A municipal corporation is a city, town, village, or other local area that has been incorporated to administer local governmental affairs. Municipal corporations are formed by charter from the state and have some degree of autonomy to exercise political powers such as the operation of a police force or fire department. As municipal corporations are created by state legislatures, the formation, duration, powers, and responsibilities of municipal corporations are set by state law.
New Jersey Statute §40:42-1 defines a municipal corporation as a “‘city’, ‘town’, ‘township’, ‘village’, ‘borough’, and any municipality governed by a board of commissioners, or improvement commission.” New Jersey Statute §40:48-1 sets for the general powers possessed by municipal corporations.
[Last updated in June of 2023 by the Wex Definitions Team]