Xavier Bertrand: "Respecting territories means preserving their financial autonomy"

The State decides, the communities pay: this method is no longer acceptable today!

Increased spending, reforms imposed from above

In recent weeks, the government has unilaterally decided to raise the index point for the civil service, i.e. an annual expenditure of 2.3 billion euros for local budgets, as well as the RSA.

If we approve of the need to support the purchasing power of our fellow citizens, we contest the method.

These decisions weigh heavily on the operating expenses of communities and therefore hinder their investment capacity.

It is a form of financial supervision imposed on communities, without them having a say.

Our territories have been confronted for too many years with uniform reforms imposed from above, with an increasing corseting of competences and resources.

The Cahors contracts, an invention of Macron's first five-year term that was happily abandoned, are the archetype of this creeping recentralisation, based on control devices and false contracts: it must stop.

Recipes weakened over time

The successive reforms of local taxation, whatever their motivations, increasingly stifle the fiscal autonomy of communities and hamper the ability of elected officials to develop their territories.

For municipalities and intermunicipalities, the abolition of housing tax will be followed tomorrow by the abolition of the contribution on the added value of companies.

The departments and regions no longer have their own tax system.

The tax collected by the local authorities is now disconnected from the action they carry out and the link between the taxpayer citizen and the financing of the local public services from which he benefits is broken, which has serious consequences for our social and territorial cohesion. .

The overhaul of taxation and local finances is a debate that we have been waiting for for a long time, even though the financial equalization between communities is not fair and efficient enough and that many peripheral territories need the support of the nation.

Cutting back on the fiscal and financial autonomy of communities means weakening the services that our fellow citizens need, it is accentuating the feeling of relegation perceived by a growing proportion of French people.

Cutting back on the fiscal and financial autonomy of communities means weakening the services that our fellow citizens need, it is accentuating the feeling of relegation perceived by a growing proportion of French people, fueling the deep democratic crisis that is affecting our country.

Uncertain financial outlook

During the presidential campaign, the candidate Macron had put forward the idea of ​​draining 10 billion euros from local budgets, which was also fortunately abandoned.

However, in a few days, what hesitations in terms of local finances!

The Prime Minister calls for permanent dialogue between the State and the communities, then the next day the Minister of the Economy and Finance mentions a drop of 0.5% per year in their operating expenses, himself denied two days later by the Minister for Territorial Cohesion, in the face of the concerns expressed by the associations of elected representatives, specifying however that an increase in operating expenditure is expected to be 0.5% less than their natural trend.

This same minister announced a few weeks ago that

Since then, the National Assembly has voted compensation to the departments for the increase in the RSA and a compromise has been found to create a support allocation for the municipalities most affected by the increase in the value of the index point and the price of the energy, an endowment whose scope has been widened and efficiency improved by the Senate.

What a cacophony!

Without clear and stable financial prospects for communities, there can be no trust and loyal and sincere cooperation.

The urgency of a new method, based on the Republic of territories

National decisions having an impact on local finances must be discussed upstream, as well as the terms of their compensation.

Thus, no revaluation of the point without prior negotiation with the representatives of the communities.

Rather than a simple informal consultation, an institutional dialogue must be organised, with sufficient time, in connection with a national council for the evaluation of standards and a renovated local finance committee, before any government initiative, as is already the case with the social partners, on the model of article L. 1 of the labor code.

The State cannot decide alone, it must play the game of the Republic of the territories.

Elected officials are aware of the situation of our public finances, after two years of "whatever the cost", but the communities, which represent less than a fifth of public expenditure and provide nearly three quarters of the investment civilian public, cannot be the state budget adjustment variable.

We are also awaiting the new impetus for decentralization that France needs to invest in proximity and meet the major challenges of economic development, solidarity, infrastructure and even ecological transition.

Today, it is high time to restore, in practice, the principle of free administration of communities.

The State must regain the confidence of elected officials and restore their capacity to act in the service of our fellow citizens.

The French have great need of it, because their daily life depends on it!

Other signatories:

Gérald Avakian, Deputy Mayor of the 6th arrondissement of Lyon

· Antoine Badidi, Mayor of Avesnelles

· Vincent Baladi, Councilor of Paris

Jérôme Bascher, Senator of Oise

· Florence Bariseau, Vice-President of the Hauts-de-France Region, Municipal Councilor of Villeneuve d'Ascq

Jean-Pierre Bataille, Regional Councilor for Hauts-de-France, Mayor of Steenvoorde

Marie Bernard, Mayor of La Cauchie

Jean-Didier Berthault, Councilor of Paris

· David Bobin, Mayor of Vauxbuin, Departmental Councilor of Aisne

Anne-Sophie Boisseaux, Regional Councilor for Hauts-de-France, Departmental Councilor for the North

Adel Boukhalfa, Municipal Councilor of Soissons

· Laurent Burgoa, Senator of the Gard

· Alain Cadec, Senator of Côtes-d'Armor

François Calvet, Senator of the Pyrénées-Orientales

· Loïc Cathelain, Vice-President of the Nord Departmental Council, Deputy Mayor of Marcq-en-Baroeul

Nicolas Capron, Mayor of Habarcq

Régis Cauche, Mayor of Croix

Vincent Chriqui, Mayor of Bourgoin-Jallieu

Gérard Cherpion, Former Deputy of the Vosges

Marta de Cidrac, Senator of Yvelines

Aurore Colson, Regional Councilor for Hauts-de-France, Deputy Mayor of Valenciennes

· Pascal Coste, President of the Departmental Council of Corrèze

· Christophe Coulon, Vice-President of the Hauts-de-France Region, Deputy Mayor of Aulnois-sous-Laon

· Laure Darcos, Senator of Essonne

· Sophie-Charlotte Debadier, Deputy Mayor of the 8th arrondissement of Paris

· Valérie Debord, Vice-President of the Grand-Est region

Bernard Deflesselles, former Deputy of Bouches-du-Rhône, Municipal Councilor of La Ciotat, Metropolitan Councilor

· Margaux Deletré, Vice-President of the Somme departmental council, Vice-President of Amiens Métropole

· Franck Dhersin, Vice-President of the Hauts-de-France Region, Mayor of Téteghem

Mabrouka Dhifallah, Regional Councilor for Hauts-de-France

Julien Dive, MP for Aisne

Eric Dietsch, Deputy Mayor of Croix

Jean-Pierre Door, former MP for Loiret

Mady Dorchies, Regional Councilor of Hauts-de-France, Municipal Councilor of Allennes-les-Marais

· Thomas Dovichi, Municipal Councilor of Mérignac

· Nathalie Drobinoha, Regional Councilor for Hauts-de-France, Deputy Mayor of Cambrai

· Catherine Dumas, Senator of Paris, Councilor of Paris

Pierre-Henri Dumont, MP for Pas-de-Calais

· François Durovray, President of the Essonne Departmental Council

Olivier Engrand, Regional Councilor for Hauts-de-France, Deputy Mayor of Soissons

Dominique Estrosi-Sassone, Senator of the Alpes-Maritimes

· Sabine Finez, Regional Councilor for Hauts-de-France, Deputy Mayor of Noyelles-sous-Lens

Anne-Sophie Fontaine, Regional Councilor for Hauts-de-France, Deputy Mayor of Lacroix-St-Ouen

· Luc Foutry, Regional Councilor of Hauts-de-France, Mayor of Attiches

· Sophie Gaugain, Vice-President of the Normandy region

André Genelle, Hauts-de-France Regional Councillor, Mayor of Siracourt

Frédérique Gerbaud, Senator of Indre

Bernard Gérard, Mayor of Marcq-En-Barœul, Regional Councilor of Hauts-de-France

· Valérie Giovannucci, Deputy Mayor of the 15th arrondissement of Paris

· Sidonie Grand, Municipal Councilor of Compiègne

Vincent Gruau, Mayor of Jupilles

Sébastien Henquenet, Mayor of Famechon

Yves Hemedinger, Former Deputy of Haut-Rhin, Councilor of Alsace

Olivier Henno, Senator for the North

Sébastien Huyghe, Regional Councilor for Hauts-de-France, former Member of Parliament for the North

· Corinne Imbert, Senator of Charente-Maritime

Yves Jézéquel, Municipal Councilor of Lézardrieux

· Simon Jombart, Regional Councilor of Hauts-de-France, Deputy Mayor of Hinges

Anessa Lahouassa, Councilor of Paris

· Antoine Lefèvre, Senator of Aisne

Mayor Lermytte, Regional Councilor for Hauts-de-France, Mayor of Brouckerque

Marie-Sophie Lesne, Regional Councilor for Hauts-de-France, Mayor of Le Quesnoy

· Alexandre Lessart, Deputy Mayor of Wavrin

Valérie Letard, Senator for the North

Caroline Lubrez, Regional Councilor for Hauts-de-France

Faustine Maliar, Regional Councilor for Hauts-de-France

Emmanuel Maquet, Deputy of the Somme

· Manoëlle Martin, Vice-President of the Hauts-de-France Region, Municipal Councilor of Gouvieux

· Cassandre Meunier, Deputy Mayor of Beaugency

· Angélique Michel, Municipal Councilor of the 18th arrondissement of Paris

· Martine Miquel, Regional Councilor for Hauts-de-France, Deputy Mayor of Compiègne

· Frédéric Motte, Regional Councilor for Hauts-de-France

· Othman Nasrou, Vice-President of the Ile-de-France Region, Municipal Councilor of Trappes

· Olivier Paccaud, Senator of Oise

· Nicolas Papiachvili, Deputy Mayor of Marcq-en-Baroeul

· Cyril Pellevat, Senator of Haute-Savoie

· Cédric Perrin, Senator of the Territory of Belfort

Anne Pinon, Vice-President of the Hauts-de-France Region, Mayor of Dury

· Catherine Pila, Municipal Councilor of Marseille, Metropolitan Councilor

· Patricia Poupart, Regional Councilor for Hauts-de-France, Mayor of Vironchaux

Andréa Porcher, Regional Councilor of Pays-de-la-Loire

Nathalie Porte, former Member of Parliament for Calvados, Regional Councilor for Normandy

· Isabelle Raimond-Pavéro, Senator of Indre-et-Loire

Jean-François Rapin, Senator of Pas-de-Calais

Olivier Rietmann, Senator of Haute-Saône

· Sophie Rigault, Vice-President of the Essonne departmental council, Mayor of Saint-Michel-sur-Orge

Christophe Rivenq, Regional Councilor of Occitanie, President of Alès Agglomeration

· Stéphan Rossignol, Regional Councilor of Occitanie, Mayor of La Grande Motte

Julien Rouet, District Councilor of Paris Center

Laurent Somon, Senator of the Somme

Stéphane Sautarel, Senator of Cantal

Antoine Sillani, Regional Councilor of Hauts-de-France, Deputy Mayor of Croix

· Samuel Soulier, Deputy Mayor of the 6th arrondissement of Lyon

Etienne Suzzoni, Mayor of Lumio

· Yvonne Tassou, Deputy Mayor of Croix

Anne-Sophie Taszarek, Regional Councilor for Hauts-de-France

· Pascal Tébibel, Vice-President of Orléans Métropole

Grégory Tempremant, Regional Councilor of Hauts-de-France, Municipal Councilor of Comines

· Edouard Varin, Municipal Councilor of Gaillon

Ladislas Vergne, Deputy Mayor of Chartres

Jean-Louis Vincent, Municipal Councilor of Portel

· Stéphane Viry, Deputy of the Vosges

Benoit Wascat, Deputy Mayor of Fourmies

Alain Yux, Deputy Mayor of Ecourt-Saint-Quentin