The Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board ( NSUARB ) is the independent tribunal and regulating arm of the Government of Nova Scotia responsible for public utilities in the province.
24-606: Argyle , officially named the Municipality of the District of Argyle , is a district municipality in Yarmouth County , Nova Scotia . Statistics Canada classifies the district municipality as a municipal district . The district municipality occupies the eastern portion of the county and is one of three municipal units - the other two being the Town of Yarmouth and the Municipality of
48-477: A century until the mid-1990s when 3 became regional municipalities. Its 9 remaining county municipalities were then continued as county municipalities in 1998 under the authority of the Municipal Government Act . These county municipalities provide local government to the residents of their historical counties who live outside incorporated towns. Nova Scotia's largest county municipality by population
72-588: A historical system of 18 counties. Prior to the establishment of rural municipalities in 1879, local government was administered by appointed courts of sessions. On April 17, 1879, the original non-elected courts of sessions were abolished in favour of elected councils when The County Incorporation Act came into force. As a result, 12 county municipalities were established, while the remaining 6 counties, which were previously divided into districts for court sessional purposes, were established as district municipalities. The province had 12 county municipalities for over
96-511: A land area of 1,526.07 km (589.22 sq mi), it had a population density of 5.2/km (13.4/sq mi) in 2021. Education: Unemployment rate: Average house value: List of district municipalities in Nova Scotia#District municipality Nova Scotia is the seventh-most populous province in Canada with 969,383 residents as of the 2021 Census of Population , and
120-419: Is Guysborough at 2,115.25 km (816.70 sq mi), while the smallest by land area is Yarmouth at 584.69 km (225.75 sq mi). Prior to mid-2015, towns were incorporated under the authority of sections 383 through 388 of Nova Scotia's Municipal Government Act ( MGA ). To incorporate an area as a town, 100 electors within the area were required to prepare and submit an application to
144-401: Is also Nova Scotia's largest by land area at 34.49 km (13.32 sq mi) and Annapolis Royal is the smallest by land area at 1.98 km (0.76 sq mi). Nova Scotia has undergone reforms to local government since the mid-1990s, which has seen various municipalities amalgamate to form larger municipalities or dissolve into surrounding municipalities. The Municipality of
168-521: Is the Municipality of the County of Kings at 47,918 residents, while the largest by land area is the Municipality of the County of Cumberland at 4,253.04 km (1,642.11 sq mi). The Municipality of the County of Victoria is the least populated county municipality at a population of 6,750. The Municipality of the County of Richmond is Nova Scotia's smallest county municipality by land area at 1,240.46 km (478.94 sq mi). Prior to
192-466: Is the capital and largest municipality of Nova Scotia by population with 439,819 residents representing 45% of the total population of the province and land area at 5,475.57 km (2,114.13 sq mi). Pictou was the first municipality to incorporate May 4, 1874 , and the newest municipality is West Hants Regional Municipality that incorporated through an amalgamation of the Municipality of
216-979: Is the second largest municipality with a population of 93,694 and a land area of 2,419.70 km . The Region of Queens Municipality is Nova Scotia's smallest regional municipality by population with 10,422 residents and West Hants Regional Municipality is the smallest by land area 1,250.50 km (482.82 sq mi) respectively. The province's newest regional municipality is West Hants Regional Municipality. A rural municipality in Nova Scotia provides local government for rural areas outside incorporated towns. Rural municipalities were established in 1879 and are inclusive of county municipalities and district municipalities. District municipalities are within historical counties that were previously subdivided into districts, whereas county municipalities are within historical counties that were not previously subdivided into districts. Nova Scotia's county municipalities originate from
240-671: The Halifax Regional Municipality . Also on April 1, 1996, the Municipality of the County of Queens amalgamated with the Town of Liverpool to form the Region of Queens Municipality. The latest amalgamation to occur involved the Town of Windsor and the Municipality of the District of West Hants merging to form the West Hants Regional Municipality on April 1, 2020. Five towns have dissolved since 2011 and are now under
264-622: The Municipal Government Act ( MGA ) of 1998, which came into force on April 1, 1999, while towns, county municipalities and district municipalities are continued as municipalities under the MGA . The MGA gives municipal councils the power to make bylaws for "health, well being, safety and protection of persons" and "safety and protection of property" in addition to a few expressed powers. Of its 49 municipalities, Nova Scotia has 4 regional municipalities, 25 towns, 9 county municipalities and 11 district municipalities. The regional municipality of Halifax
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#1732845079337288-561: The second-smallest province in land area at 52,824.71 km (20,395.73 sq mi). Nova Scotia's 49 municipalities cover 99.8% of the territory's land mass, and are home to 98.7% of its population. Unlike the provinces of British Columbia , Ontario and Quebec , which have two-tiered municipal systems, Nova Scotia has a one-tier system of municipalities inclusive of four municipality types – regional municipalities , towns, county municipalities and district municipalities . Regional municipalities may incorporate under
312-615: The 6 historical counties who live outside incorporated towns. On April 1, 2020, the Municipality of the District of West Hants amalgamated with the Town of Windsor to become a regional municipality, reducing the number of district municipalities in Nova Scotia to 11. These continue administratively as district municipalities under the authority of the Municipal Government Act of 1998. Nova Scotia's largest and smallest district municipalities by population are Lunenburg and St. Mary's with 25,545 and 2,161 residents respectively. Nova Scotia's largest district municipality by land area
336-558: The County of Cape Breton , the City of Sydney , and the towns of Dominion , Glace Bay , Louisbourg , New Waterford , North Sydney , and Sydney Mines dissolved and amalgamated on April 1, 1995, to form the Cape Breton Regional Municipality . The City of Halifax along with the City of Dartmouth , the Town of Bedford and the Municipality of the County of Halifax also dissolved and amalgamated on April 1, 1996, to become
360-460: The District of West Hants and the Town of Windsor on April 1, 2020 . Regional municipalities are incorporated under the authority of section 372 of Nova Scotia's Municipal Government Act . To consider the incorporation of a regional municipality, the Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board (NSUARB) must receive a request from all municipalities within a county. If the request is unanimous,
384-519: The District of Yarmouth . Argyle is a bilingual community, in which native speakers of English and French each account for about half of the population. As of 2016, 60% of the population speaks both French and English, one of the highest rates of bilingualism in Canada . Originally inhabited by the Mi'kmaq , it was called "Bapkoktek". In 1766, after his service in the French and Indian Wars , Lt. Ranald MacKinnon
408-562: The Municipality of the County of Cumberland on November 1, 2016. Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board NSUARB is governed under the Utility and Review Board Act , and reports directly to the Nova Scotia House of Assembly , currently through the Minister of Finance. NSUARB was established in 1992 following the amalgamation of the former Board of Commissioners of Public Utilities ,
432-517: The NSUARB commissions the preparation of a study to determine if the incorporation of "a regional municipality would be in the interests of the people of the county." Nova Scotia's Governor in Council can order the incorporation of a regional municipality if the results of the study are deemed to be in the best interests of the people, and if a plebiscite is undertaken that results in the majority of electors in
456-545: The Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board (NSUARB). Upon receiving the application, the NSUARB would undertake a hearing to solicit input from interested parties and determine if there were reasonable grounds to incorporate as a town. The NSUARB would issue an incorporation order if the application was deemed reasonable. On May 11, 2015, sections 383 through 388 of the MGA were repealed, thereby preventing further incorporations of towns. Nova Scotia had 27 towns at
480-479: The county voting in favour of incorporation of a regional municipality. Nova Scotia has four regional municipalities. The largest regional municipality by population is Halifax, which is the capital and largest municipality of Nova Scotia by population. Halifax's 439,819 residents represent 45% of the total population of the province. Halifax is also the largest municipality by land area at 5,475.57 km (2,114.13 sq mi). Cape Breton Regional Municipality
504-406: The establishment of elected rural local government in Nova Scotia, 6 of the 18 historical counties were divided into districts for court sessional purposes. On April 17, 1879, these 6 historical counties were established as 12 district municipalities, rather than county municipalities, based on their previous district divisions. The district municipalities provide local government to the residents of
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#1732845079337528-470: The jurisdiction of their adjacent rural municipalities. Canso dissolved on July 1, 2012, to become part of the Municipality of the District of Guysborough. On April 1, 2015, Bridgetown and Springhill dissolved to become parts of the Municipality of the County of Annapolis and the Municipality of the County of Cumberland respectively. Hantsport became part of the Municipality of the District of West Hants on July 1, 2015. Parrsboro dissolved to become part of
552-454: The time of the 2016 census. This total has since been reduced to 25 due to the dissolution of the Town of Parrsboro and the amalgamation of the Town of Windsor with the Municipality of the District of West Hants. In the 2021 census, the remaining 25 towns had a cumulative population of 96,580. Nova Scotia's largest and smallest towns by population are Truro and Lockeport with 12,954 and 476 residents respectively. Truro
576-505: Was given a land grant of 2,000 acres (8.1 km). He called it Argyle ( Argyll ) because he was reminded of his previous home in the Highlands of Scotland. The township was granted in 1771. In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada , the Municipality of the District of Argyle had a population of 7,870 living in 3,455 of its 3,818 total private dwellings, a change of -0.4% from its 2016 population of 7,899 . With
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