Thai local governments are classified into two main categories; general and specific. In the general form, there are three types of local authorities located throughout all seventy-five province save Bangkok. They are 1 Provincial Administrative Organization (seventy-five units), 2 Municipality (1.136 units), and 3 Sub-district or Tambon Administrative Organization ( 6.740 units). In the specific form there are two special units of local governments governing specific areas; namely, Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) and Pattaya City.
The three general forms of local governments are divided into two tiers. The lower-tier governments, municipality and TAO, Function as a single operating unit. which is very close to local residents, providing local public services within their defined territory, While municipalities are located in urbanized areas, TAOs are mostly established in less-developed rural communities. By Contrast, PAO is the upper-tier local government which covers an entire province and is responsible for administering local public services at the provincial level as well as for working In development projects that need collaboration among several municipalities or TAOs within the provincial territory. In other words, the service functions that cross the boundaries of any single municipality or TAO are held by PAO.
Political and administrative structures of Thai local government are similar to those of other nations. Each local government consists of the executive body and the local council, each of which is headed by locally elected persons form local resident and serves a four-year term. BMA has a rather unique administrative structures, however. It covers the whole Bangkok provincial territory and has partitiones its administration to 50 district units. Though each district is composed of the executive branch and the council, only the council member are locally elected by Bangkok dwellers. The district heads are permanent staff and indeed appointed by the BMA governor.