Branches of Government

Often service provision overlaps two or more branches of government. For example, all four governmental entities have taxes. State and county governments share responsibility for courts, schools and elections. In Wake Forest, the Town shares some of the responsibility of roadway extension and repair with the state.

Town Government

Closest to Wake Forest citizens is the Town of Wake Forest government, which is charged with providing a broad range of services that touch most citizens every day. Wake Forest uses a council-manager form of government for services such as police and fire protection, solid waste collection, parks and recreation, and building inspections. The City of Raleigh owns and operates the water and wastewater system that provides service to residents within the urban service area designated for the Town of Wake Forest. 

County Government

Wake Forest residents are also served by Wake County or Franklin County government, depending on where they reside. According to state law, county government oversees such things as social services, public and environmental health and the landfill. A county Board of Commissioners oversees Wake and Franklin County government. County government also includes the county Board of Elections, the sheriff's office and the register of deeds.

State Government

State government, headed by the governor, the General Assembly and the NC Supreme Court, handles most everything related to motor vehicles, including titles, tags, traffic lights and driver licensing. Colleges and universities as well as alcoholic beverage control, consumer protection, insurance and utilities regulation also fall to the state.

Federal Government

Under the auspices of the federal government, citizens will find Social Security, the US Postal Service, air and rail services, immigration and more.