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Municipalities
The municipalities are governed by town councils
(ajuntaments), defined as entities which “objectively
serve the public interests entrusted to them, acting in accordance
with the principles of efficacy, decentralisation, deconcentration,
coordination and participation, and being fully subject to law”.
Government corresponds to the town council, comprising the mayor
and the councillors.
The jurisdiction of local government entities is only valid within their respective territories. The territory of the municipality is that contained within its municipal boundaries, the area within which the “town council exercises its jurisdiction” Each municipality has its own name and its own capital. The capital of the municipality is the town or village where the town hall is located. The municipality is called a town if it has more than five thousand inhabitants and a city if the population exceeds twenty thousand. The local institutions may also have “a coat of arms or distinctive emblem” as well as a municipal flag.
The population of a municipality is composed of its residents, and residency is acquired at the moment of inscription in the municipal register. This register, which is a public record valid for all administrative purposes, constitutes the list of the people permanently and temporarily resident within the municipal area.
At the present time there are 946 municipalities in Catalonia. 28 of these have no more than 100 inhabitants; 492 have between 100 and 1,000 inhabitants, 254 between 1,001 and 5,000, 120 between 5,001 and 20,000, 31 between 20,0001 and 50,000, and 21 with over 50,000 inhabitants: in fact, 70% of Catalans live in those municipalities with over 20,000 inhabitants.
The municipalities, by exercising their right to form associations, may do so with other municipalities, to create communities of municipalities – of which there are currently 63 in Catalonia, or with other public administrations or private non-profit making entities, giving rise to consortia – of which there are currently 199; In both cases, the aim is always a determined one, that of jointly carrying out a particular piece of work or works, or for administering services for which they are responsible.
To administer their services, local authorities can set up administrative bodies, autonomous organisms of a public legal nature, of an administrative, industrial, commercial, financial or analogous kind. In the case of services that are of an economic kind, the local body can administer them directly by forming what is in legal terms a commercial company, whose capital has to be owned entirely by the aforementioned body, or indirectly, by setting up mixed economy commercial companies or cooperatives, or participation in other ones that already exist.
The jurisdiction of local government entities is only valid within their respective territories. The territory of the municipality is that contained within its municipal boundaries, the area within which the “town council exercises its jurisdiction” Each municipality has its own name and its own capital. The capital of the municipality is the town or village where the town hall is located. The municipality is called a town if it has more than five thousand inhabitants and a city if the population exceeds twenty thousand. The local institutions may also have “a coat of arms or distinctive emblem” as well as a municipal flag.
The population of a municipality is composed of its residents, and residency is acquired at the moment of inscription in the municipal register. This register, which is a public record valid for all administrative purposes, constitutes the list of the people permanently and temporarily resident within the municipal area.
At the present time there are 946 municipalities in Catalonia. 28 of these have no more than 100 inhabitants; 492 have between 100 and 1,000 inhabitants, 254 between 1,001 and 5,000, 120 between 5,001 and 20,000, 31 between 20,0001 and 50,000, and 21 with over 50,000 inhabitants: in fact, 70% of Catalans live in those municipalities with over 20,000 inhabitants.
The municipalities, by exercising their right to form associations, may do so with other municipalities, to create communities of municipalities – of which there are currently 63 in Catalonia, or with other public administrations or private non-profit making entities, giving rise to consortia – of which there are currently 199; In both cases, the aim is always a determined one, that of jointly carrying out a particular piece of work or works, or for administering services for which they are responsible.
To administer their services, local authorities can set up administrative bodies, autonomous organisms of a public legal nature, of an administrative, industrial, commercial, financial or analogous kind. In the case of services that are of an economic kind, the local body can administer them directly by forming what is in legal terms a commercial company, whose capital has to be owned entirely by the aforementioned body, or indirectly, by setting up mixed economy commercial companies or cooperatives, or participation in other ones that already exist.