Local authorities

in Germany

Introduction

• A long tradition of local autonomy

• A rupture : from the Nazi era to the cold war

• Reunification and globalisation of the German decentralisation

The federalism born from the fundamental law

• A short review of the territory

• The local institutional network

• The federal state

Part 1. The local system and the decentralization

process

• Overview of the institutional system

• Foreword : notions of federalism and decentralization

The local federal authorities

• The 16 Länder

• The Bundesrat

The decentralized authorities

• The Kreise

• The Gemeinden– The council– The magistrate

II. Competences in practice

• The local action : a mixture of decentralization and federalism

• The municipalities :– Mandatory competences– Optional competences

The local action : a mixture of decentralization and

federalism

• The Kreis

• The Länder’s intervention

• Grades’ conflicts

The means of action 

• The fiscal receipts– The double equalization– The tax levy

•The administration

The reform of 2006 and its consequences

• A clarification of the competences

• A new tax receipt repartition

• The fears and exceptions before the reform

Part 2. The local participative democracy

Historical and ideological context : • A representative democracy established

by the fundamental law• The success of the citizen movements in

former GDR underlines the necessity of direct participation after the reunification

• The birth of the New Public Management in the 1980’s

• An institutional system favourable to the participative democracy’s development

I. The juridical tools1) The local referendum or

Bürgerbegehren • A consultation organized by request of the citizens• Questions submitted to referendum that vary

depending on the community codes• Decisions resulting of referendums that have the

same value as the municipality decrees• A possible judiciary appeal in case of non-

application by the municipality of decisions taken by referendum

2) The citizen’s requests: The Bürgerantrag

• A mecanism between the referendum and the petition

• The possibility for the citizen to ask to the municipality council to take care of a specific matter

• A request that require the approval of a minimal number of citizens

3) The assemblies or Bürgerversammlung

• The regular sitting of citizen’s assemblies that could make propositions

• Examination of the municipality’s affairs by the citizens

• Obligation of such a sitting once a year if asked by at least 10% of the citizens

• The questions and answers or Einwohnerfragestunde : The citizens can ask questions during public sessions of the municipality council

4) The district’s councils and the juries of citizens

a. The district’s councils or Ortsbeiräte• Election of citizens for the same duration as the city’s

council• The option to make propositions about the district’s affairs

b. The Berliner juries of citizens• A mixed composition (citizens/civil society) but an exclusive

participation by the district’s citizens• A voluntary participation and the indemnity to this

participation• The funds of these authorities allotted to support local’s

initiatives in the district

II. The local participative democracy in practice

1) A tool in practice : the berliner citizen’s juriesa. Assessment

• Real leway and ressources granted by authorities

• Flexible procedures that allowed involment of residents

• Priority given by residents to social infrastructure and cultural projects and to small projects

b. Limits

• Discussions behind closed doors• Local micro-initiatives • Budgetary resources too ambitious because of

the precarious financial position of the city of Berlin

• Lack of political dimension: the inhabitants' managers' and non-citizens

Experience renewed and expanded despite criticism

Institutionalization of a new decision amending the territorial balance

2) Citizen participation in the framework of the European programm « Urban »

• The same European and German will to promote the involvement at the local level through the management area

•A program for sustainable urban development: a decline in inequality, economic recovery of priority areas and consideration of environmental issues

•Some people associated with three levels of representation within the decision-making body within the work teams, and at the assembling of projects (funding for projects from residents)

Conclusion

• A German institutional system supports local participation (federalism, subsidiarity)

• Heterogeneity of local contexts conducive to experimentation in terms of participatory democracy

• Experiments (citizen juries) that make the tools "traditional" (referendum) obsolete

A new form of governance: Towards democratic local neighborhood?

What possible export of German model?