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Forms of Local Governments
Minnesota currently has four forms of local governments: counties,
cities, towns (townships), and special purpose districts (e.g. school districts, soil
conservation districts, hospital districts, regional development commissions, and the
Metropolitan Council). The "village" form was abolished by the Minnesota Legislature
in 1973 and most villages became cities the following year.
Counties
Shortly after Minnesota Territory was organized in 1849, counties left over from the
old Wisconsin and Iowa territories were dissolved and nine new counties were established.
When Minnesota became a state in 1858 there were 57 counties in place. Today there are
87 counties in Minnesota. The newest one, Lake of the Woods County, was carved out of
Beltrami County in 1922. The parent county(ies) may be found on each county
information page. The date of a county's establishment is not always concurrent with
its organization. Such is the case of Beltrami County, having been established in 1866
but not organized until 1896.
Townships and Towns
Minnesota townships were first established in 1858 following the addition of Minnesota
to the union. According to the Minnesota Association of Townships, there are now 1,792
organized townships in Minnesota. A number of townships listed in Minnesota Place Names
in the northern part of the state have dissolved, becoming unorganized territories.
Many townships in the counties surrounding the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul have
become cities themselves, a recent example being Grant in Washington County.
The terms "town" and "township" have become increasingly confused over time. Prior to the
establishment of townships, the term "town" was used during the days of the Minnesota
Territory to designate a locale similar to a village. Many incorporated towns were
never established (and were largely "paper towns"), became villages in the 1860s and 1870s,
became another extinct form of local government called a borough (Henderson, Le Sueur,
New Ulm and Belle Plaine were all one-time boroughs), or dissolved into an unincorporated
"hamlet." In the legal sense today, a "town" is the organized government of a "township"
(e.g. the Town of Baytown in Baytown Township), not a small city as it was when the state was created.
In the strictest definition, a township is a geographic area established by government
survey that is a six by six mile square (36 square miles). These townships are called
congressional or survey townships. The organized government of a township is a "town"
or civil township. The term "township" to represent both the geographic
area and form of government is common, even in state statutes.
The Legislature has created a second class of townships called "urban towns." Urban
towns are towns that have platted portions where 1,000 or more people reside or that
meet other statutory criteria. These towns have many of the same powers statutory cities
have under the city code.
Cities
The first cities to be incorporated in Minnesota Territory were Stillwater and St. Paul on
March 4, 1854. According to the League of Minnesota Cities, there are 854 cities
in the state.
Minnesota has two basic types of cities: statutory cities and home
rule charter cities. The main difference between home rule cities and statutory cities
is the kind of enabling legislation from which they gain their authority. Statutory
cities derive their powers from Chapter 412 of Minnesota Statutes. Home rule cities
obtain their powers from a home rule charter. The distinction between home rule cities
and statutory cities is one of organization and powers, and is not based on differences
in population, size, location, or any other physical feature.
Some Minnesota cities that incorporated prior to July 1, 1949, have never been separated
from the township in which they are located. The city is still part of the township for
purposes of general town government, town elections, town assessments, and ownership
of the town hall and other property. All statutory cities incorporated after July 1,
1949, were automatically separated from the town when they incorporated. All cities
in the seven-county metropolitan area, regardless of the date of their incorporation,
are separate from the town for election purposes.
Sources
- League of Minnesota Cities. "Chapter 1: Local government in Minnesota"
Handbook for Cities. 2000.
http://www.lmnc.org/library/handbook.cfm
(May 25, 2001).
- Minnesota Association of Townships. "Chapter 2: Township Government"
Manual on Town Government. 2001.
http://www.mntownships.org/manualtowngov.html
(May 25, 2001).
- Walker, Harvey. Village Law and Government in Minnesota. Minneapolis:
University of Minnesota Press, 1927.
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