Final answer:
A city council operates as the local government equivalent of the legislative branch, focusing on creating laws for the city, similar to other legislative bodies at state and national levels.
Step-by-step explanation:
A city council is the local government version of the legislative branch of government. This is because a city council, much like other legislative bodies such as Congress or a state legislature, is tasked with creating laws to govern the locality it serves. The legislative branch at the national level, referenced by the United States Congress, is divided into two chambers and is responsible for writing laws, raising revenue, and allocating funds. Locally, under the mayor-council system, the city council performs legislative functions, while the mayor is responsible for the executive functions.
The correct answer to the question provided by the student is option a. Legislative branch of government. This is supported by the information that under the mayor-council system, legislative and executive responsibilities are separated, meaning the city council handles legislative operations and the mayor handles executive activities. Additionally, option 17 from the provided reference states that "Under the mayor-council system, the legislative and executive responsibilities are separated", which further confirms that the city council is akin to the legislative branch.