Ontario Municipal Board

Identity area

Type of entity

Higher-level Ontario government office (type B)

Authorized form of name

Ontario Municipal Board

Parallel form(s) of name

    Standardized form(s) of name according to other rules

    • Ontario Municipal Board

    Other form(s) of name

    • OMB

    Identifiers for corporate bodies

    Description area

    Dates of existence

    1932-

    History

    The Ontario Municipal Board was established in 1932, replacing the Ontario Railway and Municipal Board and the Bureau of Municipal Affairs. The number of individuals on the board is determined by the Lieutenant Governor in Council, who also has authority to appoint one member as Chair, and one or more vice-Chairs.

    In response to the Depression, and to the succession of municipal defaults on debt, the board was given the authority to appoint committees of supervisors to manage the affairs of municipalities in bankruptcy. In 1934, the Department of Municipal Affairs was established, and the supervision of bankrupt municipalities was transferred from the board to the new department. The Ontario Municipal Board, however, continued to exist as a quasi- judicial body to hear applications and appeals concerning municipal matters.

    Following the Second World War, the Ontario Municipal Board assumed additional responsibility for appeals and applications under the new "Planning Act", designed to provide for a more orderly urban and rural development.

    In the early 1960s, changes to the "Planning Act" established Committees of Adjustment at the township, town and city level and Land Division Committees at the county and regional level to review applications to sever or re-zone parcels of land covered by official plans. Appeals against the decisions of these local committees were assigned to the Ontario Municipal Board.

    The Ontario Municipal Board has reported to the following Departments and Ministries: The Department of the Attorney General (1932-1934); the Department of Municipal Affairs (1934-1972); the Ministry of the Attorney General (1972-1992); the Ministry of Municipal Affairs (1992-1995); the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing (1995-2000) and the Ministry of the Attorney General beginning in 2000.

    Places

    Legal status

    Functions, occupations and activities

    The Ontario Municipal Board (OMB) is a quasi-judicial agency which acts as an arbitrator between municipalities and between individuals and municipalities. The board hears applications and appeals on municipal and planning matters such as zoning by-laws, subdivision plans, property assessments, exemptions from property taxation, land compensation matters, and applications for municipal annexations or amalgamations.

    The Board also has the authority to appoint committees of supervisors to manage the affairs of municipalities in bankruptcy, and to review applications from municipalities for debentures to raise money to conduct public work relief projects. From 1932 to 1954, the board was also responsible for the regulation of independent telephone companies in Ontario.

    Address

    Ontario Municipal Board Act, Statutes of Ontario 1932, Chap. 27

    Internal structures/genealogy

    General context

    Relationships area

    Related entity

    Metropolitan Area Committee of the County of York (Ont.) (1933-1940)

    Identifier of related entity

    CA1262

    Category of relationship

    hierarchical

    Type of relationship

    Metropolitan Area Committee of the County of York (Ont.) is controlled by Ontario Municipal Board

    Dates of relationship

    1933

    Description of relationship

    Related entity

    Burlington Beach Commission (Ont.) (1917-1956)

    Identifier of related entity

    CA1310

    Category of relationship

    hierarchical

    Type of relationship

    Burlington Beach Commission (Ont.) is controlled by Ontario Municipal Board

    Dates of relationship

    1932-1934

    Description of relationship

    Related entity

    Ontario Railway and Municipal Board (1906-1932)

    Identifier of related entity

    BA88

    Category of relationship

    temporal

    Type of relationship

    Ontario Railway and Municipal Board is the predecessor of Ontario Municipal Board

    Dates of relationship

    Description of relationship

    Related entity

    Ontario. Bureau of Municipal Affairs (1917-1932)

    Identifier of related entity

    BA87

    Category of relationship

    temporal

    Type of relationship

    Ontario. Bureau of Municipal Affairs is the predecessor of Ontario Municipal Board

    Dates of relationship

    Description of relationship

    Access points area

    Subject access points

    Place access points

    Epithet

    Control area

    Authority record identifier

    BA89

    Institution identifier

    Rules and/or conventions used

    Status

    Approved

    Level of detail

    Dates of creation, revision and deletion

    2026-11-16: migrated to AtoM

    Language(s)

      Script(s)

        Sources

        Canadiana Name Authorities, 1996-12- 24

        Maintenance notes

        Archivist(s):
        R. Anger