Municipality (Liechtenstein)
The political community or shortly community is the lower level in two-level state administration building in Liechtenstein . They are regional authorities under public law and play an important role in democracy , decentralization and the separation of powers in the country.
history
Before 1808, as in the rest of Central Europe, there were two types of municipality in Liechtenstein.
- The village community was primarily responsible for the land use organization of the peasant land use organization. Village cooperatives have been found in Central Europe since the High Middle Ages , regulating the cultivation of the fields, the use of the common lands and forests and the work in the community.
- The judicial communities were predominantly responsible for political rights. The court was not only concerned with the judiciary , but performed most of the functions that are now considered state-owned. The court days took place several times a year in the open air. A judicial parish was made up of several village parishes. The two jurisdictions Vaduz and Schellenberg had the same territory as the court communities of the same name.
The fall of the Roman-German Empire in 1806 led to a reduction in municipal autonomy. Liechtenstein abolished the judicial communities and the judicial and legislative functions were transferred to the Princely Oberamt . The community leaders of the eleven communities, called “judges”, were appointed by the Oberamt and had to carry out its orders.
With the constitution of 1862 , municipal autonomy was upgraded. The community assembly became the highest organ and elected mayor , sack master and the other community councilors. The municipal law of 1864 abolished the disadvantage of the rear residents by creating a linked municipal and state civil rights and introduced the distinction between their own sphere of activity and those assigned by the state .
The constitution of 1921 contained a guarantee of the existence of the individual communities. In 1926, following the Swiss model, the separation into the political community and the civil parish failed . It only came about in 1996 when the citizens' cooperatives were separated from the political communities.
Competencies and organization
tasks
The tasks of the political communities can be divided into two categories of competencies: The transferred sphere of activity comprises all state affairs which are assigned to the communities by law. The own sphere of activity includes everything that the community can regulate and administer to a considerable extent. These include in particular:
- Assessment and collection of community control
- Construction and maintenance of kindergartens , primary schools and other public buildings and facilities
- Administration of municipal property
- Community police to maintain peace, security and order
- Location planning
- Water supply , sewage and waste disposal
- Granting of community citizenship . Every citizen of the country is a citizen of a municipality, except for the members of the Princely House of Liechtenstein .
In addition, the municipalities can perform self-administration tasks within the legal framework.
The municipalities have the right to introduce constitutional initiatives, to hold referenda, to convene the state parliament or to obtain a referendum on the dissolution of the state parliament.
For tasks that cannot be carried out by a single municipality, such as water supply or waste disposal, special purpose associations were created which, like the municipalities, are organized as public bodies.
autonomy
Compared to the other countries in Central Europe , the autonomy of the Liechtenstein municipalities together with the political municipalities in Switzerland is at the top. In 2003 the municipalities also received a controversial right to leave the state association.
organs
Community meeting
The highest organ is the community assembly. Because of the population growth and the introduction of women's suffrage in 1984, it no longer actually meets. Instead, secret ballots are held. The community leader , the members of the community council and the business audit committee are elected at the ballot box and voted on one-off expenses of over 35% of the community income, regular expenses of over 20% of the income, initiatives and referendums .
One sixth of those entitled to vote can call for a referendum by means of a referendum on resolutions of the municipal council that exceed the municipal council's financial competence as stipulated in the municipal regulations. Regardless of this ceiling, the referendum can estimate , community tax surcharge , accounting , building code and zoning plan are taken. A sixth of those entitled to vote can also use the right of initiative to request that matters that are subject to a referendum be dealt with.
Municipal council
local community | Inhabitants (December 31, 2017) |
Members of the municipal council |
Designation chairman |
Financial literacy |
source |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Balzers | 4590 | 11 | Community leader | 100,000 CHF | |
Ash trees | 4385 | 11 | Community leader | 300,000 CHF | |
Gamprin | 1658 | 9 | Community leader | 200,000 CHF | |
Moors | 4344 | 11 | Community leader | 300,000 CHF | |
Planks | 456 | 7th | Community leader | 200,000 CHF | |
Ruggell | 2268 | 9 | Community leader | 150,000 CHF | |
Schaan | 6039 | 13 | Community leader | 300,000 CHF | |
Schellenberg | 1084 | 9 | Community leader | 150,000 CHF | |
Triesen | 5156 | 11 | Community leader | 200,000 CHF | |
Triesenberg | 2608 | 11 | Community leader | 300,000 CHF | |
Vaduz | 5526 | 11 | mayor | 100,000 CHF |
The municipal council elected according to the proportional system is the executive . It is the executive and executive body of the municipality with all the powers that are not transferred to another body. Although the municipal regulations could place the estimate , invoice , building regulations and zoning plan in the competence of the municipal assembly, none of the eleven municipalities in Liechtenstein make use of them.
To a limited extent, the municipalities can determine the size of their municipal council. It exists in communities with:
- up to 1500 inhabitants from seven or nine members
- up to 3000 inhabitants from nine or eleven members
- over 3000 residents from eleven or thirteen members, each including community leaders
Business Audit Committee
The three-member business audit commission controls the administration and accounting of the municipality. She checks the accounts and applies for approval of the municipal accounts and discharge of the organs.
Territorial changes
There have never been parishes in Liechtenstein, but the parish boundaries have changed. In 1952, the municipal boundary between Vaduz and Schaan in the section of the Rheintaleene and the lower foot of the Three Sisters was redefined. The Ebholz exclave, which previously belonged to Schaan, and the Einfang property near Vaduzerforst came to Vaduz.
Other parishes
Citizens' Cooperative
The citizens' cooperatives that occur in around half of Liechtenstein's municipalities are owners of collectively used forests and pastures as well as of parceled areas that are left for private use.
Catholic parishes
The Roman Catholic Church in Liechtenstein is a state church . The political congregations are not responsible for the administration of the church assets of the parishes , but a church council . It consists of a member of the municipal council, a member elected by the people in a citizens' meeting, and the local pastor .
Protestant church
The Evangelical Church in Liechtenstein has the status of an association and is thus organized under private law.
See also
swell
- Bernd Marquardt: Community. In: Historical Lexicon of the Principality of Liechtenstein . December 31, 2011 .
- Liechtenstein Institute (Ed.): Communities - History, Development, Significance . Contributions from the Liechtenstein Institute 45/2019, Bendern 2019
- Municipal Law (GemG) of March 20, 1996. On the Liechtenstein Collection of Laws (LILEX)
- Online commentary on Article 110 of the Liechtenstein Constitution, which deals with the municipalities.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Art. 1 Para. 1 GemG
- ↑ Art. 3 GemG
- ↑ Excerpt from the information sign at the Rofenberg chapel. Photography on Wikimedia
- ↑ Art. 13 GemG
- ↑ Art. 12 para. 2 GemG
- ↑ Art. 14 GemG
- ↑ Art. 12 para. 2 GemG
- ↑ Art. 35ff. GemG
- ↑ Art. 25 para. 4 GemG
- ↑ Art. 25 para. 2 lit. m GemG
- ↑ Art. 41ff. GemG
- ↑ 14 Population and Housing. In: Brochure Liechtenstein in Figures 2019, Office for Statistics
- ↑ Municipal code of the municipality of Balzers with addendum dated June 15, 2014
- ↑ Municipal code of the municipality of Eschen-Nendeln from April 26, 1998
- ↑ Municipal code of the municipality of Gamprin from April 26, 1998 with an addendum of February 5, 2017
- ^ Municipal code of the municipality of Mauren of October 26, 1997
- ↑ Municipal code of the municipality of Planken from October 26, 1997
- ^ Municipal code of the municipality of Ruggell of October 26, 1997
- ↑ Municipal code of the municipality of Schaan from October 26, 1997
- ↑ Municipal code of the municipality of Schellenberg from September 17, 1997
- ↑ Municipal code of the municipality of Triesen, as of July 1, 2015
- ↑ Municipal code of the municipality of Triesen from October 26, 1997
- ↑ Municipal code of the municipality of Vaduz of October 26, 1997 with revision of June 1, 2015
- ↑ Art. 72ff. GemG
- ↑ Art. 40 para. 1 GemG
- ↑ Art. 38 GemG
- ↑ Art. 57 GemG
- ↑ Law on the regulation of the municipal boundary Vaduz-Schaan of April 3, 1952. On LILEX
- ↑ Law on the administration of church property in the parishes of July 14, 1870. On LILEX