CoE warns of recentralization in Montenegro

The report by the CoE Congress of Local and Regional Authorities also expressed concerns over the reduction of the share of tax revenue allocated to municipalities under the 2021 Law on Personal Income Tax, also known as the Europe Now program.

The report also noted overregulation of competencies which means that municipalities have to get authorization from the government for some municipal functions and have little room to adapt local responsibilities to local needs.

The report acknowledges the establishment of strategic initiatives aimed at reforming the public administration, with a declared focus on decentralization and digitalization, exemplified by initiatives like the Public Administration Reform Strategy 2022-2026. It also welcomes the positive practice of minority language use in the execution of local public functions in municipalities where the majority of the population belongs to ethnic minorities, and the Union of Municipalities of Montenegro's right to apply directly to the Constitutional Court.

The Congress report called national authorities to resume earlier decentralization efforts and implement the declared local self-government reform in consultation with municipalities and the Union of Municipalities of Montenegro accompanied by stronger local fiscal autonomy to allow local authorities to exercise their competencies without having to ask for government approval.