprise each branch.

Code of Ordinances

The Code of Ordinances is a compilation of laws applicable to East Baton Rouge Parish that have been enacted by the Metropolitan Council. They cover a wide range of topics such as City-Parish departmental organization, traffic codes, criminal codes, health codes, and miscellaneous codes. This compilation is updated after each council meeting by the Municipal Code Corporation.

Plan of Government

The Plan of Government can be considered the City-Parish's "Home Rule Charter" or constitution. It was approved by the voters of the parish in 1947 and has been amended several times over the years. It details the composition and powers and duties of the Metropolitan Council, Mayor, and City Court, as well as several other essential functions of Government like the Finance Department, Public Works, Council Administrator-Treasurer, etc. It can only be amended by a vote of the people.

Metro21

Metro21 is the City-Parish's government access channel. It provides information to the public about city services and activities including weekly council meetings and school board meetings and classes for credit from Louisiana State University. In addition, local events such as community meetings, "How to Adopt Pets," tax seminars, road work updates, police, fire and EMS information, job opportunities, commodity listings, housing and energy assistance programs by the Parish, State and Federal Government can be found on this channel. In case of an emergency, Metro21 will broadcast valuable information to the public 24 hours a day, throughout the event.