13)help to organize presidential elections, elections to the Seimas, elections to the European Parliament, elections to municipal councils, and referendums;
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14)participate in creating and implementing programmes on mass media development;
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15)participate in organizing or organize recreation of residents;
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16)organize public works and works useful for the population;
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17)organize and (or) control cleaning and maintenance of municipal roads, territories of common use, cemeteries, greenery, pavements, illumination of streets and other public places, provision of services of public toilets;
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18)organise the provision of social support and payment of benefits in a prescribed manner;
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19)organize and fulfil the transferred by the State functions in the sphere of agriculture;
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20)keep the assigned registers and present data in the prescribed manner;
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21)keep records of data on the declaration of a place of residence and persons who do not have a place of residence;
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22)on the decision of the municipal council and only in the absence of a provider of public services, may provide public services the administration of which is assigned to another unit of the municipal administration.
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3.The warden shall:
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1)carry out internal management of the ward;
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2)administer allotments appropriated for the ward;
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3)draw up an activity programme of the ward, submit it to the meeting of elders of the ward for consideration. He shall introduce the programmes approved by the municipal council to the elders and discuss the use of allotted appropriations;
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4)in accordance with the procedure laid down by the regulations of activities of a ward, conclude contracts and supervise their implementation;
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5)issue to the residents of the territory assigned to the ward, documents referred to in the Law on Declaration of a Place of Residence and documents confirming family composition as well as other documents confirming an actual situation, with the exception of the cases when this must be confirmed by other documents according to legal acts;
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6)register the facts of death in the ward that does not have civil registration establishments within the territory serviced by the ward;
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7)issue permissions to bury, if he carries out supervision of cemeteries within the territory serviced by the ward;
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8)in accordance with the procedure laid down by the Law on the Notary’s Office, carry out free of charge notarial acts for residents of the territory assigned to a ward, as well as in accordance with the procedure laid down by the Civil Code verify free of charge the wills of residents of the territory assigned to a ward, which are equated to official wills. The warden shall carry out notarial acts on the premises of a ward. The warden may carry out notarial acts outside the premises of a ward only when an interested person cannot arrive to the premises of a ward because of a valid reason and invites the warden to his place of residence;
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9)within the limits of his competence, write down reports of administrative violations of the law, examine cases of administrative violations of the law;
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10)control whether when rendering public services the requirements for rendering of such services set out in legal acts and agreements are being met, consider residents’ applications and complaints regarding rendering of public services and take decisions on these issues within the limits of his competence. He shall present proposals to the municipal administration and other entities administrating rendering of public services with regard to improvement of rendering of public services;
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11)in a prescribed manner, supervise trading in public places;
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12)submit to the director of the municipal administration proposals on the improvement of activities of civil servants of structural subdivisions of other the municipal administration and heads of municipal establishments in the territory assigned to the ward, maintenance of roads belonging to a municipality, settlement streets, pavements and squares, organisation of local-routs transport, repair of buildings and construction works belonging to a municipality, maintenance of monuments, cemeteries, organisation of the provision of public services to the population;
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13)when necessary, prepare drafts of orders of the director of the municipal administration, prepare drafts of decisions of the municipal council and ordinances of the mayor on the issues related to activities of the ward, organize and control the implementation of the adopted decisions;
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14)convene assemblies of the population of the territory assigned to the ward and organise meetings of the population with officials of municipal institutions and state institutions;
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15)participate in sittings of municipal institutions when issues related to life of the population residing within the territory assigned to the ward are being considered, or authorize any other civil servant of the ward to participate in such sittings;
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16)summarise remarks and proposals of representatives of local communities, and submit them to the director of the municipal administration. He shall consult residents of the territory assigned to the ward and furnish to them information about the activities of municipal institutions, the municipal administration and state institutions within the municipal territory;
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17)at least once a year, submit a report on the activities of the ward to the meeting of elders and the director of the municipal administration.
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4.Wards and wardens may be authorised in regulations of activities of wards to perform other functions which are not assigned to other structural subdivisions of the municipal administration in the territory assigned to the ward.
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CHAPTER EIGHT REPRESENTATION OF LOCAL COMMUNITIES
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Article 33The status of a representative of the local community – the elder
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1.Elderships shall be formed from the localities of the territory serviced by the ward or from the parts of such localities. The project of formation of elderships shall be prepared by the warden and submitted to the director of the municipal administration. The said project shall be approved by the municipal council on the recommendation of the director of the municipal administration.
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2.Residents of elderships shall, in accordance with the procedure laid down by this Law, elect representatives of the locality – elders. Candidates to elders may be nominated by residents, non-governmental organizations, associations, collectives of establishments and organizations that operate in the eldership.
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3.In elderships with not more than 500 residents elders shall be usually elected at the meeting of residents, which is organized by the warden. An elder shall be elected by open ballot. A candidate who has got the most votes of the residents voting in the meeting shall be deemed to be elected as an elder.
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4.In elderships with more than 500 residents elders shall be usually elected by polling the residents. Elections and polls shall be organized and decisions shall be taken by the commission set up by the director of the municipal administration. A candidate who has received the most votes during the polls shall be deemed to be elected as an elder.
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5.An elder shall be elected for a term of two years. An elder shall work on a voluntary basis. The date of election of an elder shall be announced by the warden in accordance with the schedule drawn up by the director of the municipal administration. The date of election of an elder shall be announced not later than 15 days prior to election.
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6.If an elder declines his powers or he is not able to carry out his duties due to the illness, death or other reasons, new election of an elder shall be organised. The date of election shall be announced by the warden with the consent of the director of the municipal administration.
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Article 34The rights and duties of the elder
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The elder shall:
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1)represent the interests of the residents of the eldership in the ward, municipal institutions and the state establishments functioning within the territory of the municipality;
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2)encourage the residents of the eldership to maintain the territory of the locality (roads, streets, squares, cemeteries, and other entities of infrastructure), develop and organise cultural and sports life of a village (a city, a town);
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3)when necessary participate in organization of public polls and meetings of the population with councillors, the warden, the director of the municipal administration or a representative authorised by him, other representatives of municipal and state institutions;
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4)be entitled to get information about functions and working hours of municipal institutions, the municipal administration and its structural units, other public administration entities of the municipality, county governor’s administration and its units, and the representative of the Government. The warden shall furnish this information to the elder;
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5)be entitled to obtain drafts of legal acts drawn up by municipal institutions as well as legal acts adopted by them, which are related to the residents of the eldership, to attend sittings of the committees of the municipal council and the municipal council when the issues concerning the residents of the eldership are being discussed, and to voice the opinion of the residents of the eldership about the needs and interests on these issues, to offer variants of solution of the problems;
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6)furnish information to the residents of the eldership about the functions, working hours and working procedure of municipal institutions, the municipal administration and its units, other public administration entities of the municipality, county governor’s administration and its units, and the representative of the Government;
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Article 35The meeting of the elders
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1.At the meeting of the elders the elders shall consider and take decisions on the issues that are of interest for the communities of the localities within the territory serviced by the ward. The municipal council shall approve the regulations of the meeting of the elders. The municipality shall provide for free the facilities for organising the meeting of the elders. The elders shall gather to the meeting on their own initiative or at the mayor’s invitation. The meeting of the elders shall be considered legal if more than half of the elders participate in it. The meeting shall be presided over by the chairman of the meeting who is elected by the elders participating in the meeting. In the meeting of the elders decisions shall be taken by open ballot by the simple majority of votes of the elders participating in the meeting. In the event of a tie, the Chairman of the meeting shall have a casting vote. Decisions of the meeting of the elders shall be written out in the minutes of the meeting. When the elders gather to the meeting on their own, the warden shall be also invited.
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2.In the meeting the elders shall discuss and take decisions concerning the activity programmes of the ward, evaluation of the annual activity report of the warden, and shall consider other issues important for them. Decisions of the meeting of the elders shall be recommendatory.
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3.In the meeting the elders shall decide on the feasibility of the implementation of the projects (rural development programmes, etc.) submitted by public organisations functioning within the territory serviced by the ward.
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CHAPTER NINE LOCAL POPULATION POLL
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Article 36General principles of local population poll
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1.Residents may express their opinion about the issues of management of public municipal affairs by taking part in a local population poll (hereinafter referred to as a “poll”).
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2.Poll results shall be of an advisory character.
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3.Participation in a poll shall be free (voluntary) and based on the universal, equal right to voice opinion directly.
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4.Municipal residents who have the right to elect a council of an appropriate municipality may take part in a poll.
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5.During a sample survey residents who are interviewed must be selected in such a way that each resident who might be surveyed, would have the same opportunities to become a respondent. When evaluating results of sample surveys, data of their reliance must be indicated.
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6.A poll shall be direct. Residents shall personally participate in a poll; it shall be prohibited to control their will.
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7.It shall be prohibited to restrict the resident’s right to participate in a poll on the account of his sex, race, nationality, language, origin, social position, religious belief, convictions or views.
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Article 37Issues submitted to the poll
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1.Issues that are solved by a municipality in the course of discharging independent and contractual functions, may be submitted for a poll.
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2.Polls concerning establishment of municipalities, liquidation of the existing municipalities, as well as setting and changing of their territorial boundaries and centres shall be conducted in compliance with the Law on Administrative Territorial Units and their Boundaries.
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Article 38Types of polls shall be as follows
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1.Types of polls shall be as follows:
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1)direct entering of individual’s opinion in questionnaire forms of respondents;
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2)expression of individual’s opinion in meetings by means of voting;
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3)sample survey at homes of respondents;
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4)sample survey of respondents by phone.
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2.A poll initiator shall propose a poll type, and a decision on a poll type shall be made by the municipal council by taking into consideration local conditions and circumstances.
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3.The municipal council shall approve the procedure of a poll conducted in the prescribed manner as well as the powers of a poll commission.
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Article 39Territory covered by a poll
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A poll may be conducted on the whole territory of a municipality, the territory serviced by a ward (several wards) or the territory of a locality (several localities). Poll territory may not be smaller than the territory of a settlement.
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Article 40The right of initiative to proclaim a poll
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1.The right of initiative to announce a poll shall be enjoyed by the municipal population and the municipal council.
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2.The residents shall implement the right of initiative to announce a poll at the request of at least 10 per cent of the population who reside within the territory of a poll and who are entitled to elect a municipal council of an appropriate municipality.
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3.The municipal council shall implement the right of initiative to announce a poll at the request of a group of at least one-fourth of the councillors in accordance with the procedure laid down in the rules of conduct.
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Article 41Implementation of the right of initiative to proclaim a poll
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1.The residents shall implement the right of initiative to announce a poll directly. For this purpose an initiative group shall be set up from at least 10 residents who are entitled to elect a municipal council. A representative of a group shall personally submit to the mayor an application to register an initiative group.
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2.An application of an initiative group must indicate: a preliminary or final text of a question(s) submitted to a poll, a proposed type of a poll, and a coordinator(s) of an initiative group. Moreover, the application of the initiative group may propose the territory covered by a poll. All members of an initiative group shall sign an application.
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3.If an application of an initiative group indicates that the text of a question(s) submitted for a poll is preliminary, at the request of representatives of a group the municipal administration shall provide necessary assistance in preparation of the final text of a question(s) submitted for a poll. All members of an initiative group shall sign the final text of a question(s) and it shall be submitted to the mayor.
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4.The mayor shall instruct the director of the municipal administration to solve an issue of the registration of an initiative group. After having received an application of an initiative group, the director of the municipal administration shall, not later than within 5 working days, register an initiative group and shall, not later than within 5 working days after its registration, issue lists for collecting residents’ signatures with regard to a request to announce a poll. Lists shall have a form approved by the Minister of the Interior.
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5.A time limit of one month shall be set for the implementation of the right of initiative of residents to announce a poll. It shall be calculated from the day of issuing of lists for collecting residents’ signatures concerning a request to announce a poll.
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6.If within a time limit set in paragraph 5 of this Article a necessary number of signatures of residents is not collected, the director of the municipal administration shall terminate further collecting of signatures.
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7.An initiative group shall gather requests of residents concerning the announcement of a poll. After having collected within a time limit set in paragraph 5 of this Article a necessary number of signatures of residents with regard to a request to announce a poll, an initiative group shall write out a final act pertaining to the collecting of signatures of and refer it together with requests of the residents to the director of the municipal administration.
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Article 42Taking of a decision to proclaim a poll
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1.If a necessary number of signatures of residents with regard to a request to announce a poll has been collected within a time limit set in paragraph 5 of Article 41 of this Law and no violations of collecting of signatures (the cases of forging signatures or violations of the principle of voluntariness) have been established, the municipal council must take a decision to announce a poll.
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2.The municipal council shall, not later than within a month from the day of submitting of a final act pertaining to the collecting of signatures and requests of the residents to the director of the municipal administration, take a decision to announce a poll.
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3.A decision to announce a poll must indicate: the text of a question(s) submitted to a poll, the territory covered by a poll, a type of a poll, the date and place of a poll, the composition of a poll commission. An initiative group shall have the right to delegate its representative to the poll commission.
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4.A decision of the municipal council to announce a poll must be made public through the local (regional) mass media.
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Article 43Publicity of a poll
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1.The beginning of publicity of a poll shall be the day of the registration of an initiative group of residents with the municipal administration.
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2.Publicity of a poll may be of various forms and in various ways, with the exception of those, which violate the Constitution, laws and other legal acts.
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3.The members of the poll commission may not participate in publicity of a poll.
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Article 44Organization of a poll
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The mayor shall organise a poll in accordance with the procedure laid down by the municipal council.
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Article 45Establishment and proclamation of poll results
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1.A poll shall be deemed to have been held if not less than 25 per cent of the residents of the territory covered by the poll and having the right to participate in the poll expressed their opinion on a submitted question(s). This requirement shall not apply to a sample survey.
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2.The poll commission shall, not later than within 5 working days after the end of the poll, submit the poll results to the mayor. The poll results shall be made public through the local (regional) mass media.
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Article 46Solution of the issues submitted for a poll
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Poll results must be considered at a sitting of the municipal council in accordance with the procedure laid down by the rules of conduct and may be taken into consideration when taking a decision on a question(s) submitted for a poll.
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Article 47Expenses related to organization of a poll
\n
Expenses related to the organisation of a poll shall be covered with the funds of the municipal budget.
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CHAPTER TEN PROPERTY AND FINANCES
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Article 48Municipal ownership
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1.Composition of the municipal property and the ways of acquisition thereof, procedure for managing, using and disposing of such property shall be established by the Constitution, laws, resolutions of the Government and decisions of municipal councils.
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2.Functions of owner of the property belonging to a municipality by the right of ownership, related to the property belonging to a municipality by the right of ownership, shall be implemented by the municipal council in compliance with the law.
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3.Municipal property shall be managed, used and disposed of by trust by municipal institutions, establishments, organisations and undertakings in accordance with the procedure established by the Laws on Budgetary Institutions, State and Municipal Undertakings, the Management, Use and Disposal of the State and Municipal Property, and other laws, as well as by decisions of the municipal council.
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4.Municipalities shall, in the manner prescribed by laws and other legal acts, manage, use and dispose of the state property transferred to them by trust.
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Article 49Property Relations when Boundaries of Municipal Territories are Changed
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1.When a municipality is being established or liquidated or its boundaries are being changed, the real estate of the municipality shall be ascribed to another municipality by that part of the real estate, which is on the ascribed territory. Property, financial and other obligations and rights related to the ascribed real estate shall be transferred together with the said real estate. Other property and debts, upon having evaluated actual conditions and proposals of municipalities, shall be distributed among municipalities in the manner prescribed by the Government or an institution authorised by it.
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2.Disputes concerning property of municipalities arising from the reorganisation specified in paragraph 1 of this Article shall be settled by the court.
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Article 50Financial resources of municipalities and the use thereof
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1.Financial resources of municipalities shall consist of:
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1)municipal budget revenue received from taxes in accordance with laws and other legal acts;
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2)income from municipal property (ownership);
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3)fines received in accordance with the procedure laid down by the law;
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4)local fees and charges fixed by the law;
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5)income of municipal budgetary establishments for services provided;
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6)revenue from the balances of municipal funds on current accounts;
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7)income received for leased-out state land and water bodies of the state inland waters stock, and after the distribution in the manner prescribed by the Government of the funds for plots of state land sold and rented for non-agricultural purposes;
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8)state budget subsidies;
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9)other income established by the law;
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10)non-repayable financial support (monetary funds);
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11)loans.
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2.Municipalities shall receive a part of the income from taxes the rates of which are increased or decreased by municipal councils without exceeding amounts provided for by the law.
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3.Budgetary funds of municipalities may be used only for the functions of municipalities: to implement social and economic, and other programmes approved by municipal councils, to maintain municipal budgetary establishments and organise the provision of public services.
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4.Municipalities or, in their name, the Association of Local Authorities in Lithuania shall co-ordinate drafts of legal acts in compliance with which the change in municipal functions, income and/or expenditures is provided for, along with the financial calculation appended to it.
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5.In the event that the revenue or expenditure of the municipal budget changes due to legal acts adopted by state institutions, the sums of said changes, except the sums by which municipal budgets decrease because of the tax on lease of state land within the territory of a free economic zone used to buy out the land from land owners on this territory, shall be compensated for from the State budget or municipal budgets appropriately. The sums of compensations shall be fixed in accordance with the procedure established by the Law on the Methodology of Determination of Municipal Budgetary Revenues. In the event of a dispute, the court shall adopt a final decision.
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6.Supplementary and surplus budget revenue received during the implementation of the budget as well as saved funds (expenditure) shall be left to municipalities, with the exception of other cases laid down in laws.
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7.Funds intended for exercising state functions (delegated by the state to municipalities) shall be appropriated from the state budget or state monetary funds and transferred to municipalities as a special targeted grant.
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Article 51Drawing-up and control of the municipal budget
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1.Each municipality shall have an autonomous budget. The municipal budget shall be drawn up and approved for the period of one budget year. The procedure of preparation, consideration and approval of municipal budgets shall be established in the Law on the Structure of the Budget and the rules approved by a resolution of the Government.
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2.During a budget year the municipal council may amend the budget.
\n
3.The basis of formation of a municipal budget shall be social, economic and other programmes approved by the municipal council, as well as calculations of funds necessary for the implementation of the functions of municipalities.
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4.Municipalities must create conditions for the population to consider a draft budget in the manner prescribed by the rules of conduct.
\n
5.Upon the end of a budget year, independent financial and/or performance audit may be conducted by a decision of the municipal council. If independent audit is carried out, an audit report must be publicly considered at a sitting of the municipal council not later than until the first of September of an appropriate budget year.
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6.When necessary, the National Audit Office may, by decision of the Auditor General, carry out financial (legality) and performance audit of municipalities, as well as municipal establishments and undertakings controlled by municipalities.
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CHAPTER ELEVEN RELATIONS OF MUNICIPALITIES WITH STATE INSTITUTIONS AND REPRESENTATION
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Article 52Relations of municipalities with state institutions and establishments
\n
1.Relations between municipal councils and State institutions and establishments shall be based on the Constitution and laws.
\n
2.Municipalities shall not be subordinate to State institutions.
\n
3.Central and territorial state administration entities, when considering issues related to the interests of a particular municipality or all municipalities, inform the mayor of an appropriate municipality or the Association of Local Authorities in Lithuania about this. Proposals submitted in writing by the municipal council or executive organs of the Association of Local Authorities in Lithuania shall be considered (evaluated) by state administration entities and answers shall be provided.
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4.Drafts of decisions related to the change of administrative units of the state territory and the boundaries of those units shall be considered with municipalities in the manner prescribed by legal acts.
\n
5.The State shall support training of municipal councillors, civil servants and employees working under the employment contract.
\n
6.If necessary, when planning and resolving all the issues directly related to them municipalities may consult with state institutions.
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7.Prepared or considered drafts of laws and other legal acts related to activities of municipalities shall be discussed with separate municipalities or the Association of Local Authorities in Lithuania in the manner prescribed by the Seimas Statute and business regulations of the Government, as well as by other state administration entities.
\n
8.Each year the Government and the Association of Local Authorities in Lithuania shall consider the indicators specified in the Law on the Methodology of Determination of Municipal Budgetary Revenues and primary statistical data on demographic, social and other indicators of municipalities in accordance with the Government-approved rules for coordinating such indicators.
\n
9.A bilateral commission shall be set up by mutual agreement for the co-ordination of interests and positions of the Government and the Association of Local Authorities in Lithuania.
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Article 53Representation of municipalities
\n
The Association of Local Authorities in Lithuania shall represent common interests of municipalities in the Government, other state institutions and international organisations.
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CHAPTER TWELVE LEGAL GUARANTEES AND ADMINISTRATIVE SUPERVISION OF MUNICIPALITIES
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Article 54Rights of municipalities and the protection thereof
\n
1.Municipalities may appeal to the court for the violation of their rights, taking into consideration the character of violation. Municipal institutions shall function in the name of the municipality in accordance with the powers granted in this and other laws.
\n
2.Decisions of the municipal council, which do not exceed the competence of the council, shall be mandatory to the municipal administration, all establishments, undertakings and organisations in the municipal territory, as well as the population.
\n
3.State administration entities shall be prohibited from restricting or limiting the powers and rights of municipalities, except for the cases provided for by the law.
\n
4.Decisions of the municipal council on local fees and charges, as well as rules confirmed by decisions of the municipal council for the violation of which laws provide for administrative liability, shall be effective within the whole territory of the municipality and all institutions, establishments, undertakings and residents, as well as other natural and legal persons who have come to the municipal territory must observe them.
\n
5.Municipalities shall have the right to apply all legal measures so that a general plan of the municipal territory would be observed and the requirements related to the implementation of the said plan would be met.
\n
6.Municipalities shall have the right themselves and through the Association of Local Authorities in Lithuania to participate in drafting of laws and other legal acts regulating local self-government or establishing functions of municipalities, and to express their proposals and remarks in regard to the prepared drafts.
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Article 55Supervision of activities of municipalities
\n
1.The compliance of municipalities with decisions of the Government shall, in the manner prescribed by the Law on Administrative Supervision of Municipalities, be supervised by state officers appointed by the Government - representatives of the Government.
\n
2.Complaints of residents concerning the abuse of power or bureaucracy of municipal employees shall be examined by the Seimas Ombudsmen; their powers shall be laid down in the Law on the Seimas Ombudsmen.
\n
3.Acts or actions of municipal institutions and civil servants which violate the rights of residents, institutions, establishments and organisations may be appealed against in the manner prescribed by the Law on Administrative Proceedings.
\n
4.The functions of municipalities and the restrictions of their rights in the event of the state of war and/or the state of emergency shall be established in special laws.
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CHAPTER THIRTEEN SYMBOLS AND BUSINESS CONDUCT OF MUNICIPALITIES
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Article 56Symbols of municipalities
\n
1.Municipalities shall have their symbols.
\n
2.Symbols of municipalities and the procedure of the use thereof shall be regulated by the Law on Symbols of Municipalities.
\n
3.The coat of arms of municipalities shall be the ownership of the municipalities and, in the cases that are not provided for by the Law on Symbols of Municipalities, may be used only by the permission of the municipal councils.
\n
Article 57Business conduct of municipalities
\n
Municipal business shall be conducted and municipal financial statements and consolidated financial statements, financial and technical documents shall be kept in the Lithuanian language and must correspond to the requirements for business conduct established by the effective legal acts.
\n
Annex to Republic of Lithuania Law on Local Self-government IMPLEMENTED LEGAL ACTS OF THE EUROPEAN UNION 1. Council Directive 94/80/EC of 19 December 1994 laying down detailed arrangements for the exercise of the right to vote and to stand as a candidate in municipal elections by citizens of the Union residing in a Member Sate of which they are not nationals (OJ 2004 special edition, Chapter 20, Volume 1, p. 12) with the latest amendments adopted by Council Directive 2006/106/EC of 20 November 2006 (OJ 2006 L363, p. 409).
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2.Commission Directive 2006/111/EC of 16 November 2006 on the transparency of financial relations between Member States and public undertakings as well as on financial transparency within certain undertakings (OJ 2006, L 318, p. 17).