The City of Markham is one of nine local municipalities that collectively form York Region. The York Region Official Plan provides planning policies to manage growth and development for the region. This includes policies on natural heritage and agricultural protection, growth management, infrastructure and transportation planning and building healthy communities. Planning decisions in Markham must conform with the York Region Official Plan. As an upper-tier municipality, York Region also directly provides certain services such as public transit, health services and major servicing and transportation infrastructure.