Municipal council

Amunicipal councilis thelegislative bodyof amunicipalityorlocal government area.Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as acity council,town council,town board,community council,rural council,village council,orboard of aldermen.

Australia

Because of the differences in legislation between thestates,the exact definition of a city council varies. However, it is generally only thoselocal government areaswhich have been specifically granted city status (usually on a basis of population) that are entitled to refer to themselves as cities. The official title is "Corporation of the City of ______" or similar.

Some of the urban areas of Australia are governed mostly by a single entity (e.g.Brisbaneand otherQueenslandcities), while others may be controlled by a multitude of much smaller city councils. Also, some significant urban areas can be under the jurisdiction of otherwise rural local governments. Periodic re-alignments of boundaries attempt to rationalize these situations and adjust the deployment of assets and resources.

Belize

There are currently seventown councils in Belize.Each town council consists of a mayor and a number of councillors, who are directly elected in municipal elections every three years. Town councils in Belize are responsible for a range of functions, including street maintenance and lighting, drainage, refuse collection, public cemeteries, infrastructure, parks and playgrounds.

Canada

Ontario

Township councils in Ontario play a similar role ascity councilsin cities for smaller or low tier municipalities. Directly elected every four years, the number of councillors vary depending on the size of their municipalities. The councillors' powers and responsibilities are governed by theMunicipal Actof Ontario.

Manitoba

Manitobatown council members serve primarily as a policy and direction board for the community. They consist of five to seven members with the head of council being the mayor orreeve.

China

Municipal councils exist in thePeople's Republic of China,these are designated asMunicipal People's Congressin manysub-provincial citiesanddirect-administered municipalitiessuch as theShanghai Municipal People's Congress.

France

In spite of enormous differences in populations, each of the communes of the French Republic possesses amayor(French:maire) and amunicipal council(French:conseil municipal), which manage thecommunefrom themairie(city hall), with exactly the same powers no matter the size of the commune and council. The one exception is the city of Paris, wherethe city police is in the hands of the central state,not in the hands of the mayor of Paris. This uniformity of status is a clear legacy of the French Revolution, which wanted to do away with the local idiosyncrasies and tremendous differences of status that existed in the kingdom of France.

The size of a commune still matters, however, in two domains: French law determines the size of the municipal council according to the population of the commune; and the size of the population determines which voting process is used for the election of the municipal council.

Hong Kong

Established as the Sanitary Board in 1883, the Municipal Council inHong Kong IslandandKowloon(including theNew Kowloon) provided municipal services to the covered regions in the thenBritish Hong Kong.Partial elections were allowed in 1887, though merely enabling selected persons to vote for members of the Board. The Board was reconstituted in 1935 and hence renamed as Urban Council in the following year after the government had passed the Urban Council Ordinance. Democratisation had been implemented, allowing universal suffrage to happen throughout its development. Two years after theTransfer of sovereignty over Hong Kong,the council was disbanded in 1999 by the thenChief ExecutiveofHong Kong Special Administrative Region.All members of the council were elected throughuniversal suffrageby the time of the dissolution.

The counterpart of the Municipal Council serving theNew Territories(excludingNew Kowloon) was theRegional Councilestablished as the Provisional Regional Council in 1986. The functional select committees, district committees, and sub-committees constituted the entire Regional Council. All members were elected from theconstituenciesanddistrict boards.

Both of the Municipal Councils in Hong Kong are now defunct.

India

In India,a Municipal council is the legislative and decision making body of a municipality. A municipality is the local government for a smaller urban area, known as municipal area. The entire district under the Municipality is divided into smaller legislative units known as a ward. The people of the ward elect a councillor known as the municipal councillor, and all such councillors together make the Council. The Council is the Legislative and decision-making unit of the Municipality. The head of the council is called a Chairperson, or President, followed by a Vice-chairperson or a Vice-president. All the meetings are conducted and presided over by the President. The state government appoints a Chief Executive Officer or Secretary of the Municipality who is responsible for the day-to-day administration.

In citiesMunicipal Corporationacts as the governing body.

Japan

Municipal councils are parliamentary bodies established in local authorities in accordance with Article 93 of theConstitution of Japanand Article 89 of theLocal Autonomy Act,etc.^[1]TheYokohamaandOsaka City Councilsare examples.

Jordan

Malaysia

Moldova

The Municipal Council inMoldovais the governing body in five municipalities:Chișinău,^[2]Bălți,TiraspolandBendery(also known asTighinaorBender). The Municipal Council (Moldovan language:Consiliul municipal) serves as a consultative body with some powers of general policy determination.^[2]It is composed of a legally determined number of counsellors (for example 35 in Bălți) elected every four years, representing political parties and independent counsellors. Once elected, counsellors may form fractions inside of the Municipal Council.^[2]

Last regional elections of local public administration held in Bălți in June 2007, brought to the power theParty of Communists of the Republic of Moldova(PCRM), which holds 21 mandates, 11 mandates are held by representatives of other parties, and 3 mandates by independents. There are two fractions in the Municipal Council: PCRM fraction (21 counsellors) and "Meleag" fraction (3 independent counsellors and 4 representatives of different parties).

The Mayor of the municipality is elected for four years. In Bălți, Vasile Panciuc (PCRM) is the incumbent from 2001 and was re-elected twice: in 2003 during the anticipated elections (as a result of a new reform of the administrative division in Moldova in 2003), and in 2007. In Chișinău, the last mayor elections had to be repeated three times, because of the low rate of participation. As a result,Dorin Chirtoacă(Liberal Party), won the last mayor elections inChișinău.

Netherlands

In the Netherlands, the municipal council (Dutch:gemeenteraad) is the elected assembly of the municipality. It consists of between 9 and 45 members (as determined by law) who are elected by the citizens once every four years.

The council's main tasks are setting the city's policies and overseeing the execution of those policies by the municipality'sexecutive board.

New Zealand

Local councils inNew Zealanddo vary in structure, but are overseen by the government departmentLocal Government New Zealand.For many decades until the local government reforms of 1989, a borough with more than 20,000 people could be proclaimed acity.The boundaries of councils tended to follow the edge of the built-up area, so little distinction was made between the urban area and the local government area.

New Zealand's local government structural arrangements were significantly reformed by theLocal Government Commissionin 1989 whenapproximately 700 councils and special purpose bodieswere amalgamated to create 87 new local authorities.

As a result, the term "city" began to take on two meanings.

The word "city" came to be used in a less formal sense to describe major urban areas independent of local body boundaries.Gisborne,for example, adamantly described itself as the first city in the world to see the new millennium. Gisborne is administered by a district council, but its status as a city is not generally disputed.

Under the current law, the minimum population for a new city is 50,000.

Norway

The municipal council (Norwegian:Kommunestyre), literally municipal board, is the highest governing body of themunicipalityinNorway.The municipal council sets the scope of municipal activity, takes major decisions, and delegates responsibility. The council is led by amayor(ordfører) and is divided into an executive council (formannskap) and a number of committees, each responsible for a subsection of tasks. It is not uncommon for some members of the council to sit in thecounty councilstoo, but very rare that they also hold legislative (Storting) orGovernmentoffice, withoutleave of absence.

The municipal council dates back to 1837 with the creation of theFormannskabsdistrikt.In cities, the council is often called a city council (bystyre).

Palestine

ThePalestinian National Authorityestablishedvillage councilsto serve as local administrations and service providers for Palestinian villages and small towns. Village councils are also referred to as D-level municipalities.

Philippines

In thePhilippines,all municipalities have their own municipal council, and these are officially called: "Sangguniang Bayan".Citieshave a similar but separate form of legislature called "Sangguniang Panlungsod"(literally" city council "). The Local Government Code of 1991 established the current local government structure, including municipal councils.^[3]City councils range from 12, in most cities, to 38 members, such as theManila City Council.Members of city councils are called "councilors".

Republic of Ireland

TheLocal Government Act 2001restyled the five county boroughs ofDublin,Cork,Galway,Waterford,andLimerickas cities, each with a city council, having the same status in law as county councils.

TheLocal Government Reform Act 2014amalgamatedLimerick City CouncilandLimerick County Councilto formLimerick City and County Council,andWaterford City CouncilandWaterford County Councilto formWaterford City and County Council.

Singapore

In Singapore, town councils are in charge of maintaining the common areas ofHousing and Development Board(HDB) flats and estates, such as the common corridors,void decks,lifts, water tanks, external lighting and the open spaces surrounding the estates. They are regulated under the Town Councils Act (Cap. 329A, 2000 Rev. Ed.).

The rationale was to delegate the duties of estate management to themembers of parliamentin addition to their existing responsibilities. They would also gain management experience and be accountable to their district's resident voters.^[4]

Town councils boundaries are drawn based onelectoral districtsboundaries. A town council area can consist of aGroup Representation Constituency(GRC), a Single Member Constituency (SMC), or a collection of neighbouring GRCs and SMCs controlled by the same political party. The Members ofParliamenthead the town councils of their constituencies. Town councils boundaries do not correspond tonew townboundaries; different parts of the same HDB town may be managed by different town councils.^[5]

Taiwan

In theRepublic of China,a municipal council represents aspecial municipalityor aprovincial city.Members of the councils are elected through municipalelectionsheld every four–five years.

Councils for thespecial municipalitiesin Taiwan areTaipei City Council,New Taipei City Council,Taichung City Council,Tainan City Council,Kaohsiung City CouncilandTaoyuan City Council.

Councils for theprovincial citiesin Taiwan areChiayi City Council,Hsinchu City Council,andKeelung City Council.

Ukraine

InUkraine,almost all cities have their City Councils, and the mayors (usually elected by people) are the chairmen of them (e.g.:Kyiv City Council,Kharkiv City Council,Odesa City Council,Lviv City Council,Chernihiv City Council).

United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom, not all cities have city councils, and the status and functions of city councils vary.

InEngland,since theLocal Government Act 1972,"town council" is the specific name given to acivil parishcouncil which has declared itself by resolution to be a town council. If another type of local council, such as adistrictauthority, covers a single town (such asLutonorStevenage) then the council is often a 'borough council': borough status is however conferred at the discretion ofthe Crown.There is also the London assembly which is City council by default

Civil parishes are the most local level in the local government system. The higher levels aredistrict,unitaryandcounty.However town councils are not subordinate in democratic accountability to those higher levels, but to the electorate of their civil parish area.

The chairman of a town council is entitled to be styled as "town mayor". This term contrasts with simply "mayor", which means the mayor of aboroughor acity.However, this is often abbreviated simply to mayor, especially where the town was historically a borough or city, such asLewesorEly.InScotland,the term 'provost' is commonly used to designate the leader of the town council.

Historically the term 'town council' was used for the governing body of amunicipal boroughuntil the1972 Act.

England

A city council may be:

The council of ametropolitan districtthat has been grantedcity statussuch asLiverpool City Council.
The council of anon-metropolitan districtthat has been granted city status such asWinchester City Council.Some of these councils areunitary authoritiesand some share functions withcountycouncils such asPortsmouth City Council.
Aparish councilthat has been granted city status such asSalisbury City Council.These councils have limited functions. The city ofDurhamhas a parish council, but it is known as the City of Durham Parish Council, not the city council.
The council of aLondon boroughthat has been granted city status (of which there is only one example:Westminster City Council), or theCity of London Corporation.

Northern Ireland

Belfast City Councilis now the only city council. Since thelocal government reforms of 2015the other four cities form parts of widerdistrictsand do not have their own councils.

Scotland

A city council is the council of one of fourcouncil areasdesignated a City by theLocal Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994such asGlasgow City Council.

The three cities which are not council areas have no city council.

Wales

InWales,where the lowest tier of local government is known as acommunity,the Community Council may unilaterally declare itself to be a Town Council, but this has the same status as a Community Council.

A city council may be:

One of the three councils ofprincipal areasthat have been grantedcity statussuch asNewport City Council.
One of the threecommunity councils,with limited functions, that have been granted city status such asBangor City Council.

United States

City councils and town boards generally consist of several (usually somewhere between 5 and 51) electedaldermenorcouncillors.In the United States, members of city councils are typically calledcouncil member,council man,council woman,councilman,orcouncilwoman,while in Canada they are typically calledcouncillor.

In some cities, themayoris a voting member of the council who serves aschairman;in others, the mayor is the city's independentchief executive(orstrong mayor) withvetopower over city councillegislation.In larger cities the council may elect other executive positions as well, such as a councilpresidentandspeaker.

The council generally functions as aparliamentaryorpresidentialstyle legislative body, proposing bills, holding votes, and passing laws to help govern the city.

The role of the mayor in the council varies depending on whether or not the city usescouncil–manager governmentormayor–council government,and by the nature of the statutory authority given to it by state law, city charter, or municipal ordinance.

There is also amayor pro temcouncilmember. In cities where the council elects the mayor for one year at a time, the mayor pro tem is in line to become the mayor in the next year. In cities where the mayor is elected by the city's voters, the mayor pro tem serves asactingmayor in the absence of the mayor. This position is also known asvice mayor.

In some cities a different name for the municipal legislature is used. InPortland, Oregon,for example, it is known as the City Commission. InSan Francisco,it is known as theBoard of Supervisors;San Francisco is aconsolidated city-countyand theCaliforniaconstitution requires each county to have aBoard of Supervisors.

Ohioconstitution allows local home rule to define any type of government via a Charter Commission including a type with no Mayor (city manager) or potentially citizen's could vote to institute apure democracywith no council^[6]

Indiana

Indianatown council members serve as both the executive and legislative branches for small communities incorporated as towns within the state. They consist of three or five members, depending upon the town's population.

Unlike some states, Indiana council members must declare a political party affiliation, if any, when they file to run for office. Upon election in November, they are sworn in before 1 January of the following year, where they serve a four-year term. There are no state term limits affecting how many times a candidate may run for re-election to office.

The first meeting after an election, members of the town council hold an organising meeting, where they elect a president to set future agendas and act as an official spokesman for the town or as liaison between the town and state and county government.

Indiana town councils work in conjunction with an electedtown clerk,who manages the day-to-day business of the municipal government. As an elected official, the town clerk is solely executive in function and operates independently of the town council. But the council has final say on budgets which clerks depend upon to operate.

In addition to a clerk, the council can authorise the hiring of other staff to run the operations of government, including law enforcement officers,utilityworkers, park and recreation employees andtown managers.These employees serve at the pleasure of the council.

Massachusetts

Town councils inMassachusettsare essentiallycity councilsin towns which have adopted a city form of government but prefer to retain the "town of" in their names. In several communities which have adopted such a government, the official name of the community is "The City known as the Town of..." The legislative body of a legal town in Massachusetts is atown meeting;the executive board is aboard of selectmen.In addition to having the structure of a city with a mayor and council, cities in Massachusetts can enact ordinances, while towns may adopt by-laws, which are subject to the approval of theAttorney General.City ordinances are presumed to be legal unless challenged and set aside in court.

Michigan

InMichigan,there are257 incorporated villagesthat are governed by village councils, which is a form ofweak–mayoradministration. Michigan does not use "town" as a defined municipality, and villages are the lowest-level form of incorporated municipality. Villages are distinct from cities in that they share certain duties with their surrounding township and are not completely autonomous. Guidelines for village governments are defined in the General Law Village Act (Act 3) of 1895. Village councils consist of elected officials, including a village president, trustees, clerk, and treasurer.^[7]^[8]^[9]

New Hampshire

InNew Hampshire,theTown Councilis an elected body which serves as thelegislativeand executive body of the town. The town is governed by acharter,which is allowed under thehome ruleprovision of theNew Hampshire Constitution(Pt I, Art. 39) and Title III of the New Hampshire Revised Statutes Annotated. The charter for a Town Council must meet the following requirements ofRSA 49-D:3 I. (a) – (e)and all other applicable laws. The basic notion of home rule in New Hampshire is that local communities are not allowed to supersede the authority specifically granted to them by the state.

Official Ballot Town Council

The Official Ballot Town Council is a variant form of the Town Council. In the Official Ballot form of government, the town council is vested with the limited authority to vote on all matters not voted on by official ballot. The authority and restrictions on the Official Ballot town council is the same as the Town Council, except with respect to those matters specified to be voted on by official ballot. Also, the council decides what is placed on the ballot, not the registered voters.

The charter of the Official Ballot Town Council is required by law to specify specifically:

Which budgetary items to be included on the official ballot; and
A finalisation process for the annual budget; and
Process for public hearings, debate, discussion and amendment of questions to be placed on the official ballot; and
Procedures for the transfer of funds among various departments, funds, accounts and agencies as may be necessary during the year; and
Applicability of the official ballot procedure to special elections

The charter also must specify whether a2⁄3or3⁄5majority vote is required to approve bonds or notes, with the default being2⁄3.

Ohio

InOhio,the default form of municipal government organization provides limitations on the legislative body of a statutory form of government. The Ohio Revised Code does not allow the local legislative authority (council) the power to review contracts nor perform administrative duties.No review of Contractslimiting thechecks & balancesin a statutory form of government. A charter form of government could provide the legislative body more administrative powers, change number of seats, or change required qualifications. The Ohio Constitution provides for local self-government powers via a charter as defined inSection 7 of Article XVIIIreads as follows:

Any municipality may frame and adopt or amend a charter for its government and may, subject to the provisions of section 3 of this article, exercise thereunder all powers of local self-government.

Sections 8 and 9 of Article XVIII provide the procedures for adoption and amendment of a municipal charter.
The initial form of Municipal Government in Ohio is called Statuary because it is based on the default form outlined in the Ohio Revised Code statuteTitle 7.
Ohio Revised code allows for a system with no Mayor and strong council, known asSection 705.51 | City manager plan.

City of Kent, Ohio Mayor Title Only for Ceremonial Purposes

The City ofKent, Ohiohas acharter formof Government which:

Mayor shall be recognized as head of the City government for all ceremonial purposes, but shall have no administrative duties. (Amended 11-08-05)

Bicameralism

Bicameralcity councils were common in the United States until the 20th century, when many were abolished forcost cuttingpurposes and replaced withunicamerallegislatures. Typically, bicameral city councils were divided into Common Councils andBoards of Aldermen,to reflect the structure of federal and state legislatures. The city ofEverett, Massachusettswas the last to abolish its own bicameral city council (a seven-member Board of Aldermen and an 18-member Common Council) and replace it with an 11-member City Council, doing so with a November 8, 2011 referendum which took effect in 2014.

Examples include:

Philadelphia City Councilwas bicameral from 1789 to 1919, when it included a 149-member Common Council and 41-member Select Council, making it the largest municipal legislature in the United States.
Worcester City Council– 11-member Board of Aldermen; 30-member Common Council (1848–1948)
Seattle City Council– nine-member Board of Aldermen; 16-member House of Delegates (1890–1896)
New York City Council– a quasi-bicameral arrangement of theNew York City Board of Estimateand the City Council until the board's abolition in 1989
Board of Aldermen of the City of St. Louis– from 1877 to 1915

Others

Community council,lowest tier of local government in England, Scotland and Wales
Rural Council, a former name forSangguniang Barangay,Philippines
Rural Community Council,Great Britain
Selsoviet,lowest level of administrative division in rural areas in the Soviet Union, preserved as a third tier of administrative-territorial division throughout Ukraine, Belarus and some parts of Russia
Village council (Palestinian Authority)
Rural Council (Ukraine)
Rural MunicipalityorGaunpalika(Nepal)

References

^Địa phương hội nghị (2022-11-25)
^^a ^b ^c"Regulamentul privind constituirea și funcționarea Consiliului municipal Chișinău"(in Romanian). Chișinău Town Hall.Retrieved2012-12-18.
^Republic Act No. 7160 (1991-10-10),Local Government Code of 1991,The Official Gazette,retrieved2023-12-18
^Khaw Boon Wan,Minister for National Development (3 March 2014)."Measures to Protect Interests of Residents of Town Councils".Parliamentary Debates (Hansard).Singapore:Parliament.Archived fromthe originalon 2016-03-04.
^Town Councils Act (Cap. 329A, 2000 Rev. Ed.)
^"Article XVIII, Section 3 - Ohio Constitution | Ohio Laws".codes.ohio.gov.Retrieved2023-12-09.
^Michigan Municipal League (2015)."Chapter 3: Duties of Village Officials"(PDF).RetrievedJanuary 3,2020.
^Michigan Municipal League (2019)."Municipal Report: Organization of City and Village Government in Michigan"(PDF).RetrievedJanuary 2,2020.
^Legislative Council, State of Michigan (2019)."General Law Village Act (Act 3) of 1895"(PDF).RetrievedJanuary 3,2020.
^Petitions being an important citizen tool in Glasgow's City Council

[1] Địa phương hội nghị (2022-11-25)

[regulament-2] "Regulamentul privind constituirea și funcționarea Consiliului municipal Chișinău"(in Romanian). Chișinău Town Hall.Retrieved2012-12-18.

[ra7160-3] Republic Act No. 7160 (1991-10-10),Local Government Code of 1991,The Official Gazette,retrieved2023-12-18

[4] Khaw Boon Wan,Minister for National Development (3 March 2014)."Measures to Protect Interests of Residents of Town Councils".Parliamentary Debates (Hansard).Singapore:Parliament.Archived fromthe originalon 2016-03-04.

[5] Town Councils Act (Cap. 329A, 2000 Rev. Ed.)

[6] "Article XVIII, Section 3 - Ohio Constitution | Ohio Laws".codes.ohio.gov.Retrieved2023-12-09.

[7] Michigan Municipal League (2015)."Chapter 3: Duties of Village Officials"(PDF).RetrievedJanuary 3,2020.

[8] Michigan Municipal League (2019)."Municipal Report: Organization of City and Village Government in Michigan"(PDF).RetrievedJanuary 2,2020.

[9] Legislative Council, State of Michigan (2019)."General Law Village Act (Act 3) of 1895"(PDF).RetrievedJanuary 3,2020.

[10] Petitions being an important citizen tool in Glasgow's City Council

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