The Town Hall modifies the ROM that expands and recognises the citizens' right to participate in plenary sessions. The text has been drawn up in a committee with representation of all municipal groups
Friday 11th November 2016
THE TOWN HALL BRINGS TO THE PLENARY SESSION A MODIFICATION OF THE ROM THAT EXTENDS AND RECOGNISES AS A RIGHT THE PARTICIPATION OF THE CITIZENSHIP IN THE MUNICIPAL PLENARIES
The text has been debated and drafted in a commission with representation of all the municipal groups
The Calvià Town Hall will bring to this November's plenary session the initial approval proposal for the amendment of the Municipal Organic Regulation (ROM), which improves and broadens the participation of citizens in municipal Plenaries. The ROM reform project has been debated and drafted for months in a commission with representation of all the municipal groups.
The proposal that will be taken to the Plenary introduces a greater participation of entities and neighbours in the plenary sessions. With the current ROM, citizens can only intervene through Associations or Federations of Associations recognised by the Municipal Corporation, at some point on the agenda in which they have intervened as interested in the file, or in the turn of requests and questions.
With the modification proposed the following novelties are introduced:
Citizens may request the Plenary to transfer a petition to another institution not dependent on the Town Hall. In case of approval, the Town Hall will act as an intermediary by transferring that request on its own behalf.
It also introduces the possibility that proposals or contributions that get the support of 1% of the neighbours with voting rights or the 3 most supported each semester - if they exceed the 0.5% of the neighbours of the municipality - will be attended by the Plenary, and shall be defended by a representative appointed by the proposing party.
Another novelty of the proposal is to give the neighbours the opportunity to ask the Plenary to elaborate a rule, ordinance or regulation, or the modification of an existing one, and the approval of a rule or regulation proposed by the citizenship itself, which will be defined in collaboration with the municipal administration. In this case, the proposals must also have the support of 1% of the neighbours of the municipality with voting rights. The proponent party will appoint a representative to defend the citizen action.
On the other hand, the aspects already included in the current ROM, of being able to intervene in the Plenary in relation to some point included on the agenda or in the turn of requests and questions, are maintained. In the first case, the entities registered in the Municipal Registry and Associations of supra-municipal character may intervene. In the second case (of requests and questions) entities registered in the Municipal Registry may intervene and also - as a novelty – it gives voice to neighbours individually.
The new Municipal Organic Regulation, recognises - also for the first time - these aspects of direct intervention of the citizenship as a right, thus improving citizen participation in the Municipal Plenaries.
The new ROM introduces the concept of Accountability. A monographic plenary session of accountability will be held annually, according to the regulation that is specifically approved.
On the other hand, it includes aspects to respond to the evolution of the Municipal Corporation itself, with the presence of more municipal groups, regulating in greater detail the mixed group and suppressing the figure of head of the opposition, besides adapting other more technical aspects to the current regulations.