Section 1: General provisions and differentiated exercise of powers

The communes, départements and regions are freely administered by elected councils.

Locally elected representatives are members of councils elected by universal suffrage to freely administer local authorities under the conditions laid down by law. They exercise their mandate in compliance with the ethical principles enshrined in this charter for local elected representatives. Charter for local elected representatives 1. The local elected representative carries out his duties with impartiality, diligence, dignity, probity and integrity. 2. In the exercise of his mandate, the…

The communes, départements and regions regulate the affairs of their jurisdiction by their deliberations. Under the conditions laid down by law, they have regulatory powers for the exercise of their jurisdiction. They participate with the State in the administration and planning of the territory, economic, social, health, cultural and scientific development, the promotion of health, the fight against discrimination, the promotion of equality between women and men as well as…

The division of powers between communes, départements and regions may not authorise one of these authorities to establish or exercise tutelage, in any form whatsoever, over another of them.

With due regard for the principle of equality, the rules relating to the allocation and exercise of powers applicable to a category of territorial authorities may be differentiated to take account of objective differences in the situations in which territorial authorities falling within the same category find themselves, provided that the resulting difference in treatment is proportionate and in relation to the purpose of the law establishing it.

The distribution of competences between local authorities and the State is carried out, as far as possible, by distinguishing those which are the responsibility of the State and those which are devolved to the communes, departments or regions in such a way that each area of competence and the corresponding resources are allocated in their entirety to either the State, the communes, the departments or the regions. Jurisdiction over the…

Only the following may be imposed on communes, départements and regions: 1° Technical requirements and procedures provided for by a law or a decree adopted in application of a law and applicable to all natural persons as well as legal persons under private or public law; 2° Technical requirements and procedures provided for by a law or a decree adopted in application of a law and specifically applicable to communes,…

I.-The representatives of a territorial authority or a group of territorial authorities appointed to participate in the decision-making bodies of another legal entity governed by public law or a legal entity governed by private law in application of the law are not considered, solely by virtue of this appointment, to have an interest, within the meaning of Article L. 2131-11 of this Code, article 432-12 of the Penal Code or…

Local and regional authorities shall exercise their own powers in compliance with the constraints imposed by national defence. In this respect, the division of powers provided for by law shall not prevent the State authorities from taking, with regard to local and regional authorities, their public establishments and their groupings, the measures necessary for the exercise of their defence powers, as they result in particular from the Defence Code. In…