Presentation of the draft law simplifying the standards applicable to local authorities

For several months, the Government has been undertaking a process aimed at thoroughly simplifying the standards applicable to local authorities, in accordance with the commitments made by Prime Minister Sébastien LECORNU at the Congress of Mayors of France last November.

Conducted in close consultation with associations of elected officials and both houses of Parliament, the first stage of this work materialized in February with the publication of a "mega-decree" on February 21, 2026, containing 36 measures to simplify the daily operations of local authorities and streamline their organization. More than 100 regulatory and legislative simplification measures for local authorities have been identified in total.

This bill, comprising five sections and more than 30 articles, is part of this dynamic. It is based on proposals from the Boris Ravignon report, the work of the Roquelaure simplification initiative, as well as contributions from associations of elected officials, prefectures, and central government departments.

The text covers six main areas:

• Strengthening the National Council for the Evaluation of Standards (CNEN), in order to improve the control and relevance of new standards;
• The functioning and organization of local authorities, with simplified procedures for the conduct of municipal councils and inter-municipal public cooperation establishments (EPCI);
• Human resources management, in particular by streamlining certain recruitment procedures;
• Budgetary and financial management and public procurement, including the generalization of the single financial account and the easing of loan guarantees with the Agence France Locale;
• Urban planning, the environment and planning, with measures relating to ownerless property, including reducing the acquisition period from 30 to 15 years and improving the transmission of information by the tax authorities;
• The simplification of services for users, particularly in matters of funeral law, the rights of people with disabilities and the operation of school funds.

This bill has been the subject of numerous consultations, notably by the National Council for the Evaluation of Standards and the Higher Council of the Territorial Public Service (CSFPT).

After its presentation to the Council of Ministers, the text will be sent to the Senate for review scheduled for June.

Through this initiative, the Government reaffirms its commitment to simpler, more efficient and more citizen-focused local public action.

These simplifications constitute the first step in the reform of local public action desired by the Government. This will soon be complemented by a bill aimed at strengthening the local state, coordinating its actions with local authorities, and providing greater security for public decision-makers.

According to Françoise Gatel, Minister of Regional Planning and Decentralization: “Three verbs summarize our ambition: to regulate the production of standards, to simplify them, and to adapt them as best as possible to the realities on the ground. The objective is clear: a more efficient State, freer communities, and a Republic closer to its citizens. The best standard is one that enables action, protects without unnecessarily constraining, frames without stifling, and guides without hindering.”