Inhabitants question time

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The residents' question-and- answer hours are set out in the city's rules of procedure.

Many cities and municipalities have decided, in accordance with the municipal code of the respective federal state, to hold so-called residents' questioning hours at the meetings of the city ​​council or the district council . The rules for the resident question hour are basically very similar and mostly only differ in terms of deadlines for submitting data and a few other details.

In the residents' questioning hours, citizens can actively participate with their questions in the council meetings or in the meetings of the district council. So should public participation be encouraged. For this purpose, the question hours for residents are included in the agendas and the democratic opportunity is created to participate politically through questions in matters of the city or the city district. The questions can be directed to politics or administration.

Children and young people (BW) or residents from the age of 14 (NRW) can also ask questions.

Citizen Question Hours, when not held regularly, are often advertised through the local press. In some communities, the questioners are also informed in writing.

In most cases, questions have to be submitted seven to ten days before the meeting.

Anything can be asked as long as it is a matter of the municipality or the respective city district and the answer does not violate legal regulations or pertains to ongoing legal proceedings. Likewise, the questions must not have offensive content or concern non-public matters.

In the public meeting, the questioner is allowed one or two additional questions that can be asked in the council meeting without prior notification.

If it is not possible to answer during the meeting, reference can be made to a written answer or, in some cases, it can also be requested. Anyone who is unable to attend on the day of the meeting will also receive a written answer.

The questions must be addressed to the mayor or the district administrator in good time.

Party groups that were not given a mandate in the election also use the residents' question time to help shape politics. Council members can also be granted this right if they are personally affected.

The applicable regulations can be found in detail in the municipality's rules of procedure.