Well your both qualified to teach English as long as you can get a company to sponsor you.
Other then teaching English you can look for foreign companies that might be looking for people. I wouldn't keep my hopes up for a job in any level of government as I believe its pretty strictly restricted to Japanese. I could be wrong, but that has been what I have been lead to believe. As for Japanese companies you will have the best chances if you have a skill(s) that they really need or want and they can't find it locally. Also, you will likely need to speak Japanese at some level, probably business level, to be able to work. Unless they really really need your skill set so badly that they are willing to find a translator.
There are other jobs around. What were you both thinking of? Do you speak any Japanese? Tell us a little bit more about yourselves and your situation and also why you want to move to Japan.
Oh, one more thing. You mentioned that your husband had 25 years in city government, well two things actually, your experience in another country will not likely be given much value, and if your over a certain age you will be given very little value. Japanese companies seem to like hiring right out of college and keeping them until retirement. I think this is starting to change a little bit with people changing jobs becoming more common but I believe it still generally applies.
Oh, and yet one more thing. Do you happen to know the state of the economy in Japan right now? Not only did they just suffer from a major natural disaster, but they are continuing to deal with a nuclear issue and many businesses were hurt by the earthquake and tsunami. Add too that the state of the economy after the global financial issues and the very strong yen and you get situation that is even more difficult to get a stable job then normal.
I know this might seem a bit insulting as you both seem fairly well educated but if you really want to move to Japan you may want to visit for an extended time first, then if you still want to move think about taking English teaching jobs at first until you can find the job your actually looking for. I have heard that finding good jobs is easier if your already in Japan.
Hope this answers some of your questions and helps you out!