Transcript Le pouvoir local en Croatie

Local self-government in
Croatia
INTRODUCTION:
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A unitary state.
A parliamentary democracy.
TWO TIERS OF LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT:
Municipalities.
Counties.
PROCESS OF DECENTRALIZATION:
1992: Local self-government and administration Act.
1997: European Charter of Local Self-Government.
2000: Constitutional amendments: principle of
subsidiarity + importance of local and regional
government.
2001: Law on local self-government.
The Local Government System
A. Local Government Law
1.
A right enshrined in the constitution
o
March 28, 2001: the Constitution is reformed:
Article VI on local and regional autonomy
level
- Affirmed principle of separation of powers
- Importance of local and regional government
- Provisions modelled on the European Charter of
Local Self-Government
- Local authorities’ rights at the constitutional
2. The direct participation of citizens in
the decision-making process
 Local
/ Regional Referendums
- The power belongs to the people as a community of
free and equal citizens.
- A law may be adopted by referendum
 Other
Forms of Direct Participation
- Advisory referendum
- Local assembly of citizens
- Complaints from citizens
B- LOCAL GOVERNMENT
ORGANIZATION
- Municipalities : Towns and Communes
Under 3,000
inhabitants
Deliberative
body
3,000 to
10,000
10,001 to
Over 30,000
Zagreb
30,000
Town/Municipality Councils.
Members elected for 4 years.
Direct Universal Suffrage.
Proportional Representation System
Number of
members on the
Council
Executive
authorithy
7 to 13
9 to15
13 to 19
19 to 35
51
Individual Executive Power (Town and Commune Mayor)
with one or two vice-mayors depending on the size of local units
(under or over 10,000 inhabitants).
Direct Election by the citizens.
B- LOCAL GOVERNMENT
ORGANIZATION
- Counties
Deliberative Body
The County Council
Election Elected for 4 years, direct universal suffrage,
proportional representation system
Prerogatives County Representation and County Affairs
Number of Members from 31 to 51councillors
Council Chairman Elected among its members.
Head of the county assembly
Executive Body
The County Mayor and Two Deputy-Mayors,
directly elected by the citizens
 Region
Regional assembly
Election
Prerogatives
Number of members
Chairman of the assembly
Executive authority
Elected for 4 years, direct universal suffrage,
election on a proportional basis
Regional representation and regional stuff,
affairs
Odd number, between 31 and 51
Elected among its members, head of the
regional assembly
Odd number of members (between 7 and 13),
elected by the regional assembly
 Zagreb
Municipalities
Regions
17 districts, a council is elected by the
inhabitants of each district
Same organisation as for the other regions
The affairs of the two scale local self-government:
Council (Mayor + two members of the town council + the regional assembly chairman +
two members of the regional assembly
2-Right of the minorities and status of
the local elected councillors.
MINORITIES
LOCAL COUNCILLORS’ RIGHTS AND DUTIES
 Charter of local self-government
 Regulations of the council
Local Policy
A- Local Government Responsibilities
CONSTITUTION :
Right to local and regional self-government.
 Provisions defining the respective powers of the
local and regional.
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LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT ACT, 2001 :
Responsibilities are devolved from the central
government
 Public affairs are local self-governments’ own
responsibility
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Local Policy
B- Local Government Budget and Finance
1)
Local Government Expenditures
Main types of expenditure (as in 2001):
- housing (69%)
- administration (21%)
- transport, sport and culture (13%)
- education (11%)
Total expenses in 2007: HRK 11.9 billion (11.7% increase
with regard to 2006).
• Compensation of employees: 25% of total expenses,
•
Use of goods and services: 39%,
• other expenses and donations: 19%
• others (subsidies, grants, social benefits and interests):
17%.
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2) Revenues
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According to the law, local freedom in the use of
non-tax revenue
• Total amount of revenues of cities and counties
in 2007: HRK 15.5 billions (a 14.3% increase
compared to 2006)
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Most important sources of revenue (as in 2007):
- tax revenue
: 59%
- non-tax revenue: 34%
- grants
: 6%
- loans
: 1%
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Own tax revenue
- 8% of total local revenue
- Cities freely determine the rate of their local
taxes.
- Cities have many tax revenues
Shared tax revenue
- 84% of total tax revenue
- 3 types of shared taxes :
- income tax is shared by the central
government, regions and cities
- business tax is shared by the central
government and cities
- tax on property sale is shared by the central
government and cities
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Non-tax revenues
- From concessions for the exploitation of mineral
waters, spas and drinking water
- Loans
- Other revenues
Central Government Grants
- 6% of total local revenues
- Shared allocations of non-tax revenue
Transfers and subsidies
- unequal assignment
- some special statuses still exist
CONCLUSION
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Some resistance experienced during the first step in
the decentralization reform
In 2002 the Senate’s mission assessed the
difficulties in the decentralization reform:
- co-operation with the central government is
difficult
- a priori control is still in practice
- tax revenues vary too much among communities
- transfers from central to local government are
insufficient