Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan on Thursday said a reform concerning local public administration will be implemented in the near future.
„Administrative reorganisation is a necessity for Romania, but I would be lying to the Romanian people if I told them it would be carried out this year or the next, because it is difficult to undertake many complex operations at the same time. The energy of this government is focused on pulling Romania out of this difficult period. However, one of the components we will implement in the coming period, starting this summer, is a reform relating to local public administration – not in the sense of abolishing localities, as this is generally done at the end of an electoral cycle. Even if we wished to begin this tomorrow, those in office – elected officials – generally complete their mandates,” said Prime Minister Bolojan, when asked on Antena 3 private television broadcaster whether he intends to carry out territorial reorganisation by abolishing counties and creating development regions.
The head of government added that local public administration, like any administrative structure, can become more efficient and more responsive to citizens’ needs, offering better services with smaller budgets.
„What will we do? Starting next week, we will form working groups for each type of administrative unit – municipalities, towns, and communes – because their issues differ significantly. (…) This is not about abolishing entities, but about taking measures to make them more efficient. It is true that over 60% of communes cannot cover their personnel expenses from the taxes and duties they collect from citizens. However, they have the power to determine the number of employees in their town halls, to set salary levels up to that of the deputy mayor. (…) They also have the lowest levels of local taxation, because in the Romanian public mindset, there is no connection between the tax paid to the town hall and the quality of services provided. We therefore need to work on mechanisms whereby, if the government gives you funding to function, we also provide a salary framework, a staffing limit to curb spending – there is no need for every mayor to have two personal advisers,” the Prime Minister explained.
Bolojan also noted that a deputy mayor does not need an adviser, and that the number of local councillors can be reduced.
„For these localities, we must establish clear standards. Whether we like it or not, we must set a level of property tax that enables these administrations to function, at least partially, from local revenues. People must understand that the amount they pay in tax should correspond proportionally to the services they receive from their local authorities,” he concluded.
AGERPRES
