Varhaug (municipality)


Varhaug is a former municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1894 until 1964. The administrative centre of the municipality was the village of Varhaug where Varhaug Church is located. The municipality encompassed the central part of the present-day Hå Municipality. It included the villages of Varhaug and Vigrestad as well as the surrounding countryside.

History

The municipality of Varhaug was established in 1894 when the old municipality of Hå was divided into two municipalities: Nærbø and Varhaug. On 1 January 1964, there were many major municipal mergers in Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On that date the three neighboring municipalities of Varhaug, Nærbø, and Ogna were all merged to form the municipality of Hå. The village of Varhaug became the administrative centre for the new, larger municipality. Prior to the merger, Varhaug municipality had a population of 3,454.

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Varhaug, 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 Varhaug was made up of 17 representatives that were elected to four year terms. The party breakdown of the final municipal council was as follows: