Municipal restructuring refers to provincial-initiated changes to municipal boundaries, governance structures, or organization. Restructuring can include amalgamations (merging municipalities), annexations (transferring territory between municipalities), dissolutions, or governance changes. Provinces have authority to restructure municipalities and have done so to achieve efficiency, address governance problems, or respond to urbanization. Major restructuring episodes include Ontario's municipal amalgamations in the late 1990s, Quebec's forced mergers in 2002, and various boundary adjustments across provinces. Restructuring is often controversial, with debates about whether larger units are more efficient or whether local identity and democracy suffer. Most restructuring now requires local consultation.