1) In the 1990s, Poland reformed its local government system, establishing around 375 districts and 16 provinces to decentralize power. 2) Reforms were led by government plenipotentiaries with expertise, not politicians, and carefully divided competences between levels of government. 3) The reforms established local governments like communes and villages with own finances, property, and legal status to empower local communities.

1. Marcin Święcicki,
Polish Program of Support for Local Government
Reform in Ukraine
Chernihiv, 20 April 2015

2. 1990
•2500 communes
(gmina)
1998-1999
•375 districts (powiat)
•16 provinces (voivodeships)
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3. We already have central power, now we have
to give people local power at grassroots level,
so that they become responsible for
themselves, we have to remove the old elites
(1989 – Mazowiecki)
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Local government elections in May of 1990
and in 1998 must be carried out to reformed
units, otherwise we will just fuel people’s
frustration

4. • Government plenipotentiaries for reforms, Jerzy
Regulski (1990) and Michał Kulesza (1998), were
outstanding experts, not politicians
• deputy ministers in Prime Minister’s Chancellery with a
small team of co-workers
• The plenipotentiaries ultimately prepared the reforms
and presented their proposals directly to the
Government, they enjoyed Prime Ministers’ confidence
and countered the resistance of ministries
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5. • Strict division of competences: 94 professional acts were
reviewed, village councils were given all powers which they could
carry out themselves
• Own finances, own bank accounts, entitled to take credits
• All public property serves local needs, including public land
• Local government units obtained the legal entity status
• The field government apparatus radically limited, abolished
on the commune level, its employees were transfered to
local administration
• Control over communes only as far as legitimacy is
concerned, communes have the right to appeal in court
• Communes’ commercial activity limited to utility services
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6. • Real estate and spatial planning management
• Water management (water supplies, sewage system, water
treatment etc.) and environmental protection
• Health care (financing and control over public health care units)
• Education (financing and supervision of kindergartens, schools
and other educational institutions)
• Local transport
• Social security
• Culture and sports
• Public order and security (e.g. commune guard, fire and
flood protection)
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7. • auxiliary units of communes
• 40 500 village councils, all of them are villages
• no legal status
• Competences defined by the commune statute (!)
• The village general meeting elects the village head
and coucil, passes the budget and approves the
report
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8. • Maintain village fund,
• Receive other funding, e.g. to finance purchase of materials
if they conduct some works, such as pavement laying, road
repair, school renovation
• The village head represents the council in the village, is
entitled to collect taxes and may receive small remuneration
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9. • existed since Middle Ages - dissolved in 1975
• in 1999, the network of over 300 districts was
reinstated
• The network of districts prepared by experts
• Based on capability of future counties to assume
responsibilities
• In result of public consultations additional 40 units
were created
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10. • The new administrative division: 16 provinces (voivodeships)
that replaced the former 49 units
• The provinces were created with the perspective of joining
the EU where regions are partners of Brussels and must be
capable of independent development planning and
absorption of EU funds
• Experts recommended that 11-12 provinces should be
established, 16 were result of political compromise and
concessions to satisfy local ambitions
• The provinces’ population ranges from 1,0 do 5,3 mln
people, with an area of 9,4 to 35,6 thousand square km
• Cities that lost the province status retained some province
functions and offices
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11. • In 2002 - direct elections of village heads (rural communes),
mayors (towns) and presidents (cities), which increased public
control over local authorities. Presidents and mayors may be
recalled only in a referendum.
• There were fears concerning a situation in which a
president/mayor/village head represents a different political option
than the majority in the council, but conflicts are rare
• Most village heads and mayors represent local committees which
are completely independent or loosely connected with political
parties, even some presidents of major cities win as non-party
candidates (e.g. in Krakow, Wroclaw, Katowice, Poznan until 2014)
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