Local Government Act 2020

The Local Government Act 2020 was a significant statute in Victoria, Australia, notable for its impact on the electoral systems of local councils in Victoria.^[1] The Act, which the Victorian Government described as the "most ambitious and comprehensive reform of local government in Victoria for 30 years," saw a large number of multi-member wards replaced with single-member wards.^[1][2]

Local Government Act 2020
Parliament of Victoria
Long title An Act to reform the law relating to local government in Victoria, to repeal the City of Greater Geelong Act 1993, to amend the City of Melbourne Act 2001, the Local Government Act 1989, the Victoria Grants Commission Act 1976 and the Victorian Independent Remuneration Tribunal and Improving Parliamentary Standards Act 2019, and to consequentially amend certain other Acts and for other purposes
Citation	No. 9 of 2020
Territorial extent	Victoria
Passed by	Legislative Assembly
Passed	17 March 2020
Passed by	Legislative Council
Passed	5 March 2020
Royal assent	24 March 2020
Commenced	6 April 2020
Effective	Various
Legislative history
First chamber: Legislative Assembly
Bill title	Local Government Bill 2019
Introduced by	Marlene Kairouz
Introduced	13 November 2019
First reading	13 November 2019
Second reading	14–28 November 2019
Consideration in detail	28 November 2019
Third reading	28 November 2019
Second chamber: Legislative Council
Bill title	Local Government Bill 2019
Received from the Legislative Assembly	28 November 2019
Member(s) in charge	Adem Somyurek
First reading	28 November 2019
Second reading	28 November 2019 – 3 March 2020
Committee of the whole	3–5 March 2020
Third reading	5 March 2020
Final stages
Legislative Council amendments considered by the Legislative Assembly	17 March 2020
Finally passed both chambers	17 March 2020
Amends
No. 5 of 2001, No. 11 of 1989, No. 8887 of 1976, No. 68 of 2000, No. 5 of 2019, No. 62 of 2001, No. 115 of 1994, etc.
Repeals
No. 16 of 1993, No. 65 of 2009, No. 14 of 2016, No. 53 of 2013
Status: In force (amended)

Reviews were undertaken for the number of councillors, number of councillors per ward and the exact boundaries of those wards for 39 of Victoria's 79 councils.^[2]

The Act was introduced on 17 June 2019 by the then-Minister for Local Government, Adem Somyurek.^[3] It passed parliament on 17 March 2020, and received Royal Assent days later on 24 March.^[1][4]

The Act has been criticised for its removal of proportional representation for most councils, and the consequential likely negative impact on the ability for women and minority groups to be elected.^[5]

Councils affected

All metropolitan councils with multi-member wards were affected by the changes. Rural councils have the options of being unsubdivided, or having equal-sized multi-member wards.^[5] The City of Melbourne, which is unsubdivided and does not have wards, was not impacted.^[2]

Although most changes were set to come into effect before the 2024 local elections, eight councils moved to single-member wards ahead of the 2020 local elections:^[6]

• Bayside City Council
• Cardinia Shire Council
• Darebin City Council
• Greater Dandenong City Council
• Kingston City Council
• Manningham City Council
• Maroondah City Council
• Whitehorse City Council

Additionally, Swan Hill and Mansfield moved to an unsubdivided structure.^[6]