<P> Property within a city's limit is subject to city taxation and city regulation, and expects city services . Areas outside any city's limit are considered to be unincorporated, and in most U.S. states they are by default regulated and taxed by the county . In others, areas outside a city's limit fall within another type of local government, such as the civil township (a division of a county). Cities and towns may have extraterritorial jurisdiction beyond their limits, typically for zoning purposes . The distance this extends varies based on the population or area of the city, or which "class" it is considered to be under state law . </P> <P> Home rule within a city's limit is usually exercised by the mayor (executive branch) and city council (legislative branch). Home rule outside the city's limit is usually exercised by the county commission (which is often both legislative and executive), or the township's board of supervisors . Even without home rule, the county, as a unit of state government, also has certain powers and responsibilities even within the limits of its cities, including the sheriff that performs evictions, runs the county jail that all city and county police departments take arrested persons to, and guards the courthouse for the county's state court even though it is usually within the city limit of the county seat . Elections and health departments are also common county responsibilities which include all cities . (City residents still pay some county taxes for these reasons .) </P> <P> If a city chooses to have its own emergency services, they only have jurisdiction within the city's limit, except for mutual aid (typically among fire departments) in case of disaster . Telephone companies also must keep track of changing a city's limit to ensure that calls to 9 - 1 - 1 are routed to the appropriate public - safety answering point, if the city operates a PSAP separate from the county . Calls from mobile phones are usually routed based on the location of the base station rather than the calling party, so these (along with landline calls to non-emergency telephone numbers) must be handled manually by the telephone operator or dispatcher, determining whether the caller or incident is within a particular city limit or not so that the proper authorities may be sent . </P> <P> A city's limit may extend into more than one county, which can complicate certain matters of policing and taxation . (For example, sales tax revenue collected in a city by one county may not be spent in another part of the city outside that county .) Where a city merges its government with that of its county to become a consolidated city - county, the city limit is usually considered to be expanded to occupy all of the previously - unincorporated area of the county, while other existing municipalities continue to exist but are permanently locked into their city's limit without the possibility of annexation (except possibly into a neighboring county). An independent city's limit separates it from being in any county at all . Similarly, cities and towns may or may not be considered part of the township (s) they are in . </P>

S this establishment physically located inside the legal boundaries of the city town village etc