Rural municipality (Canada)

Last updated

A rural municipality, often abbreviated RM, is a type of municipal status in the Canadian provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, [1] and Prince Edward Island. [2] In other provinces, such as Alberta and Nova Scotia, the term refers to municipal districts that are not explicitly urban, rather than being a distinct type of municipality. [3] [4]

Contents

History

Unlike Eastern Canada or the United States, the Prairies have never had counties.

The Municipal Ordinance of 1883 was enacted by the then North-West Territories to incorporate and empower municipalities in areas of four or more townships, establishing the offices of Treasurer, Assessor, Collector, and Auditor; departments for roads, animal control, and police; and a judiciary depending on the size of the municipality. [5] The Ordinance also established the category of "statute labour", wherein each male inhabitant of working age in a municipality was liable for at least one day of labour for property up to and including $300, and an additional day for each $300 value increment; these days could be paid off either by performing labour on the days or paying $2 per day. [6] The Government continued this with the Statute Labour Ordinance (1897), which established sets of statute labour and fire (SLF) districts or statute labour districts in areas not under any municipality. Prairie fires in the 19th century were devastating affairs; fire districts were precursors to local improvement districts (LIDs). [7]

Saskatchewan and Alberta became provinces in 1905. In Saskatchewan, discontinuance of local improvement districts in favour of smaller rural municipalities began on December 13, 1909. Typically, a rural municipality consists of about nine townships, each six miles by six miles in area. Settled areas of denser populations could form urban municipalities such as villages, towns and cities. In northern Saskatchewan, the large Northern Local Improvement District was replaced by the Northern Saskatchewan Administration District in 1972, and was not subdivided into smaller rural municipalities.

Rural municipalities by province

See also

Related Research Articles

The term township, in Canada, is generally the district or area associated with a town. The specific use of the term to describe political subdivisions has varied by country, usually to describe a local rural or semirural government within the country itself.

This is a list of leaders and office-holders of Canada. See also Canadian incumbents by year.

This is a list of elections in Canada in 2007. Included are provincial, municipal and federal elections, by-elections on any level, referendums and party leadership races at any level.

Crown corporations in Canada are government organizations with a mixture of commercial and public-policy objectives. They are directly and wholly owned by the Crown.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Outline of Canada</span> Overview of and topical guide to Canada

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Canada:

This is a list of elections in Canada in 2009. Included are provincial, municipal and federal elections, by-elections on any level, referendums and party leadership races at any level.

The language policies of Canada's province and territories vary between the provinces and territories of Canada. Although the federal government operates as an officially bilingual institution, providing services in English and French, several provincial governments have also instituted or legislated their own language policies.

This is a list of elections in Canada in 2015. Included are provincial, municipal and federal elections, by-elections on any level, referendums and party leadership races at any level.

This is a list of elections in Canada scheduled to be held in 2017. Included are provincial, municipal and federal elections, by-elections on any level, referendums and party leadership races at any level.

Canada has a total of 3,573 municipalities among its 10 provinces and 3 territories that are subject to some form of local government.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rural municipality</span> Index of articles associated with the same name

A rural municipality is a classification of municipality, a type of local government, found in several countries.

This is a list of elections in Canada scheduled to be held in 2020. Included are municipal, provincial and federal elections, by-elections on any level, referendums and party leadership races at any level. In bold are provincewide or federal elections and party leadership races.

This is a list of elections in Canada scheduled that were held in 2021. Included are municipal, provincial and federal elections, by-elections on any level, referendums and party leadership races at any level. In bold are provincewide or federal elections and party leadership races.

This is a list of elections in Canada that were held in 2022. Included are municipal, provincial and federal elections, by-elections on any level, referendums and party leadership races at any level.

References

  1. The Municipalities Act, SS 2005, c M-36.1, s 49.
  2. "Municipal Government Act PEI" (PDF). Government of Prince Edward Island. December 23, 2017. Retrieved September 21, 2018.
  3. "Types of Municipalities in Alberta". Alberta Municipal Affairs. December 22, 2016. Retrieved December 29, 2016.
  4. "The Establishment of Elective Rural Municipal Government in Nova Scotia" (PDF). Government of Nova Scotia: Department of Municipal Affairs. pp. 1, 2. Retrieved December 29, 2016.
  5. 1883 Ordinances, pp. 5–16
  6. 1883 Ordinances, p. 16
  7. "History". Saskatchewan Association of Regional Municipalities. Retrieved March 7, 2023.

Works cited