College Van Burgemeester En Wethouders - Composition and Appointment

Composition and Appointment

The mayor (burgemeester) of a municipality is ex officio the chair of the municipality's executive board. He or she has the casting vote in the event of a tie. Apart from this, however, the mayor is at the same level as the other members of the executive board.

The municipal secretary (gemeentesecretaris), who is chosen by the executive board, is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the executive board and assists with administrative and support matters.

After every municipal election, the wethouders are elected to the executive by the members of the municipal council. Wethouders hold office at the pleasure of the city council. The city council can remove someone from the office by way of a non-confidence motion.

Usually the municipal council elects sitting members of the council to the executive board, but it is also possible for them to elect someone from outside the council. A member of the municipal executive is not entitled to vote in municipal council resolutions, even if he or she was originally elected to the municipal council.

According to the Municipality Act (Gemeentewet), the number of wethouders cannot exceed 20% of the number of members of the municipal council (rounded up), but there must be at least two. In Dutch municipalities with 18,000 inhabitants or less, the office of wethouder is a part-time one. In larger municipalities the office is a full-time position, but the municipal council can choose to designate one or more wethouder positions as part-time positions, in which case the number of wethouders can go up to 25% of the number of municipal council members.