General overview:

Members of the municipal assembly determine general policies of the municipality, while the administration should have a clear understanding of its role and the fact that it operates within a hierarchy.

The administration reports to the mayor, who, on the other hand, reports to the municipal assembly.

A good understanding of different roles in local government will contribute to good governance. First, the role of assembly is to create a vision and then to come up with strategies and policies to achieve it. The role of administration is to advise the mayor, to implement mayor's decisions, and consequently assembly’s decisions and to provide the services.

Although the municipal assembly and the administration have different roles, this does not mean that they have no legitimate interest in each other's role. The assembly will be interested in the organizational structure of the administration and how effectively will the administration implement the assembly’s policies. Similarly, if the administration is not properly involved in policy or strategy development (for example, if proposed new policies are submitted at assembly meetings without notice from the assembly), the administration will seek ways to make an impact. Except that these new policies may not be benefitial according to professional inpust from the administration, there may be confusion and delays in terms of policy implementation.

Good governance in these relations is required because:

It is a natural inclination for assembly and administration to fill the voids of the other side in the performance of its functions. This can lead to confusion. For example, if assembly members do not believe that the municipal administration has a good system for registering and addressing residents' complaints, they will raise complaints from residents at assembly meetings rather than focus on more strategic issues. If the administration believes there is an inadequate policy framework to address an issue, it will try to create it by providing services and addressing issues in a way other than what the assembly has foreseen. None of the approaches is good. It is therefore highly desirable for each party to exercise their functions first.

While the assembly and the administration have different roles, this does not mean that they have no legitimate interest in each other's role. The assembly will be interested in the organizational structure of the administration and how effectively will administration implement the assembly policies. While in the LLSG it is clearly stated that the organizational structure is the responsibility of the mayor, if the mayor does not properly consult with the assembly before implementing or changing a structure, the assembly is likely to find a way to express its opinions. And this procedure would not be good for functioning of good governance.

Similarly, if the administration is not properly involved in policy or strategy development (for example, if new proposed policies are submitted at assembly meetings without notice from the assembly), the administration will seek ways to make an impact. In addition to new policies that are not benefitial according to professional inputs of the administration, there might be confusion and delays in terms of policy implementation.

For a sound relation there should be some prerequisites in place:

• There should be an open communication between the municipal assembly and the administration (Finding ways to ensure that the administration and the municipal assembly are able to discuss and seek information from each other, is important for good governance).
• Being clear about the roles of each member of the assembly (Some members of the assembly may be members of assembly committees, and therefore are specifically engaged in monitoring certain works, however this does not mean that the administration does not respond to other members of the assembly who show interest on any matters)
• Communication should go through organizational process that usually involves the approval by an administration director. Speaking directly to civil service staff may result in that members of the assembly are not fully informed or to receive advice that has not been officially approved by the administration.