The Federation has ensured that local councils with fewer than 50.000 inhabitants are not required to have an environmental body, and that other municipalities with a larger population may carry out actions in this area, provided that this does not affect their budgetary stability.
After weeks of staunch defense of municipal interests by the Federation of Municipalities in the Region of Murcia, the Ministry of Agriculture has adapted the final text of Law 4/2009 of May 14 on Integrated Environmental Protection of the Region of Murcia.
The Executive Committee of the Federation of Municipalities of the Region of Murcia, made up of mayors from different political parties, unanimously approved at said meeting the opening of negotiations with the regional government to ensure that the articles of Law 4/2009 of May 14 on Integrated Environmental Protection of the Region of Murcia, as amended by Decree Law 5/2020, comply with the requirements and limits established in the Local Government Foundation Law. This means that, in said amendment, the CARM granted mandatory environmental powers to municipalities that, under the aforementioned Foundation Law, lack this obligation. Therefore, a supreme law governing city councils throughout the country is being violated.
The FMRM then began negotiations to amend the aforementioned decree during its parliamentary process. Following these negotiations, which involved legal and political representatives from both entities, the amendment was agreed to introduce voluntary participation in municipalities with fewer than 50.000 inhabitants under this jurisdiction. This will depend on the political decision of the mayor of each municipality, as well as the technical and financial capacity of the local entity.
María Dolores Muñoz stated that, "After several roundtable discussions, we have reached what should have been the starting point, taking into account our main objective as a foundation, which is none other than, through consensus and institutional collaboration, achieving the benefit of citizens, without harming the management of the existing administration closest to them, namely the City Councils."
The FMRM president thanked the councilor for his dedication to resolving this situation.
