Local government

A local government has the right to solve all matters related to the local life; this means that the State cannot take the decision-making in these matters into own hands. Matters pertaining to the local life must relate to the common life and common interests of the community members in the territory of the local government.

The units of the local government are considered to be counties and cities / towns.

 

The representative body of a local government is its council. The council is elected for four years via free elections. The council has the right to decide any matter belonging to the competence of the local government, and does so within the framework of the law and in the interests of the local residents.

 

A local government has an independent budget and the right to establish and collect taxes. The principle of a separate budget does not mean a prohibition of making allocations from the state budget to units of a local government. On the contrary, there is a need for applying certain mechanisms of financial balancing and other similar measures for the protection of counties and cities / towns having less financial means, in order to balance the uneven distribution of expenses and potential sources of finances.

 

There is a territorial relation between the State and a local government, because the local government is based on the administrative division of the territory of the State.

 

A local government has the right to establish associations and joint institutions with other local governments. Such co-operation facilitates the development of counties and cities / towns and allows for more efficient representation and protection of their joint interests on various levels of public authority.