County Counsel Kit Elliott said on the KZYX News that the information about home rule charters is not clear to her.  She has been consulting other County Counsels, but it has been so long since the last county became chartered that no one knows. 

This is an exerpt from a very clear and concise article about home rule from the Keystone Crossroads website in PA.  Like CA, PA is both a Home Rule state and a Dillon's Rule state.  Much in this article applies exactly the same to CA. What is Home Rule? by Kate Lao Shaffner, WPSU

Why adopt home rule? What are the advantages?

Simply put, home rule allows a municipality much more freedom to self-govern, which in turn can be empowering for citizens. It also limits interference from state legislation, beneficial on the state-level because it frees up the General Assembly to focus on statewide issues.

It can be a way to address financial difficulties, as home rule allows a municipality to raise taxes.