Concerning the land

CHAPTER IX

Composition of the regional council

1. Regional council is composed of representatives of communes and municipalities that are part of the region.

2. Mayors of communes and municipalities from the constituent members of the region shall be at any time members of the regional council.

3. Number of members of regional council shall be determined according to Article 50 of this law.

4. The function of member of Regional Council is incompatible with the any other function of the respective regional administration.
Article 50

Determination of number of regional council members

1. Number of representatives of communal and municipal council in Regional Council shall be determined in proportion to population as follows:

“ “ 5 001-10 000 inhabitants 2 representatives

“ “ 10 001-30 000 inhabitants 3 representatives

“ “ 30 001-50 000 inhabitants 4 representatives

“ “ 50 001-100 000 inhabitants 5 representatives

over 100 000 inhabitants 5 + 1 representative for each 1-50 000 inhabitants above 100,000.

2. In cases when commune or municipality shall have only one representative, this function is executed directly by the Mayor of commune or municipality. In cases when commune or municipality shall have more than one representative, additional representatives are elected by the respective council.

3. The Prefect defines the number of representatives for each commune and municipality within the region territory, based on the number of inhabitants according to the official statistics of the census office as of January 1 of the year the [local] elections takes place.

4. Decisions of communal and municipal councils nominating their respective representatives in the regional council shall be forwarded to the Prefect within ten (10) days after they are taken.
Article 51

First meeting of the regional council

1. The Regional Council shall hold its first meeting not later than fifty (50) days after the Central Election Commission has officially declared the final election results.

2. The Mayor of the municipality-seat of region or one-third (1/3) of the Region Council members call the first meeting of Regional Council. A written notification about the Regional Council meeting shall be sent to all the regional council members at least ten (10) days before the date of the meeting.

3. The Council shall hold its first meeting only when more than one-half (1/2) of Regional Councilors shall be present.

4. The Mayor of center [capital] of the region shall preside in the first meeting of the Council until the chair of Council shall be elected.

5. In the first meeting the Regional Council shall:

a) Elects the mandate commission, which verifies the mandates of Regional Councilors;

b) Certifies the mandates of the Regional Council members;

c. Election of the chair, deputy chair and board of Regional Council.

6. The Regional Council shall be constituted after not less than one-half (1/2) of all Councilors have had their mandates verified.

7. Where one-half (1/2) of all the Councilors are not in attendance, the meeting shall be canceled and another meeting shall be called ten (10) days later, for as many consecutive times as necessary to obtain the presence of requested Councilors.

8. If the Regional Council shall not be constituted until ninety (90) days after the local election results have been officially declared by the Central Election Commission, the Prefect shall execute all the functions and competencies of the Regional Council.

Regional Councilor mandate

1. The mandate of the regional councilor shall be acquired by all the Mayors of commune and municipality when they have obtained their own respective mandate as Mayors.

2. Election of Councilors among councilors of communal and municipal Councils, in accordance with Article 26 of this Law is by vote of a list of multiple candidates and the notified winners are the candidate or candidates that have received the largest of number of votes.

3. The councilor mandate shall expire when:

a. Mayors of commune and municipality lose their mandate;

b. The mandate is revoked by respective Council;

c. The mandate is canceled by Regional Council upon verification that is acquired in an irregular manner.

4. In case a seat made vacant due to the loss of a mandate of a member of the Regional Council by a member of a commune or municipally Council, it shall be replaced by the respective commune or municipality Council.

5. In case a seat made vacant due to the loss of a mandate of a member of the Regional Council by a commune or municipality Mayor in the last six (6) months of the term of his mandate, it shall be replaced by the Chair elected by the respective communal or municipality Council.
Article 53

Functioning of the regional council

1. The Regional Council shall exercise its function upon being constituted until the new successor council shall be constituted.

2. Each Regional Council shall hold regular meetings not less than once every three (3) months.

3. The ordinary meetings of the Regional Council shall be based on the agenda approved by the Council.

4. The Regional Council meets in extraordinary meetings with the request of:

a) The chair;

b) The Board;

c) One-third (1/3) of its regional councilors;

ç) Tthe motivated request of the Prefect, for issues related to the functions of the Prefect.

5. The meeting is called by the Chairman of the Council.

6. The notice of the meeting shall be posted at least ten (10) days before the meeting. The notice shall contain the date, time, place and agenda of meeting.

7. The meeting of the Regional Council is official when the majority of all the Council members are in attendance.

Duties and competencies of the regional council

The Regional Council exercises the following competencies and duties:

a) Approves the statute and internal regulations of functioning of the Council;

b) Decides on the level of obligatory dues for each constituent commune and municipality, to be transferred to the regional budget;

c) Elects and dismisses the Chairman, Deputy Chairman and Board members;

ç) Appoints and dismisses the Secretary of the Regional Council;

d) Approves the organizational and administration structure and main regulations of the regional administration, of subordinate budgetary units and institutions , as well as the number of administrative staff, their qualifications, salaries and manners for compensation of the personnel or of other elected or appointed persons, in compliance with the legislation in force;

dh) Approves the acts of incorporation of the enterprises, as well as of those of other juridical persons, established by the Regional Council or in which it is a co-founder;

e) Approves its budget and amendments to it;

ë) Approves transfer of ownership [sale, purchase, and disposition] or giving in use [usufruct] of its immovable property to third parties;

f) Implements and supervises the internal control of the region;

g) Decides rates of all taxes and tariffs [fees] under the competence of the region;

gj) Decides to get loans and liquidate obligations to third parties;

h) Approves the establishment of joint institutions with other local governments units including the subject of joint competencies or with third parties;

i) Appoints and dismisses the heads of the subordinate enterprises and other institutions;

j) Approves the commencement of any legal proceedings on matters under its own competence.

k) Determines the incompatibility of a councilor;

l) Determines norms, standards and criteria for the regulation and enforcement of functions granted to the Regional Council by law, as well as protects and guarantees the public interest on a regional level;

ll) Decides on the Region’s symbols;

m) Grants honorary titles and bonuses;

n) Approves regulations, procedures and manners of execution of delegated functions, based and in application of the law by which this delegation is made to the region;

nj) Approves and repeals the decisions of the regional board.

Voting

1. The adoption of a decision of the Regional Council shall require the vote of a majority of all Council members in attendance, with the exception of cases defined in Article 54, Sections “b”, “e”, ”ë”, “g”, ”gj”, ”ll”, of this Law, which requires a majority vote of all members of the Regional Council.

2. In cases of voting for chair, deputy chair and secretary of the Council the requested majority has been not achieved, the vote shall be taken again between two candidates that in the first round received the most votes.

3. The decisions of the Council shall be announced within ten (10) days from the date of their approval and shall be effective ten (10) days from the date of their announcement. Acts pertaining to an individual shall be effective from the date the person involved is notified.

Open meetings, public hearings and the Right of the public to be informed

Meetings of the Council shall be open to the public. The Regional Council shall hold public hearings with representative and executive organs of communes and municipalities as well as follow the right of the public to be informed as stipulated in Articles 34 and 35 of this Law. The date, time, place and agenda of the Council meeting shall be public in compliance with Articles 34 and 35 of this Law.

Conflict of Interest

1. The Councilor does not take part and vote in any meeting where the case being considered is of financial or any other interest to him, his spouse, parents, children, brothers, sisters, in-laws.

2. In any case of conflict of interests, the disqualifying provisions set forth in the Code of Administrative Procedures of the Republic of Albania are applied.
Article 58

Board of the Regional Council

1. The Board of the Regional Council is composed of the Chair, Deputy Chair and of 5 to 9 members.

2. The Council shall elect or dismiss the Chair and its deputy Chair with a majority vote of the councilors in attendance. Where voting for Chair and Deputy Chair has not resulted in the required majority, the vote shall be taken again for the two candidates who received the most votes in the first round.

3. The other members of the Regional Board are elected and dismissed by vote from a multiple candidates list and winners are the candidates who have gained the largest number of votes.

4. The Board of the Regional Council shall be called into meetings by the Chair, at least once a month.

5. A Board meeting is valid when more than one-half of the members of the Board are in attendance.

6. Functions of Chair and Deputy Chair and Secretary of the Regional Council are incompatible with the function of Mayors of commune and municipality.
Article 59

Competencies of the Board of the Regional Council

1. The Board of the Regional Council for realization of the region functions and in execution of the decisions or the Regional Council shall:

a) Exercise all the competencies, with the exception of those which have been explicitly granted to the Regional Council;

b) Approves the draft acts and other materials for the meeting of the Regional Council, in compliance with the agenda defined by the Council, as well as for other problems requested by it;

c) Reports to the Council on the economic-financial situation at least once in every six (6) months or even more frequently, as many times as requested by the Council;

ç) Reports to the Council as many times as requested by the Council, on other issues related to the regional functions;

d) Exercises the rights and ensures the fulfillment of all the obligations of the region as a juridical person;

2. In the exercise of its competencies, the Board of the Regional Council shall issue decisions which shall be approved by the majority of the members attending. Decisions shall be compulsory to be executed by all organs and persons in charge after being published or being notified to the interested subjects.

3. The decisions of the Board shall be approved in the very following meeting of the Regional Council and in case they are not adopted, they lose their effectiveness from the beginning.
Article 60

Chairman of the Regional Council

1. The Chair represents the Regional Council in relations with state organs, with local government units, with Albanian or foreign physical and juridical persons and exercises the following competencies:

a) Presides the Regional Council meetings and its Board;

b) Signs all acts of council and it’s Board and as well as minutes of the Council meeting and it’s Board;

c) Ensures the enforcement of decisions of Regional Council and its Board;

ç) In compliance with the agenda of Regional Council meeting and its Board, shall prepare reports, draft-decisions and other necessary materials;

d) Manages the administration of the region and is accountable to the Regional Council for its functioning;

dh) Hires and dismisses the administrative staff of Regional Council, with the exception of the cases otherwise described in the law no. 8549, dated 11.11.1999 on “The Civil Servant Status”;

e) Guarantees the execution of functions of Regional Council given by law;

ë) Takes measures for the provision of functioning of all structures of council, meetings of the Regional Council and its Board;

f) Exercises other competencies given to him by law, by the Regional Council or by the Board.

2. The chair of the Regional Council issues orders during exercising the competencies with individual character.

3. In the absence of the Chair, functions are performed by Deputy Chair.
Article 61

Secretary of the Regional Council

The Secretary of the Regional Council exercises his duties similarly with those of the Secretary of Municipal or Communal Council, defined in Article 37 of this Law.

Limitations of Regional Authority

1. The decisions of the organs of the Region may not violate the autonomy of its constituent communes and municipalities.

2. The decisions of the organs of the Region shall aim towards the equitable distribution of resources and benefits in favor of its constituent communes and municipalities.

CHAPTER X