Varaldsøy (municipality)


Varaldsøy is a former municipality in the old Hordaland county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1902 until its dissolution in 1965. The municipality encompassed the whole island of Varaldsøy and a wide strip of the mainland west of the island. The administrative centre of the municipality was the village area of Varaldsøy on the southern part of the island, where Varaldsøy Church is located.

History

On 1 January 1902, the southern district of the municipality of Strandebarm was separated to become the new municipality of Varaldsøy. Initially, Varaldsøy had a population of 848. During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1965, the municipality of Varaldsøy was dissolved and its lands were split between two neighboring municipalities. The Mundheim area northwest of the island on the mainland was incorporated into Kvam Municipality, and the island of Varaldsøy and the rest of the mainland area southwest of the island became a part of Kvinnherad Municipality.

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Varaldsøy, are responsible for primary education, outpatient health services, senior citizen services, unemployment and other social services, zoning, economic development, and municipal roads. The municipality is governed by a municipal council of elected representatives, which in turn elects a mayor.

Municipal council

The municipal council of Varaldsøy was made up of representatives that were elected to four year terms. The party breakdown of the final municipal council was as follows: