CHAPTER I: Powers of the Territorial Council

The Territorial Council settles the affairs of the collectivity by its deliberations. It rules on all matters on which it is called upon to deliberate by laws and regulations and, generally, on all matters of interest to the collectivity that are referred to it. It gives its opinion on all matters on which it is consulted by virtue of laws and regulations or of which it is referred to by…

The Territorial Council shall lay down the rules applicable to Saint-Martin in the matters listed in Article LO 6314-3. The deliberations by which the Territorial Council adopts the rules mentioned in the first paragraph are adopted by public ballot by an absolute majority of the members of the Territorial Council.

I. – The Territorial Council is empowered, in compliance with the guarantees granted throughout the national territory for the exercise of public freedoms, to adopt acts in the field of criminal law for the sole purposes mentioned in Article LO 6314-5. These acts must respect the classification of contraventions and délits. The penalties they establish may not exceed the maximum provided for offences of the same nature by the laws…

Without prejudice to the criminal penalties provided for in article LO 6351-3, infringements of the rules governing the assessment and collection of taxes, duties, fees and charges instituted by the territorial council may be subject by the territorial council to fines, surcharges, interest or compensation for late payment applied by the administration. The proceeds of the fines, increases, interest or compensation for late payment mentioned in this article are paid…

I. – The Territorial Council may, where it has been empowered to do so at its request by law or by decree, as the case may be, adapt the legislative or regulatory provisions in force to the particular characteristics and constraints of the collectivity. The request for empowerment to adapt a legislative or regulatory provision shall be adopted by reasoned deliberation of the Territorial Council. This deliberation shall mention the…

The deliberation provided for in I of article LO 6351-5 is published in the Journal officiel de la République française (Official Journal of the French Republic), after being sent to the Prime Minister and the State representative. It comes into force on the day following this publication.

Appeals against this deliberation are referred to the Conseil d’Etat. The State representative may, within one month of the transmission provided for in article LO 6351-6, refer the decision to the Conseil d’Etat. This appeal suspends implementation until the Conseil d’Etat has given its decision. If the Conseil d’Etat has not given its ruling within three months of the matter being referred to it, the decision becomes enforceable once again.

The empowerment granted by the law or by the decree to the territorial council expires at the end of a period of two years from its publication.

The deliberations taken in application of the empowerment are adopted by an absolute majority of the members of the territorial council. They may not be submitted to a local referendum. These deliberations specify the legislative or regulatory provisions from which they derogate. Appeals against these deliberations are brought before the Conseil d’Etat. The State representative may refer them to the Conseil d’Etat under the conditions and with the effects provided…

The legislative or regulatory provisions of a deliberation taken on the basis of the empowerment provided for in Article LO 6351-8 may not be amended, as the case may be, by law or by regulation unless expressly stated.