16-468: The Shire of Mount Marshall is a local government area in the Wheatbelt region of Western Australia , about 80 kilometres (50 mi) north-northwest of Merredin and about 300 kilometres (186 mi) northeast of the state capital, Perth . The Shire covers an area of 10,190 square kilometres (3,934 sq mi), and its seat of government is the town of Bencubbin . The first European explorer in
32-443: A significant reduction in the number of decisions requiring ministerial approval which allowed for streamlined decision-making and greater local government autonomy. Although successive state governments have periodically promoted municipal amalgamation, only a small number of local governments have merged over the course of Western Australia's history. Historically most local governments have strongly resisted forced amalgamations and
48-523: A tax on private allotments to fund the construction and maintenance of "roads, paths and plantations". As the Colony began to develop, the first form of local government was established in some areas under the Towns Improvement Act of 1838. These trusts were empowered to elect ratepayers as Trustees and assess and collect a property tax for the construction of roads. Many of these town trusts, including
64-740: The Indian Ocean Territories Administration of Laws Act , which allows the Western Australian Local Government Act to apply "on-island" as though it were a Commonwealth act. Nonetheless, Christmas Island and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands are not parts of Western Australia. The most recent local government elections were held in 2023 . Land was originally granted in the Swan River Colony under regulations which allowed for land commissioners to assess
80-605: The Greater Perth Movement around this time led to the amalgamation of inner city local governments to create a greatly expanded City of Perth until 1993, when the City was broken up once again. The first local government department was established by the state in 1949 to guide local government authorities. Following the war local governments increasingly expanded their services from property, health and local infrastructure (roads, drainage) to community and social services. This
96-505: The Perth Town Trust , experienced severe administrative and financial difficulties, and in some cases barely functioned at all. The Guildford Town Trust lasted only a couple of years before ceasing to function until it was reconstituted in 1863. The District Roads Act and Municipal Institutions Act , both of 1871 improved matters by allowing for the establishment of Roads Boards and Municipal Corporations. Municipal Corporations had
112-460: The Shire of Cocos (Keeling) Islands are also included for comparison purposes. Federal external territory. Currently, Western Australia has ten regional councils. Each regional council comprises two or more local government areas (LGAs). Municipality of Guildford The Municipality of Guildford was a local government area of Western Australia . It first came into existence in 1838 as
128-656: The 1920s. Permanent settlement and the development and clearing of the land for farms commenced around 1910. The Mount Marshall Road District was established on 6 July 1923 from areas formerly falling within the Ninghan Road District and Nungarin Road District . On 1 July 1961, it became a shire following the passage of the Local Government Act 1960 , which reformed all remaining road districts into shires. The Shire has no wards and each Councillor represents
144-670: The Guildford Town Trust, before ceasing to function several years later. It was reconstituted in 1863, and became a Municipality in 21 February 1871 under the Municipal Institutions Act . It ceased to exist when it was merged with the Swan Road District on 10 June 1960 to form the Swan-Guildford Road District . When first established, the council had a chairman. After June 1887, in celebration of
160-523: The area was Surveyor General John Septimus Roe ; Mount Marshall and Lake McDermott were named after early Swan River Colony settler Marshall McDermott, cashier of the Bank of Western Australia, magistrate, and a director of the Agricultural Society of Western Australia. The area was first settled by sandalwood collectors and graziers in 1868. Sandalwood was removed from this area from the 1880s until
176-627: The capacity to levy property taxes, pass municipal by-laws and undertake various local regulatory services previously carried out by colonial officials and other central bodies. Corporations could also establish civic institutions and facilities with the governors' consent, including libraries and botanical gardens. Road Boards where strictly limited to the construction of roads, could not levy property taxes and depended on colonial government grants for any expenditures. Women were permitted to be elected to Road Boards from 1911 and to Municipal Corporations from 1919. The influence of town clerk W.E. Bold and
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#1733104574754192-915: The entire district of the Shire of Mt Marshall as required by the Local Government Act 1995. The towns and localities of the Shire of Mount Marshall with population and size figures based on the most recent Australian census : As of 2023, 50 places are heritage-listed in the Shire of Mount Marshall, of which none are on the State Register of Heritage Places . 30°48′40″S 117°51′43″E / 30.811°S 117.862°E / -30.811; 117.862 Local government areas of Western Australia There are 137 local government areas (LGAs) in Western Australia , which comprise 27 cities, 102 shires, and 8 towns that manage their own affairs to
208-585: The extent permitted by the Local Government Act 1995 . The Local Government Act 1995 also makes provision for regional local governments (referred to as "regional councils", established by two or more local governments for a particular purpose. There are three classifications of local government in Western Australia: The Shire of Christmas Island and the Shire of Cocos (Keeling) Islands are federal external territories and covered by
224-455: The present day. In the 1970s, the scope of local government services expanded to encompass the provision of nursing homes and other forms of aged care. During the late 1980s, and early 1990s a bi-partisan reform process led to the Local Government Act 1995 , which amongst other changes, established for the first time a clear separation of responsibility between elected councillors and local government administration. Other key changes included
240-701: The total number of authorities has declined only marginally over the last century. The most recent state government led effort to encourage the voluntary amalgamation of 30 metropolitan local governments into 16 was abandoned by the Barnett government in 2014. In 2017, the McGowan government initiated a review process to reform the Local Government Act 1995. The 30 metropolitan local government areas (LGAs) comprise 20 cities, 3 shires, and 7 towns. The 107 non-metropolitan local government areas (LGAs) comprise 7 cities, 99 shires, and 1 town . The Shire of Christmas Island and
256-414: Was termed the “New Order” at the time, and encompassed the development of community centres, infant health clinics and sporting facilities. Only a few cities – Fremantle , Nedlands , Perth , South Perth , and Subiaco – existed prior to 1961. On 1 July 1961, all road districts became shires, and all municipalities became towns or cities. This structure has continued till
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