The Caye Caulker Village Council has existed in some form or the other for decades, perhaps even longer. There are currently no available records for the earliest councils. However, the legal framework for village councils and their authority is fairly recent. The village council system began around 1949 in Gales Point and 1951 in the Corozal district after Hurricane Janet as a means of helping with relief and reconstruction. This system was informal with no legal framework. The process to formalize the system started in 1991 and it was not until 1999 that the Village Councils Act came into being.

Village Councils are charged with good government and the improvement of the village.

• It should ensure that births and deaths are duly registered.
  

• It can make recommendations for the appointment of Justice of the Peace and other judicial or administrative officers.
  

• Village Councils are responsible for the:

  • Care and maintenance of the public properties within the village

  • Assets and properties of the Council
    

• It is also responsible for the enforcement of the Act, by-laws, regulations, and other laws made under the Act.