ONE YEAR EU MEMBERSHIP REVIEW EXPERIENCES AND PERSPECTIVES

1. ONE YEAR EU MEMBERSHIP REVIEW EXPERIENCES AND PERSPECTIVES Warsaw, April 25-26, 2005 Changes in the process of collaboration between Government and local authorities in Romania

2. FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES • The local public administrations had been constituted (according to the Law no. 69/1991, improved and replaced by the Law 215/2001), on the following fundamental principles: • The local autonomy; • The principle of public services decentralization; • The principle of local public administration authorities eligibility; • The principle of public consultation on the major local issues.

3. CENTRAL PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION AUTHORITIES LOCAL PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION AUTHORITIES COUNTY COMMUNE TOWN MUNICIPALITY Local election Nomination Local election PREFECTURE PREFECT (Government representative) COUNTY COUNCIL Chairman LOCAL COUNCIL ( Deliberative authorities ) MAYOR ( Executive authorities ) LEVELS OF ADMINISTRATION

4. ADMINISTRATIVE – TERRITORIAL UNITS Communes: 2,826 Towns: 207 Municipalities: 103 Counties: 41

5. DECENTRALIZATION FRAMEWORK IN ROMANIA

6. DEVOLUTION PROCESS 1991 Law no. 18 on the restoration of nationalized land, amended 1998 (169/1998) and 2001 (1/2001) 1991 Law no. 69 on local public administration, amended in 1996 and 2002 1991 Local Election law, amended in 1996 1991 Public Finance law, amended in 1998 1998 Law no. 213 on legal status of public ownership (local financial autonomy and local efficient administration) 1998 Law no. 151 on regional development, setting up eight macro regions, amended by Law 26/2001 and Law 256/2003 1998 Law no. 189 on local public finances, amended by Law 337/2001 and by the Government ordinance 45/2003 1995 Law no. 112 on the restoration of nationalized buildings, amended in 2001 (10/2001) 1999 Law no. 188/1999 on civil servant’s statute 2001 Law no. 215/2001 on local public administration 2001 Law no. 326/2001 on local public community services 2001 Law no. 350/2001 on town and city planning 2004 Law no. 7 – Civil servants behavior code 2004 Law no. 393 – Local elected people statute 2004 Law no. 340 regarding the Prefect statute 2004 Law no. 339 – Decentralization framework law

7. PRIORITIES FOR THE REFORM OF THE PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION AT THE NATIONAL LEVEL • Coherent packages of laws regarding public function • Decentralization /deconcentration of the public services • Improvement of public finances law framework • Settlement of an appropriate institutional framework for preparation and implementation of the reform in public administration • Fighting against corruption

8. RECOMMENDATION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION • Reform of public function – creation of a professional body of public servants based on the principals of professionalism and non political involvement • Decentralization and deconcentration – improvement of the public services management at the local level and increase the quality of the services delivered to the citizens. Adequate allocation of responsibilities, resources and legal rights regarding public services • Improve the process of public policies creation- creation of the coordination systems and improvement of government management capacity

9. STEPS MADE BY THE ROMANIAN GOVERNMENT IN THE PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION REFORM UNTILL PRESENT • Ministry of Administration and Interior organized a National Forum which aimed to initiate public debates with all actors concerned on the acceleration of the public administration reform and the decentralization process; • The consultation process during the eight national and regional meetings of the forum constitute the basis for creation the decentralization strategy in Romania.

10. FALR PRINCIPLES ON DECENTRALIZATION • FALR believes that decentralization will favor the proximity of the citizens to the decision making process. • FALR supports a larger degree of devolution of powers to the local authorities and of decentralization and is determined to take action whenever is needed in order to achieve this objective. • FALR wishes to be a reliable partner for the Romanian government and for the EU in creating and implementing policies. • FALR supports a permanent debate with the government and with the citizens in the process of policy making. • FALR supports the implementation in Romania of the concept of “multi-level governance”

11. ROLE OF FALR IN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION REFORM • Assure that the interests of the local public administration are first priority in the central government agenda regarding the strategy and reform of the public administration • Defend local democracy and real transfer of power from the central to the local level in a proper manner form administrative, legal and financial point of view • Be pro-active in consultation with the government and in showing the local administration point of view • Consolidate its role in creating and monitoring the implementation of the public policies

12. ROLE OF FALR IN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION REFORM • Develop a policy agenda-reflective of member common interests- that defines and establishes legislative priorities relating to decentralization policy issues that FALR intends to represent in the future • Develop a prioritized Action Plan which should include activities to advance the stated policy agenda and all other FALR strategic initiatives • FALR should shift from being a consultant in matters of local government to being a pro-active partner in domestic cooperation and partnership agreements as well as an internationally certified consultant within the EU

13. CONSULTATION PROCESS

14. CENTRAL GOVERNMENT REFORM REGARDING THE COLLABORATION WITH PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION Elaboration and implementation of procedures and standard methodologies: • Set up technical working groups at the ministerial level; • Improve functioning of the committees, commissions and working groups; • Increase the role of the technical and administrative personnel and decrease the political influence in public policy making.

15. Ministries Commissions, Committees and Working groups where FALR is represented Ministry of Administration and Interior Ministry of Environment and Water Management • Inter-ministerial technical committee and working groups • National Institute of Administration – Scientific committee • Social Dialog Commission • Subcommittee for communal management public services. • Subcommittee for public function and civil servants • Subcommittee for public order and public safety. • Central Unit for Public Administration Reform • Working group – Ministry of Administration and Interior/Finance Ministry – PHARE RO 2002/IB/OT/01 Project • Basin Committees Ministry of Finance • Inter-institutional Committee for National Development Plan setup • Working group regarding local public finances in field of fiscal decentralization • Commission for local loan authorizing RomanianGovernment Ministry of European Integration • Transparency Committee for communitarian founds audit • Committee against-poverty and for the Promotion of Social Inclusion

16. OUTCOMES OF THE CONSULTATION PROCESS AT THE LEVEL OF CENTRAL ADMINISTRATION’S INSTITUTIONS • The strategy regarding the decentralization and deconcentration process in Romania elaborated by Central Unit for Public Administration Reform (CUPAR); • The strategy regarding the civil servants management elaborated by the National Agency for Civil Servants (NACS); • Strategy regarding the in-service training of civil servants – elaborated by National Institute for Administration (INA), NACS and CUPAR. Those three strategies together with the strategy regarding public administration informatization where integrated by CUPAR resulting the Romanian Government’s Updated Strategy regarding the acceleration of the public administration reform.

17. CONSULTATION PROCESS ON SPECIFIC TARGETS Ministries Legislative acts’ drafts FALR executive staff Legislative acts’ drafts Legislative acts’ drafts Legislative acts’ drafts Common resolution on the specific legislative act Association of Municipalities Association of Towns Association of Communes Proposals on legislative acts FALR executive staff 3 different proposals on legislative acts Specialized Commissions

18. FALR Steering Committee Sustainable development and public services Commission Standing Commission Culture and education Commission Social Cohesion Commission Institutional Commission FALR executive staff FALR SPECIALIZED COMMISSIONS

19. FALR MAIN ACTIVITIES IN THE CONSULTATION PROCESS ON SPECIFIC TARGETS • Modifying the Law no 27/1994 regarding the local taxes and fees; the result of this process is the Government Ordinance no 36/2002, approved by the Romanian Parliament through the Law no 522/2002 • Modifying the Law 189/1998 regarding the local public finances; the result of this process is the Emergency Ordinance no 45/2003 • Modifying the Government Ordinance no 70/2002 on the administration of local and county interest public health facilities

20. FALR MAIN ACTIVITIES IN THE CONSULTATION PROCESS ON SPECIFIC TARGETS • Participation in consultation meetings on modifying the legislation regarding public services • Through the partnership with ANIAP, FALR contributed to the implementation of the e-administration principles in Romania • At this moment FALR representatives are studying, together with the experts from the Ministry of Administration and Interior, the consequences of implementing the first frame Law on decentralization

21. ADRIAN TEBAN – MAYOR OF CUGIR CONTACT: Address: 2-4 Izvor street, sector 5, 050563, Bucharest, Romania Tel: +4-021-402.20.92 Fax: +4-021-402.21.22 E-mail: falr@falr.ro Web: www.falr.ro