New Zealand is divided into sixteen regions for local government purposes. Eleven are administered by regional councils, and five are administered by unitary authorities, which are territorial authorities that also perform the functions of regional councils. The Chatham Islands Council is not a region but is similar to a unitary authority, authorised under its own legislation.
Territorial authorities are the second tier of local government in New Zealand, below regional councils. There are 67 territorial authorities: 13 city councils, 53 district councils and the Chatham Islands Council. District councils serve a combination of rural and urban communities, while city councils administer the larger urban areas. Five territorial authorities also perform the functions of a regional council and thus are unitary authorities. The Chatham Islands Council is a sui generis territorial authority that is similar to a unitary authority.
Waikato is a local government region of the upper North Island of New Zealand. It covers the Waikato District, Waipa District, Matamata-Piako District, South Waikato District and Hamilton City, as well as Hauraki, Coromandel Peninsula, the northern King Country, much of the Taupō District, and parts of Rotorua District. It is governed by the Waikato Regional Council.
Waikato District is a territorial authority of New Zealand, in the northern part of Waikato region, North Island. Waikato District is administered by the Waikato District Council, with headquarters in Ngāruawāhia.
Thames is a town at the southwestern end of the Coromandel Peninsula in New Zealand's North Island. It is located on the Firth of Thames close to the mouth of the Waihou River. The town is the seat of the Thames-Coromandel District Council. The Māori iwi are Ngāti Maru, who are descendants of Marutuahu's son Te Ngako. Ngāti Maru is part of the Ngati Marutuahu confederation of tribes or better known as Hauraki Iwi.
Triennial elections for all 74 cities, districts, twelve regional councils and all district health boards in New Zealand were held on 9 October 2004. Most councils were elected using the first-past-the-post method, but ten were elected using the single transferable vote (STV) method. It was the first time that the STV method was available; the change came through successful lobbying by Rod Donald.
Under New Zealand law, a licensing trust is a community-owned company with a government-authorised monopoly on the development of premises licensed for the sale of alcoholic beverages and associated accommodation in an area. This applies to both on-licence and off-licence sales.
The Moehau Range is the northernmost range on the Coromandel Peninsula, extending from the settlement of Colville, New Zealand northwards to the tip of the peninsula. Mount Moehau is the highest point of the range, at 892m above sea level.
Local Government New Zealand Te Kahui Kaunihera ō Aotearoa (LGNZ) is the local government association of New Zealand. It represents the interests of the regional, city, and district councils in New Zealand.
Auckland Council is the local government council for the Auckland Region in New Zealand. It is a territorial authority that has the responsibilities, duties and powers of a regional council and so is a unitary authority, according to the Local Government Act 2009, which established the council. The governing body consists of a mayor and 20 councillors, elected from 13 wards. There are also 149 members of 21 local boards who make decisions on matters local to their communities. It is the largest council in Oceania, with a $3 billion annual budget, $29 billion of ratepayer equity, and 9,870 full-time staff as of 30 June 2016. The council began operating on 1 November 2010, combining the functions of the previous regional council and the region's seven city and district councils into one "super council" or "super city".
New Zealand has a unitary system of government in which the authority of the central government defines sub-national entities. Local government in New Zealand has only the powers conferred upon it by the New Zealand Parliament. In general, local authorities are responsible for enabling democratic local decision-making and promoting the social, economic, environmental, and cultural well-being of their communities, as well as more specific functions for which they have delegated authority.
The 2016 New Zealand local elections were triennial local elections to select local government officials and District Health Board members. Under section 10 of the Local Electoral Act 2001, a "general election of members of every local authority or community board must be held on the second Saturday in October in every third year" from the date the Act came into effect in 2001, meaning 8 October 2016.
Public transport in Hamilton and the Waikato Region is poorly developed. Only 0.9% of trips were made by bus in 2013/14. This compares with 2.3% nationally, which itself is amongst the lowest modal shares in the world. A Mass Transit Plan aiming to increase public transport's share in Hamilton from 3 to 10% by running services at 10 minute intervals, was to be developed in 2019, but has yet to be funded by NZTA. Waikato, like all other regions, with the exception of Auckland and Wellington, saw falls in use of public transport from 2012. As the map shows, the coverage is sparse and, even of those services which operate daily, most have only 2 or 3 buses a day in each direction. Only Hamilton urban services and those to Huntly run hourly, or more frequently. About 40% of passengers travel on the two routes which run at 15 minute intervals. From Monday 21 February 2022 the less frequent Hamilton buses were cut to hourly, or 2-hourly, due to driver shortages.
The Mayor of Whangarei is the directly elected head of the Whangarei District Council, the local government authority for the Whangarei District in New Zealand, which it controls as a territorial authority. The position has existed since 27 October 1896, when the Whangarei Borough Council was constituted. Later the mayor presided over Whangarei City Council. The position has existed in its present form since 1 November 1989, following the amalgamation of Whangarei County Council, Whangarei City Council and Hikurangi Town Board. The mayor is supported by a deputy mayor.
Hapuakohe Range of hills is aligned north-south, between the Waikato River and the Hauraki Plains in the Waikato region of New Zealand. It is separated from the Taupiri Range by an air-gap at Mangawara, where the Waikato flowed about 20,000 years ago.
Onemana is a 1970s beach village on the eastern side of the Coromandel Peninsula of New Zealand, with a beach, a surf club, fire station and dairy. It lies 3 km (1.9 mi) to the east of State Highway 25, south of Pauanui and north of Whangamatā. The Wharekawa River and Opoutere are just to the north and west.
Thames-Coromandel District Council is the territorial authority for the Thames-Coromandel District of New Zealand. The council consists of the mayor of Thames-Coromandel and 8 ward councillors. There are also five community boards.
The Three Waters reform programme is a public infrastructure restructuring programme launched by the Sixth Labour Government to centralise the management of water supply and sanitation in New Zealand. It proposes shifting control of stormwater, drinking water and wastewater management from the country's 67 local councils to four new publicly-owned regional entities by July 2024. Details of the proposed reforms were announced in October 2021. The Three Waters reforms were criticised by several mayors and the opposition National and ACT parties.
The 2022 New Zealand local elections were triennial elections held in New Zealand on Saturday 8 October 2022. Voting began by postal vote on 16 September and ended at noon on 8 October 2022.
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