Local government in the Republic of Ireland is governed by the Local Government Acts, the most recent of which (Local Government Act 2001) established a two-tier structure of local government. The Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898 is the founding document of the present system of local government. The Twentieth Amendment of the Constitution of Ireland (1999) provided for constitutional recognition of local government for the first time in Ireland.

The top tier of the structure consists of 29 county councils and five city councils. Twenty-four of the 26 traditional counties have had county councils since 1898; Tipperary has had two, for North Tipperary and South Tipperary), also since 1898; and since 1994 the traditional County Dublin has had three, for the administrative counties of Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown, Fingal, and South Dublin). The five cities of Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Waterford, and Galway have city councils, which have the same status as county councils.

The second tier of local government consists of town councils. The city of Kilkenny and four towns which had borough corporation status before 2001 (Sligo, Drogheda, Clonmel, and Wexford), are allowed to use the title of "Borough Council" instead of "Town Council", but they have no additional responsibilities. There are 75 other town councils in addition to these five borough councils - amongst them is Ballinasloe Town Council. Outside the towns the county councils are solely responsible for local services.

This structure is a modified version of the system introduced in 1898, with county boroughs renamed as cities, urban districts and municipal boroughs renamed as towns (or, as noted, boroughs), and rural districts abolished (everywhere except County Dublin in 1925, and in County Dublin in 1930). The distinction between urban district and "towns with town commissioners" has been abolished.

Local government bodies have the responsibility for such matters as planning, local roads, sanitation, and libraries. The Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government has responsibility for local authorities and related services.