Commune Communities in France - Objectives

Objectives

Article 5214-16 of the CGCT requires the communauté de communes to exercise its responsibilities in the following policy areas:

  • promotion of economic development across its entire territory
  • management and maintenance of public spaces

The communauté de communes may also choose to exercise its responsibilities in at least one of the following six policy areas:

  • environmental protection and enhancement
  • housing and 'quality of life' policies
  • highway construction, management and maintenance
  • construction, maintenance and operation of buildings and other infrastructure for recreational (cultural and sports related) and educational (primary schooling and pre-schooling) purposes
  • social actions for the common good
  • general improvements (assainissement)

The communauté de communes may define its own personnel requirements and appoint appropriately qualified employees. In addition, and subject to départemental agreement it may exercise directly powers and responsibilities in certain social policy areas which are more normally handled at the départemental level.

Subject to these requirements, it is for the communes themselves to determine precisely which competences they will delegate to the communauté de communes: they will do this based on their view of the individual commune's best interests. Once powers and responsibilities have been delegated to the communauté de communes, they shall be exercised collectively through the communauté de communes and may no longer be exercised independently by individual member communes.

In 2008 there were 2,393 communautés de communes in France. Of these, roughly 1,000 had been in existence for less than a year. New communautés are currently being created at a more rapid rate than in the early years. Nevertheless, there are still many rural communes that have not joined one of these groupings.

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Famous quotes containing the word objectives:

    Along the journey we commonly forget its goal. Almost every vocation is chosen and entered upon as a means to a purpose but is ultimately continued as a final purpose in itself. Forgetting our objectives is the most frequent stupidity in which we indulge ourselves.
    Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900)