Senate proposals to restore elected officials' freedom to act

The Senate proposals, which are divided into five areas, were sent to Matignon on October 31.

Among the reforms likely to "come about quickly", senators from the right-wing and center majority propose to enshrine in the Constitution the principle of differentiation to "respond to the desire of certain communities to adapt their policy to the specificities of their territories".

They propose to enshrine the principle of subsidiarity, which consists of managing as closely as possible what can be managed, to encourage the right to experimentation, to grant regulatory power to local authorities for the exercise of their powers and to strengthen the role of the prefect of the department who would become the single interlocutor of local elected officials.

On the financial front, the senators propose to enshrine in the Constitution the principle of "whoever decides pays" and to guarantee "a minimum level of taxation for departments and regions".

They also suggest studying the principle of a new local tax, called "local residential contribution", and this with "constant tax pressure" in order to "restore the fiscal autonomy of local authorities and to re-establish the link between service provided and citizen contribution".

The senators also consider it necessary to reform the overall operating grant and to review every five years the financial resources allocated by the State to local authorities, all of which are demands of local elected officials.

Regarding responsibilities, they propose to clarify the responsibilities between the State and each level of local government, rather than between local authorities themselves.

They suggest simplifying the "vocational training" competence of the regions, strengthening that of "guidance" and transferring the general secretaries of colleges and high schools to the departments and regions.

The departments would also see their role strengthened in terms of access to care as well as the management of old age and early childhood.

On housing, the senators agreed to the mayors' demand for more power, particularly for the allocation of social housing and the regulation of platforms like Airbnb.

Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu reaffirmed on Monday his desire to "move quickly" on a bill on decentralization which could come in the spring.