level, or where incorporated places are the only form of local government, the Census Bureau uses the most important and best known type of administrative subdivision; for example, election precincts or magisterial districts. Table 8-3 provides further detail about the governmental status of county subdivisions in the 28 MCD States.
Table 8-3. Governmental Status of Minor Civil Divisions in 1990
| Arkansas | The townships are nonfunctioning geographic subdivisions of counties and are not governments. |
| Connecticut | Of the 169 towns, 149 are actively functioning governmental units. The remaining 20 towns are areally coextensive with a single incorporated place; 19 towns are coextensive with a city and one town is coextensive with a borough. In each of these 20 instances, the town and city governments are consolidated, and the Census Bureau classifies the incorporated place government as the active government. |
| Illinois | Of the 1,434 townships, all but one are actively functioning governmental units. The exception is Cicero township coextensive with the city of Cicero, which performs the functions of the township as well. The election precincts are nonfunctioning geographic subdivisions of the county used in conducting elections and are not governments. |
| Indiana | All townships are actively functioning governmental units. |
| Iowa | Through an agreement between the State of Iowa and the Census Bureau, all townships are classified as nonfunctioning geographic subdivisions of the county and are not governments. Iowa townships can, and some do, perform a limited governmental function, but the township officials for the most part are administrative adjuncts of the county government. |
| Kansas | Of the 1,602 townships, 1,543 are actively functioning governmental units. The remaining 59 townships are inactive, but have the ability to activate and perform governmental functions. |
| Louisiana | The parish governing authority districts in Louisiana are nonfunctioning geographic subdivisions of the county used in conducting elections and are not governments. |
| Maine | All 433 towns and 36 plantations are actively functioning governmental units. The single gore is a nonfunctioning geographic subdivision of the county and not a government. The three American Indian reservations are functioning tribal governments; the MCD reservations are not counted as governments. |
8-12County Subdivisions
