Romania is considering reducing the number of counties from 42 to 15, the proposal coming from the business and academic environment, which asked the authorities for the administrative-territorial reorganization of the country, informs stirileprotv.ro.
The municipalities and cities will be organized and redefined according to the number of inhabitants with the aim of reducing the number of institutions and employees in the administration, and budget expenditures would be lower, the proposal states.
Romania has 103 municipalities, 216 cities, more than 2,800 communes and 12,900 villages. We have communes with around 80 inhabitants and cities with just over a thousand. This explains the poverty and lack of investment in many areas of the country. Last year, out of the 3,200 town halls, only 47 managed to cover their expenses from local taxes and fees.
The Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Romania requested the reorganization as early as April
“CCIR reiterates the urgent need for administrative reorganization of Romania, by reducing the number of counties from 42 to 15, redefining the notion of a commune as a locality with at least 5,000 inhabitants, as well as redefining the notion of a city as a locality with at least 10,000 inhabitants. At the same time, all devolved public institutions must be regrouped under this new administrative form”, it was stated in the press release by CCIR representatives. “Thus, Romania could find itself unable to provide land for the opening of production lines, especially in the context in which many businesses have started their relocation from Asia. Romania’s only medium and long-term attractiveness may remain low taxation supported by predictability”, it is also shown in the communiqué.
At the time, several employers’ organizations and associations joined the CCIR approach. Among them: the Romanian Employers’ Association of the Milling, Bakery and Flour Products Industry (ROMPAN), the Employers’ Federation of the Construction Materials Industry in Romania (PATROMAT), the League of Associations of Agricultural Producers in Romania (LAPAR), the National Association of Travel Agencies in Romania ( ANAT), the Federation of Romanian Transport Operators (FORT), the National Interprofessional Viticulture Organization (ONIV) and the Association of Romanian Brokers.