The European Charter of Local Self-Government was adopted under the auspices of the

Congress of the Council of Europe The Congress of Local and Regional Authorities is the pan-European political assembly representing local and regional authorities from the forty-six member states of the Council of Europe. Its role is to promote local and regional democracy, imp ...

and was opened for signature by the

Council of Europe The Council of Europe (CoE; french: Conseil de l'Europe, ) is an international organisation founded in the wake of World War II to uphold human rights, democracy and the rule of law in Europe. Founded in 1949, it has 46 member states, with a p ...

's member states on 15 October 1985. All Council of Europe member states are parties to the Charter. New member states of the Council of Europe are expected to ratify the Charter at the earliest opportunity. The Charter commits the ratifying member states to guaranteeing the political, administrative and financial independence of

local authorities Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of public administration within a particular sovereign state. This particular usage of the word government refers specifically to a level of administration that is both geographically-loca ...

. It provides that the principle of local

self-government __NOTOC__ Self-governance, self-government, or self-rule is the ability of a person or group to exercise all necessary functions of regulation without intervention from an external authority. It may refer to personal conduct or to any form of ...

shall be recognised in domestic legislation and, where practicable, in the constitution. Local authorities are to be elected by

universal suffrage Universal suffrage (also called universal franchise, general suffrage, and common suffrage of the common man) gives the right to vote to all adult citizens, regardless of wealth, income, gender, social status, race, ethnicity, or political sta ...

, and it is the earliest legal instrument to set out the principle of

subsidiarity Subsidiarity is a principle of social organization that holds that social and political issues should be dealt with at the most immediate or local level that is consistent with their resolution. The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' defines subsidi ...

The Charter

Local authorities, acting within the limits of the law, are to be able to regulate and manage a substantial share of public affairs under their own responsibility in the interests of the local population. The Charter considers that public responsibilities should be exercised preferably by the authorities closest to the citizens, a higher level being considered only when the co-ordination or discharge of duties is impossible or less efficient at the level immediately below. To this end, the Charter sets out the principles concerning the protection of local authorities' boundaries, the existence of adequate administrative structures and resources for the carrying out of their tasks, the conditions under which responsibilities are to be exercised, the financial resources of local authorities and the legal protection of local self-government. It limits the administrative supervision of local authorities' activities to the verification of lawfulness only. The principles of local self-government contained in the Charter apply to all categories of local authorities. Ratifying states undertake to consider themselves bound by at least twenty paragraphs of Part I of the Charter, including at least ten from among the following: * Article 2, * Article 3, paragraphs 1 and 2, * Article 4, paragraphs 1, 2 and 4, * Article 5, * Article 7, paragraph 1, * Article 8, paragraph 2, * Article 9, paragraphs 1, 2 and 3, * Article 10, paragraph 1, * Article 11. In 2009, a protocol to the Charter (on the right to participate in the affairs of a local authority) was adopted. It entered into force on 1 June 2012. The

Congress of Local and Regional Authorities The Congress of Local and Regional Authorities is the pan-European political assembly representing local and regional authorities from the forty-six member states of the Council of Europe. Its role is to promote local and regional democracy, imp ...

has developed a database named "Carta-Monitor". This database provides access to the analysis, article by article, carried out during the Congress' monitoring missions in the 46 Member States. It also allows for comparative analysis on several articles and countries, as well as statistical research on ratifications of articles and compliance with their implementation. Every report on the application of the Charter in member states or the local elections that the Congress has observed can be consulted on the Congress' web site.

Group of Independent Experts on the European Charter

The Council of Europe has constituted a consultative body called the Group of Independent Experts on the European Charter, consisting of senior academics. The Group meets twice a year to consider a range of matters related to the European Charter of Local Self-Government, and it also provides legal advice and support to the elected members of the Congress of the Council of Europe who undertake a programme of missions to monitor the situation of local and regional democracy in member states of the Council. The Group is currently considering, through a working group, the question of the possible revision of the Charter, in liaison with the Secretariat and the ''

Rapporteur A rapporteur is a person who is appointed by an organization to report on the proceedings of its meetings. The term is a French-derived word. For example, Dick Marty was appointed ''rapporteur'' by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Eur ...

'' of the Congress.

References

External links

Full text of the European Charter of Local Self-Government

Table of signatures and ratifications

Official website of the Congress of the Council of Europe

Congress' web page for the Charter

Carta-Monitor: Database of the Charter Monitoring

List of the Monitoring and Observation reports on the Congress' web site

Group of Independent Experts on the European Charter
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