District
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Districts are a form of local government in several countries.
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Austria
Main article: Districts of Austria
In Austria, a district is an administrative subdivision normally encompassing several municipalities, roughly equivalent to the Landkreis in Germany. The administrative office of a district, the Bezirkshauptmannschaft is headed by the Bezirkshauptmann. It is in charge of the administration of all matters of federal and state administrative law and subject to orders from the higher instances, usually the Landeshauptmann (governor) in matters of federal law and the Landesregierung (state government) in state law. While there are matters of administrative law of which the municipalities themselves are in charge or where there are special bodies, the district is the basic unit of general administration in Austria. Officials on the district level are not elected, but appointed by the state government. There are also independent cities in Austria. They are called Statutarstadt in Austrian administrative law. These urban districts do have the same tasks as a normal district.
Vienna
Main article: Districts of Vienna
The State of Vienna, which is at the same time a municipality, is also subdivided in 23 districts, which, however, have a somewhat different function than in the rest of the country. Legally, the Magistratisches Bezirksamt (district office) is a local offices of the municipality's administration. However, representatives (Bezirksräte) on the district level are elected, and they in turn elect the head of the district, the Bezirksvorsteher. Those representative bodies are supposed to serve as immediate contacts for the locals on the political and administrative level. In practice, they have some power, e.g. concerning matters of traffic.
Belgium
Various Belgian cities are sub-divided into districts (Flemish: arrondissementen).
Canada
In Ontario, a district is a statutory subdivision of the province, but, unlike a county, a district is not incorporated. Most districts are comprised of unincorporated lands, mostly Crown land. The first districts (Algoma, Nipissing were created by the Province of Canada in 1858 prior to Confederation for the delivery of judicial and provincial government services to sparsely populated areas from the district seat (e.g. Sault Ste. Marie). Some districts may have District Social Service Administration Boards, which are designed to provide certain social services. The boundaries of a federal census division may correspond to those of a district.
In western and northern Canada, the federal government created districts as subdivisions of the Northwest Territories 1870-1905, partly on the model of the districts created in the Province of Canada. The first district created was the District of Keewatin in 1876 followed by four more districts in 1882. Gradually, these districts became separate territories (such as Yukon Territory, separate provinces (such as Alberta and Saskatchewan) or were absorbed into other provinces.
China
In China, the district or qū (市辖区, pinyin: shì xiá qū) is a subdivision of any of various city administrative units, including municipalities, sub-provincial cities and prefecture-level cities. Districts have county level status.
Modern districts are a recent innovation. In the context of pre-modern China, the English translation "district" is typically associated with xian, another Chinese administrative division. The xian is translated as "county" in the context of modern China.
England
Main article: Districts of England
Districts are the most recognisable form of local government in large parts of England. For those areas which retain two-tier local government, districts usually form the lower tier of that arrangement, with counties forming the upper tier. Districts tend to have responsibility for a number of areas including:
- tax collection (Council Tax & Non-Domestic Rates)
- Leisure Services
- Refuse collection
- Housing
- Planning
- Arts & Entertainment
- Environmental Health
Each district raises taxes from residents on behalf of itself, and the upper tier authority through the Council Tax. It also raises income from business through the Non-Domestic Rates system, which is co-ordinated nationally.
Germany
- In Germany, a district ("Kreis") is an administrative unit between the "Länder" (German federal states) and the local / municipal levels (Gemeinden). Most of the 439 German districts are "Landkreise", rural districts. 116 larger cities (usually with more than 100,000 inhabitants) do not belong to a district are considered as urban districts ("Kreisfreie Städte" or "Stadtkreise") themselves. See also: Districts of Germany.
- In some states, there is additional level of administration between the Länder and the Landkreise called Regierungsbezirk ('government district').
- District was also the name of administrative subdivisions of the German Democratic Republic since 1952. See Subdivisions of East Germany.
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is divided into 18 districts, each with a district council.
See also Districts of Hong Kong
Pakistan
Pakistan's districts are local administrative units inherited from the British Raj. Districts were generally grouped into administrative Divisions, which in turn formed Provinces. Pakistan has 130 districts (including 7 in Azad Jammu and Kashmir). They comprise of villages, towns and cities. A District is headed by a District Nazim (Mayor), who is an elected official and the local controller of the district level officers of all the departments under provincial government. The District Nazim heads an elected District Council which is comprised to councilors, who represent various district level constituencies. The councils have a constitutional requirement to be comprised of a minimum of 33% women, there is no upper limit to that; so women can comprise 100% of these councils but men cannot.
India
India's districts are local administrative units inherited from the British Raj. They generally form the tier of local government immediately below that of India's subnational States and Territories. Where warranted, Districts may further be grouped into administrative Divisions, which form an intermediate level between the District and the subnational State (or union territory).
A District is headed by a Deputy Commissioner in most cases, responsible for the overall administration and the maintenance of law and order. The office of District Collector is also defined, who is the local controller of the district-level administrative staff officers (i.e., the "Public Service") of all the local departments under state government. The district collector is a person who belongs to IAS (Indian Administrative Services). Other key responsibilities include the collection of revenue, and for the Judiciary of the district and sessional courts. The roles of Deputy Commissioner and District Collector may be combined.
Districts are most frequently further sub-divided into smaller administrative units, called either tehsils or talukas, depending on the region. These units have specific local responsibilities, including in particular coordinating revenue collection.
An intermediate level (the Sub-Division) between District and tehsil/taluka may be formed by grouping these units under the oversight of Assistant Commissioners.
As of October 2005, a total of 602 Districts are defined in India.
Japan
A district (gun in Japanese) is a local administrative unit comprising towns and villages but not cities. See districts of Japan for more complete discription. In 1923, its administrative role was abolished although it is still in use for addressing purposes. District is also a translation for chiku defined by Japan's planning law.
Kenya
In Kenya, a district (Wilaya) is a subdivision of a Province and is headed by a District Officer (DO).
Malaysia
In Malaysia, a district is a division of a state.
Nauru
The districts of Nauru are the only subdivisions of the whole state.
New Zealand
Main article: Territorial Authorities of New Zealand
In New Zealand a district is a territorial authority (second-tier local government unit) that has not gained the distinction of being proclaimed a city. Districts tend to be less urbanised, tend to cover more than one population centre and a larger amount of rural area, and tend to have a smaller population than cities. While cities and districts are generally considered to be two different types of territorial authority, the area covered by a city is often known as its district—for example the term district plan is used equally in districts and cities. The Chatham Islands Territory is neither a district nor a city.
A district is not always a simple division of a region, some districts straddle regional boundaries.
Peru
Third level subdivisions of Peru. See: Districts of Peru
Portugal
Districts (Portuguese: distritos) are administrative divisions of Portugal. They do not have an elected government; they are governed by a "civil governor" appointed by the central government. See Districts of Portugal.
Serbia and Montenegro
In Serbia and Montenegro, Serbia is divided into 29 districts (okrug) and the city of Belgrade, each of which is further divided into municipalities (opština) while Montenegro is directly divided into 21 municipalities. See Districts of Serbia.
Switzerland
In Switzerland some cantons organise themselves into districts, while others dispense with districts and govern themselves at the Wahlkreise (Constituency or electoral district) level. See Districts of Switzerland.
Thailand
A district ("amphoe") is a subdivision of a Province ("changwat") in Thailand. Some provinces also contain sub-districts ("king amphoe"), which are smaller than the average district.
Districts are a form of local government in several countries.
United States
There are several types of districts in the United States.
A constituency with a representative in Congress is a congressional district. Each state is organized into one or more such districts; the exact number within each state is based on the most recent census. Only voters within each district are allowed to vote in the election for the member of the House from that district. Overall, there are 435 congressional districts in the United States; each has roughly 630,000 people, with some variance.
A constituency with a representative in a state legislature is a legislative district; the territory over which a federal court has jurisdiction is a federal judicial district.
The District of Columbia is the only part of the United States, excluding territories, that is not a located within any of the fifty states.
Districts in Alaska are the equivalent of a county or parish in the Lower 48 states.
The United States also has many types of Special-purpose districts with limited powers of local government. School districts are the most common, but other types of districts include college districts, hospital districts, utility districts, irrigation districts, port districts, and public transit districts.
Many cities in the late 20th century adopted names for non-governmental districts as a way of increasing recognition and identity of these distinct areas. In New York City, for example, there is the theatre district, the garment district, and districts with names like SoHo and TriBeCa.
See also
| Subnational entity | ||
|---|---|---|
| Banner | Borough | Canton | Circuit | City | Commune | County | Council | Department | District | Division | Dominion | Duchy | Governorate | Hamlet | Municipality | Neighbourhood | Parish | Prefecture | Province | Region | Republic | State | Territory | Town | Township | Village | Voivodship | Community | ||
| Autonomous: | banner | city | community | county | prefecture | province | region | republic | ward | |
| Civil: | parish | township | |
| Federal: | capital | district | capital district | capital territory | |
| Local: | council | |
| Metropolitan: | borough | county | |
| National: | capital district | capital territory | |
| Rural: | council | district | municipality | |
| Urban: | district | |
| edit | See also: List of terms for subnational entities, List of subnational entities, Matrix of subnational entities | |
