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III Municipalities' Active, Voluntary Effort
Based on the prefectures' efforts by the Guide, each municipality needs to consider its own need for a merger and should make such efforts as to establish a council for merger, paying attention to the followings.
| (1) |
Municipalities' Discussion of Need for a Merger |
As a municipal merger should basically be executed by municipalities' free and autonomous decision, each municipality should provide information on a merger to its inhabitants actively first. And it should let them understand the meaning and importance of a merger and should discuss actively on its own municipal construction based on a merger in the future.
| (2) |
Establishment & Management of a Council for Merger |
A council for merger is an organization where various discussions on a merger, including that of whether or not to merge, should be held. Then, when the municipalities concerned discuss on a merger, they need to recognize this, establish a council for merger actively, and make the most of it. Especially, when inhabitants propose for a merger, the mayor, swiftly in accordance with the Municipal Merger Promotion Act, needs to commit the proposition to its municipal assembly, arrange the assembly to decide whether or not to merger, and report the decision of the assembly to the representative of those who proposed and to the public. In the meantime, the mayor who received the proposition to merge and the mayors whose municipalities are included in the proposition need to declare their opinions when they commit the proposition to the municipal assembly. In this case, they are desired to declare their opinion of whether or not to establish a council for merger.
Once a council for merger is established, many things, including construction of a new municipality and its new administrative system in the future and adjustment of various interests, need to be discussed in the council. Since the Municipal Merger Promotion Act lose its effect on March 31, 2005, management of a council need to be done efficiently and effectively.
The content of discussions in a council need to be disclosed to the public periodically, so that transparency of the discussions may be enhanced. In the bill to amend the Municipal Merger Promotion Act, a council for merger that has been established by inhabitants' proposition must inform the representative of those who proposed and the public of the status of the discussions as to the municipal merger including making of a municipal construction plan within six months after its establishment in order to provide accurate data for judgments to the inhabitants. (Refer to the next paragraph.) Taking this into account, the councils are desired to reflect the opinions of the inhabitants accurately, to discuss efficiently, and to publish specific data on mergers.
In the meantime, the MPHPT, with the intention to promote establishment of a council for merger by the propositions of inhabitants and the discussions in the councils, has committed to the 151st Diet "the Bill to Amend a Part of the Local Autonomy Law and Other Laws" including the amendments of the Municipal Merger Promotion Act. The amendments, in order that inhabitants' opinions can be reflected to voluntary municipal mergers, include:
| i) |
In the assembly's deliberation as to the establishment of a
council for merger by a proposition of inhabitants, a chance to express opinions
must be given to a representative of those who proposed. |
| ii) |
The representative can be added as a member of a council for
merger. |
| iii) |
When a proposition for a council for merger by inhabitants
is rejected, a referendum can be held with the mayor's request or inhabitants'
requests with the signatures of a sixth of constituents. If more than a half agree
with the establishment in the referendum, the decision of the assembly is overruled. |
| iv) |
When a council for merger is established by inhabitants' proposition,
it must inform the representative of those who proposed and the public of the
status of the discussions as to the municipal merger, which include making of
a municipal construction plan, within six months after its establishment. |
Moreover, the MPHPT has decided to make a manual that shows the procedures from establishment of a council for merger to accomplishment of a merger, based on previous cases, to support an efficient and effective management of a council for merger. To achieve this, the MPHPT has established "the Workshop for a Management Manual for a Legal Council for a Municipal Merger." It is desired that the manual will be referred to in the case of the management of each council.
| (3) |
Promotion of Local Policies after a Merger |
There will be such concerns that, when a merger is accomplished, inhabitants' opinions might be harder to reflect on policies or that the level of the public services might be deteriorated. These concerns should be discussed in a council for merger and need efforts to dissolve. In this case, attention needs to be paid to the following measures for localities.
| i) |
Use of Branch offices, Local Councils, & Post Offices in Municipalities
after Mergers |
In order that previous public services may be maintained or improved, there are such ideas that former municipal halls can be used as branch offices for a new municipality and that post offices can be actively utilized. The MPHPT, with the intention to improve public services in the localities, has committed to the 151st Diet "the Bill on the Execution of Specific Municipal Works in Post Offices." The bill, promoting cooperation between municipalities and post offices, can enable specific municipal works with great needs to be done at post offices.
In order that local opinions can be reflected, there are such ideas that important administrations cannot be executed before the discussion of the Local Council in the area and that local members are requested to participate in the Council.
| ii) |
Use of "the Supporting Project for Our Own Municipal Constructions" |
It is an idea to utilize "the Supporting Project for Our Own Municipal Constructions," which the MPHPT has decided to promote from FY 2001. By building localities with active participations of inhabitants in such areas as elementary school districts, new municipalities can promote cooperation between inhabitants and administrative bodies, and can build itself smoothly after mergers.
| iii) |
Use of the Articles on Exceptions of Election Districts for
Municipal Assembly Members in the case of Merger |
It is an idea to use the articles on exceptions of election districts under the Municipal Merger Promotion Act (the sixth article and the seventh article) and the Public Offices Election Law (the sixth paragraph of the fifteenth article), so that opinions of ex-municipalities can be reflected adequately in the new municipal assembly after a merger.
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