Local government in Canada

Local government in Canada can be defined to include all elected local authorities which are legally empowered to make decisions on behalf of its electors, but excluding the federal government, the provinces or territories, or Indian bands. This can include municipalities, school boards, health authorities or hospital boards, and so on.[1][2]

Canada
This article is part of a series on the politics and government of Canada
Government (structure)
The Crown Monarch (List of monarchs): Elizabeth II Governor General (List of Governors General): Vacant Monarchy in the provinces Lieutenant governors
Executive (Queen-in-Council) Queen's Privy Council Prime minister (List of Prime Ministers): Justin Trudeau Cabinet (List of Canadian ministries): 29th Canadian Ministry President of the Privy Council Clerk of the Privy Council Privy Council Office Civil Service Provincial and territorial executive councils Premiers
Legislative (Queen-in-Parliament) Federal parliament (List of parliaments) Senate Speaker of the Senate Government Leader in the Senate Opposition Leader in the Senate Senate divisions House of Commons Speaker of the house Government Leader in the house Opposition Leader in the house Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition Leader of the Opposition Shadow cabinet Provincial and territorial parliaments
Judicial (Queen-on-the-Bench) Supreme court (List of justices) Chief Justice of Canada: Richard Wagner Courts of the Provinces and Territories Federal courts Military courts Constitution British North America Acts Peace, order, and good government Charter of Rights and Freedoms
Elections Federal electoral districts Federal electoral system (List of federal elections) Provincial electoral districts Politics of the provinces
Local government Municipal government
Foreign relations Global Affairs Canada Minister: François-Philippe Champagne Diplomatic missions of / in Canada Nationality law Passport Visa requirements Visa policy Canada–Latin America relations Canada–European Union relations
Related topics Federalism Conservatism Constitutional law Royal prerogative Liberalism Provinces and territories Regions Political culture Office-holders Political movements Aboriginal self-government First Nations bands
Canada portal Other countries

The most prominent form of local government in Canada is municipal government, which is a local council authority which provides local services, facilities, safety and infrastructure for communities.[3][4] Municipal governments are local general-purpose authorities which provide services to all residents within a defined geographic area called a municipality.

Canada has three orders of government; federal, provincial and local/municipal. According to Section 92(8) of the Constitution Act, 1867, "In each Province the Legislature may exclusively make Laws in relation to... Municipal Institutions in the Province."[5] Local governments are therefore frequently referred to as "creatures of the provinces". There were about 3,700 municipal governments in Canada c. 2002.

The organisation of local government is complex. For instance, in some provinces there are several tiers of local government: regional governments, county governments and municipal governments. There are also special service districts in some unincorporated areas. Municipal local governments take various forms including cities, towns and villages. There are also innumerable specific purpose authorities. In Ontario province alone there are at least 2000 of these bodies, including 'police commissions, health units, conservation authorities, public utilities commissions, parks boards and school boards' (Tindal & Tindal 1995, p. 2). Schools are usually provided locally by school boards, with the 'school trustees' being elected.

— The Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development (Australia)[6]