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The Local Councils (Amendment) Act, 2009 (Bill No. 27)

A BILL

entitled

AN ACT to amend the Local Councils Act, Cap. 363.

BE IT ENACTED by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the House of Representatives, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:-

1. (1) The short title of this Act is the Local Councils (Amendment) Act, 2009, and this Act shall be read and construed as one with the Local Councils Act, hereinafter referred to as "the principal Act".

(2) The provisions of this Act shall come into force on such a date as the Minister responsible for Local Councils may by notice in the Gazette establish, and different dates may be so established for different provisions or different purposes of this Act.

2. The Arrangement of Act shall be amended as follows:-

(a) for the words "EIGHTH SCHEDULE Approved non-governmental organisations" there shall be substituted the words "EIGHTH SCHEDULE Financial allocation to Councils";
(b) for the words "NINTH SCHEDULE Listed Hamlets in terms of article 47A and the plans delineating their boundaries and respective streets" there shall be substituted the words "NINTH SCHEDULE Communities"; and
(c) for the words "TENTH SCHEDULE Financial allocation to Councils" there shall be substituted the words "TENTH SCHEDULE Local Councils’ Elections Schedule".

3. Article 2 of the principal Act shall be amended as follows:

Short title and commencement.

Cap. 363.

Amendement of the

Arrangement of

Act.

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(a) immediately after the definition "Commissioner for
Justice" there shall be added the following new definition:
" "community" means any village as indicated in the Ninth Schedule;"; and
(b) for the definition "financial year" there shall be substituted the following new definition:
" "financial year" means a twelve month period starting from the 1st of January and ending on the last day of December;”.

4. Article 3 of the principal Act shall be amended as follows: (a) immediately after paragraph (c) of subarticle (2)

thereof, there shall be inserted the following new paragraph:
"(d) a Local Council may enter into public private partnerships both with the private sector or with non- governmental organisations, following approval by the Department for Local Government which shall grant such approval only if it is satisfied that such partnership would benefit the residents of the locality, and after having obtained the approval of the Minister responsible for finance and of the Minister responsible for Local Government.";
(b) immediately after subarticle (2) thereof there shall be inserted the following new subarticle:
"(2A) The Minister shall, after consultation with the Local Councils Association, draw up a written policy regarding Local Government. No decision taken by a Local Council shall go against that established policy."; and
(c) immediately after subarticle (5) thereof there shall be added the following new subarticle:

Amendment of article 4 of the principal Act.

"(6) A Local Council proposing to finance a project by means of a loan which would be repayable within a period longer than eight years shall submit its proposal for the approval of its residents in a referendum.".

5. In subarticle (3) of article 4 of the principal Act, the words

"from amongst the councillors" shall be deleted.
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6. Subarticle (1) of article 8 of the principal Act shall be amended as follows:

(a) for the words "three years" there shall be substituted the words "four years"; and
(b) for the words "the single transferable vote." there shall be substituted the words "the single transferable vote:" and immediately thereafter there shall be added the following:
"Provided that the elections for councillors for the years 2009 to 2021, both inclusive, shall be held as indicated in the Tenth Schedule:
Provided further that the Prime Minister may postpone the election of a group of Local Councils by a period of not more than one year if during that period an election for Members of the European Parliament or a General Election is due to be held, and this solely in order that the Local Councils elections may be held on the same day as the election for the European Parliament or the General Election.".

7. Article 9 of the principal Act shall be amended as follows: (a) for the words "six days" there shall be substituted

the words "two working days"; and
(b) the second proviso thereof shall be deleted.

8. In the Maltese text of article 11 of the principal Act, for the word "b\ala" there shall be substituted the word "b]ala".

9. In paragraph (d) of article 12 of the principal Act, immediately after the words "elections are to be held" there shall be inserted the words "or Executive Secretary in any one of the Local Councils".

10. Article 15 of the principal Act shall be amended as follows:

(a) in subarticle (1) thereof for the words "one hundred and sixteen euro and forty seven cents (116.47)" there shall be substituted the words "two hundred euro (200)"; and
(b) in the proviso to subarticle (1) thereof, for the words "two thousand three hundred and twenty nine euro and thirty seven cents (2,329,37)" there shall be substituted the words "two thousand euro (2,000)".

Amendment of article 8 of the principal Act.

Amendment to article 9 of the principal Act.

Amendment of article 11 of the principal Act.

Amendment of article 12 of the principal Act.

Amendment of article 15 of the principal Act.

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Amendment of article 18 of the principal Act.

Amendment of article 19 of the principal Act.

Amendment of article 20 of the principal Act.

11. In article 18 of the principal Act, for the words "six consecutive Council meetings" there shall be substituted the words "four meetings".

12. In subarticle (3) of article 19 of the principal Act, for the words "two thousand three hundred and twenty nine euro and thirty seven cents (2,329.37)" there shall be substituted the words "two thousand five hundred euro (2,500)".

13. Article 20 of the principal Act shall be amended as follows:

(a) in subarticle (3) thereof for the words "six hundred and ninety eight euro and eighty one cents (698.81)" there shall be substituted the words "seven hundred euro (700)";
(b) in the proviso to subarticle (3) thereof, for the words "six thousand nine hundred and eighty eight euro and twelve cents (6,988.12)" there shall be substituted the words "seven thousand euro (7,000)"; and

Amendment of article 23 of the principal Act.

(c) in paragraph (c) of subarticle (4) thereof, for the words "grandson or granddaughter" there shall be substituted the word "cousins".

14. Article 23 of the principal Act shall be amended as follows:

(a) in the proviso to subarticle (1) thereof, for the word
"three" there shall be substituted the word "six";
(b) in subarticle (2) thereof, for the word "may" there shall be substituted the word "shall"; and

Amendment of article 24 of the principal Act.

(c) in the proviso to subarticle (2) thereof, for the words "if a Committee of Management is not so appointed", there shall be substituted the words "until a Committee of Management is appointed".

15. Article 24 of the principal Act shall be amended as follows:

(a) in subarticle (1) thereof, for the words "any of the Commissioners for Justice who are" there shall be substituted the words "any Commissioner for Justice who is"; and
(b) for subarticle (3) thereof, there shall be substituted the following subarticles:
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"(3) A breach of the Code of Ethics for Local Councillors may result in a referral of his case to the Board which is to be established by the Minister to deal with cases of breaches of ethics. The Board shall be constituted and conducted in accordance with regulations made by the Minister.
(4) The Mayor, the Executive Secretary or any member of the Council shall report to the Department for Local Government any breach of the Code of Ethics committed by any councillor. Following the verification of such reports and following a persistent breach of the Code of Ethics, a formal notice shall be issued by the Minister, which formal notice may be published.".

16. Article 25 of the principal Act shall be amended as follows:

(a) in subarticle (1) thereof, for the words "until the office of Mayor is filled." there shall be substituted the words "until the office of Mayor is filled:" and immediately thereafter there shall be added the following:
"Provided that if the Mayor vacates office during the Council’s term, the office of Mayor shall be occupied by such person belonging to the same political party who had obtained the highest number of votes after the Mayor who is vacating office:
Provided further that where the law does not provide otherwise, the Mayor shall be chosen from amongst the Councillors.";
(b) immediately after subarticle (1) thereof, there shall be added the following new subarticle:
"(1A) In any case where two or more persons who were elected in the first count obtain the same amount of votes among Councillors belonging to that party having the majority of Councillors, the office of Mayor shall be filled by the person with the longest experience as Councillor and who therefore has served longest on the Council among the two:
Provided that if the two Councillors have the same length of service in office, the office of Mayor shall be filled by the Councillor who is the more senior in age:

Amendment of article 25 of the principal Act.

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Provided further that in the case that both obtain the same amount of votes but are not elected in the first count, the office of the Mayor shall be filled by whoever is elected first.";
(c) the provision in subarticle (2) thereof shall be re- numbered as paragraph (a) thereof and immediately thereafter there shall be added the following new paragraph:
"(b) In the case where the office of Deputy Mayor shall become vacant, the office of Deputy Mayor shall be filled by that Councillor belonging to the party that has obtained the absolute majority of Councillors in the Local Council and who obtained the majority of first preference votes after the Councillor whose office of Deputy Mayor has become vacant.";
(d) in subarticle (4) thereof, for the words "than two working days" there shall be substituted the words "than four working days"; and
(e) immediately after subarticle (4) thereof, there shall be added the following new subarticle:

Substitution of article 29A of the principal Act.

"(5) By not later than the third meeting after the Local Council election, each Councillor shall be assigned a specific sector which he shall monitor and report on to the Local Council. That Councillor may also set up a committee, over which the Councillor will preside in order to work in that sector. In such case the members of such committee shall be approved by the Council before those members commence their functions. This matter shall be included in the meetings’ agenda as aforesaid specified.".

17. Article 29A of the principal Act shall be substituted by the

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following:
"Convening of urgent Council meeting.
29A. The Mayor, or at least one-third of the Councillors, shall have the right to request an urgent meeting. The urgent meeting shall only discuss the urgent matter for which the meeting has been convened and no other. The subsequent meeting shall still be held on the same day as agreed in the last regular meeting. The Executive Secretary shall be obliged to convene the urgent meeting by not later than ten working days from the receipt of the request.".

18. Article 32 of the principal Act shall be substituted by the following new article:

Substitution of article 32 of the principal Act.

"Addition of allowance to the Councillors.
32. (1) The Council shall pay an honorarium to the Mayor of its locality as follows:

Cap. 318.

(a) in localities having less than five thousand residents (five Councillors), one third of the honorarium payable to a member of Parliament;
(b) in localities having less than fifteen thousand residents (seven or nine Councillors), one half of the honorarium payable to a member of Parliament;
(c) in all localities having more than fifteen thousand residents (more than nine Councillors), the honorarium shall be two thirds of the honorarium payable to a Member of Parliament:
Provided that such honorarium shall not be deemed to be income for the purposes of the Social Security Act.
(2) The Minister may by regulations establish the allowance that Councils may pay to Councillors, which allowance shall be proportionate to the number of meetings a Councillor has attended in any calendar year:
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Cap. 318.

Provided that such allowance shall not be deemed to be income for the purposes of the Social Security Act:
Provided further that no payments for reinbursement of expenses shall be allowed.
(3) Each Councillor shall, at his own expense, be obliged to install an e-mail service in his residence. Any correspondence, minutes or documents shall be sent to the Councillors by e-mail and for the purposes of service shall be deemed to have been duly served.
(4) Any Councillor employed with the public sector shall be entitled to attend official Council meetings during office hours without prejudice to his leave entitlement.".

Amendment to article 33 of the principal Act.

19. Article 33 of the principal Act shall be amended as follows:

(a) in subarticle (1) thereof, paragraphs (m), (n) and (o) shall be renumbered as paragraphs (v), (w) and (x) respectively, and immediately after paragraph (l) there shall be inserted the following new paragraphs:
"(m) within the context of a national action plan, Councils shall promote social policy initiatives within their locality. A Council shall work with people having special needs, with children and young people having literacy problems, with the elderly, in community care as well as initiatives in the area of preventive care;
(n) safeguard local identity and for this purpose take the necessary iniatives to safeguard the local historical and cultural heritage, traditions and folklore;
(o) in the framework of regulations made by the Minister, extend assistance to artists, musicians and sports persons from their locality in order that they may develop their talents;
(p) organise cultural activities that promote the locality in every possible way;
(q) protect the natural and urban environment of the locality and take all necessary measures to ensure the
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more efficient use of energy, good waste management and climate change iniatives;
(r) in agreement with the education authorities to make the best use of facilities already existing in schools in the locality after normal school hours such as sports facilities, school halls, information technology laboratories, and other public facilities in the locality;
(s) organise sports activities for all residents of all ages, co-operate closely with the sports associations from the locality, to provide good sports facilities and organise such sports activities as are not normally organised by local sports associations;
(t) ensure to give effect to the concept of life long learning with all residents, particularly adults and the elderly, by providing such service within the same locality;
(u) provide and maintain the service of a local library;";
(b) in paragraph (j) of subarticle (1) thereof, for the word "crèches" there shall be substituted the words "Child Care Centres";
(c) in paragraph (k) of subarticle (1) thereof, for the words "homes for senior citizens" there shall be substituted the words "Homes for Senior Citizens, Day Centres for Senior Citizens and Night Care Centres;"; and
(d) immediately after subarticle (2) thereof, there shall be added the following new subarticle:
"(3) (a) Various other new functions may be vested in Local Councils. Each function shall be devolved when the Central Government will be convinced that Local Councils are prepared to take on such responsibility.
(b) In the case of devolution of new functions, such new functions will first be devolved on to a small number of Local Councils, possibly of various sizes, to serve as a test.".

20. In subarticle (1) of article 35 of the principal Act, for the words "twice in all daily newspapers" there shall be substituted the words "twice in one daily newspaper", and the words "for at least one hour a day during normal office hours" shall be deleted.

Amendment of article 35 of the principal Act.

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Amendment of article 36 of the principal Act.

Amendment of article 37 of the principal Act.

21. In subarticle (1) of article 36 of the principal Act, for the words "sixty nine euro and eighty eight cents (69.88)", there shall be substituted the words "seventy euro (70)", for the words "eleven euro and sixty five cents (11.65)" there shall be substituted the words "fifteen euro (15)", for the words "two thousand and three hundred and twenty nine euro and thirty seven cents (2,329.37)" there shall be substituted the words "two thousand euro (2000)", and for the words "five hundered and eighty two euro and thirty four cents (582.34)", there shall be substituted the words "five hundred euro (500)".

22. Article 37 of the principal Act shall be amended as follows:

(a) in subarticle (3) thereof, for the words "may form and belong to" there shall be substituted the words "shall form part of"; and
(b) immediately after subarticle (3) thereof, there shall be added the following new subarticle:

Amendment of article 39 of the principal Act.

Amendment of article 40 of the principal Act.

Addition of new article to the principal Act.

"(4) The Minister may from time to time determine by regulations the number of regions to be established and each Council shall form part of a region and such assignment to a region shall be made by the Minister after he has consulted the Local Councils Association on the basis of geography, population and the number of Local Councils.".

23. In the third proviso to article 39 of the principal Act, for the words "two hundred and thirty two euro and ninty four cents (232.94)" there shall be substituted the words "two hundred and fifty euro (250)".

24. In subarticle (1) of article 40 of the principal Act, immediately after the words "for tender" there shall be inserted the words "or for quotations", and for the words "a notice in a newspaper" there shall be substituted the words "a notice in the Gazette and in one daily newspaper. The regulations relating to the publication of tenders and quotations shall be made by the Director and communicated to the Local Councils.".

25. Immediately after the article 40 of the principal Act, there

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shall be added the following new article:
"Co-financed projects by the European Union.
41. With respect to projects co-financed by the European Union, the tendering procedures shall be in accordance with the rules of the European Union and shall be regulated by the Department of Contracts.".

26. Article 43 of the prinicipal Act shall be amended as follows:

(a) in subarticle (2) thereof, immediately after the words "at least once a month" there shall be inserted the words "as long as this period does not exceed four consecutive weeks", for the words "the Mayor" there shall be substituted the words "the Council", and the words from "Meetings of the Council" to the words "in office," both expressions included, shall be deleted; and
(b) immediately after subarticle (2) thereof, there shall be added the following new subarticle:
"(3) Unless otherwise determined by the unanimous decision of the Councillors, meetings of the Local Councils shall not start before 5.30 p.m. and later than 7.30 p.m. and shall not last for more than three hours.".

27. Immediately after paragraph (c) of article 45 of the principal Act there shall be added the following new paragraph:

"(d) The agenda of the meeting shall be received by the
Councillors at least five working days before the meeting.".

28. In article 46 of the principal Act, the words "so far as practicable," shall be deleted.

29. Article 47 of the principal Act shall be amended as follows:

(a) in subarticle (2) thereof, for the words "not more than four other persons" there shall be substituted the words "not less than three persons and not more than eight persons"; and
(b) subarticle (6) thereof shall be deleted.

Amendment of article 43 of the principal Act.

Amendment of article 45 of the principal Act.

Amendment of article 46 of the principal Act.

Amendment of article 47 of the principal Act.

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Substitution of article 47A of the principal Act.

30. Article 47A of the principal Act shall be substituted by the following new article:

"Communities. 47A. (1) The communities shall be those listed in the Ninth Schedule, which Schedule shall also determine the boundaries of each community and the streets included therein.
(2) The Minister may add or subtract from the list of communities listed in the Ninth Schedule according to procedures established in subarticles (3) and (4).
(3) The Minister may from time to time after consulting the Local Council of the localitydeclare an area within the locality as a community for the purposes of the law and accordingly such community shall be added by regulations to the Ninth Schedule.
(4) The residents of any area not included in the Ninth Schedule may make a request to their Local Council for the inclusion of such zone in the Ninth Schedule. The Council shall, within one month from the receipt of the request, discuss it and make its recommendation to the Minister who shall, within two months from the receipt of the Council’s recommendation, take a decision on the request.
(5) Every community listed in the Ninth Schedule shall have an Administrative Committee elected in an election for the purpose held among the residents registered in that community. The election for the appointment of an Administrative Committee shall be held in accordance with regulations made by the Minister.
(6) The Administrative Ccommittee shall be composed of five persons who shall serve for a period of four years. In its first meeting the Committee shall appoint a Chairperson from amongst the five elected persons.
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(7) The Chairperson of the Administrative Committee shall have the right to attend the Council meetings and take part in the discussions but shall not be entitled to participate in the decisions.
(8) The Executive Secretary of the Local Council shall be the Executive Secretary of the Administrative Committee and shall also be responsible for the financial management thereof.
(9) The Administrative Committee shall be given a financial allocation which shall be part of the Local Council allocation and this shall be computed on the basis of the same funding formula, for the Local Council, found in the Eighth Schedule. Any decision on the use of these funds shall be implemented after ratification by the Local Council of the locality. The Administrative Committee shall also be entitled to apply for European Union funds and to obtain financing from special funds and other funds to carry out initiatives and projects in its zone.".

31. Article 48 of the principal Act shall be amended as follows:

(a) in subarticle (1) thereof, for the words "shall, as far as possible," there shall be substituted the word "shall"; and
(b) in subarticle (2) thereof, immediately after the words "on all working days" there shall be added the words "including Saturday".

32. Article 49 of the principal Act shall be amended as follows:

(a) subarticles (1) to (3) thereof, both inclusive, shall be substituted by the following:
"(1) Every Council shall have an Executive
Secretary.
(2) The appointment of the Executive Secretary shall be made by the Minister after the person has been nominated by the Department for Local Government

Amendment of article 48 of the principal Act.

Amendment of article 49 of the principal Act.

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which nomination would have been made under the following subarticle.
(3) The Executive Secretary shall be a public service official chosen from a pool of persons for this purpose.";
(b) in subarticle (4) thereof, immediately after the words "Executive Secretary respectively" there shall be inserted the words "from the same pool"; and
(c) immediately after subarticle (4) thereof, there shall be added the following new subarticle:

Amendment of article 52 of the principal Act.

Amendment of article 53 of the principal Act.

"(5) The Minister may remove or transfer an Executive Secretary from one Council to another as well as keep a limited number of additional Executive Secretaries in the Department so that these may fill any vacant posts that may arise from time to time.".

33. Immediately after paragraph (f) of subarticle (2) of article

52 of the principal Act there shall be added the following new paragraph:
"(g) execute the legitimate decisions of the Council and stop any activity or initiative planned by the Council and which is in breach of the law, regulations, national or local strategies or policies, or any activity or initiative which has not been approved by a Council decision.".

34. Article 53 of the principal Act shall be amended as follows:

(a) the provision of subarticle (1) thereof shall be renumbered as paragraph (a) of the said subarticle and immediately thereafter there shall be added the following new paragraphs:
"(b) The Department for Local Government may, after receiving a justified request from any Local Council, and after obtaining the approval of the Minister, authorise such Local Council to employ clerical personnel in excess of the limit established by law.
(c) The Council shall not purchase any clerical services."; and
(b) in subarticle (5) thereof, for the words "The
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Executive Secretary and other employees" there shall be substituted the word "Employees".

35. Article 55 of the principal Act shall be amended as follows:

(a) in subarticle (2) thereof, for the words "Tenth Schedule" there shall be substituted the words "Eighth Schedule";
(b) in subarticle (3) thereof, immediately after paragraph (d) thereof, there shall be inserted the following new paragraph:
"(e) The Local Council shall pay the penalty which shall be established by regulations whenever it does not submit the financial declarations and the reply to a management letter within the stipulated time. Such penalty will be deducted from the financial allocation of the Local Council and will not be refunded when the aforesaid documents are filed."; and
(c) immediately after subarticle (3) thereof, there shall be added the following new subarticle:
“(4) The Minister responsible for finance may each year allocate a fund to compensate for the co- financing of European Union projects.".

36. Article 58 of the principal Act shall be substituted by the following:

"58. The Minister may, after the approval of the Minister of Finance, estabish special funds and make such funds available to Local Councils.".

37. Article 63A of the principal Act shall substituted by the following new article:

Amendment of article 55 of the principal Act.

Substitution of article 58 of the principal Act.

Substitution of article 63A of the principal Act.

"No donation by

Councils.

63A. Any donation whether of money or in kind by the Local Council is prohibited.".

38. In subarticle (1) of article 66 of the principal Act, immediately after the words "over time.", there shall be added the words "Performance Indicators for Local Councils shall be established by the Minister and regular appraisals on the basis of such indicators shall be made and such appraisal shall be published.".

Amendment of article 66 of the principal Act.

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Amendment of article 70 of the principal Act.

Amendment of article 79 of the principal Act.

39. In subarticle (1) of article 70 of the principal Act immediately after the words "at least once a year.", there shall be added the words "After consultation with its residents, the Local Council shall prepare a three-year Work Plan which may be revised.".

40. Article 79 of the principal Act shall be amended as follows:

(a) the provision therein shall be renumbered as subarticle (1) thereof, and the second proviso thereof shall be deleted; and
(b) immediately after subarticle (1) as renumbered there shall be added the following new subarticle:

Amendment of article 80 of the principal Act.

Addition of new article 81 to the principal Act.

"(2) The Minister may make regulations to regulate twinning agreements between Local Councils.".

41. Immediately after paragraph (c) of article 80 of the principal Act, there shall be added the following new paragraphs:

"(d) manage the Department for Local Government and ensure that the necessary support is given to Local Councils by the Department;
(e) ensure that the Department provides training for
Councillors and for Local Council employees.".

42. Immediately after the article 80 of the principal Act there shall be added the following new article:

"When a Council fails to conduct a function.
81. In any case where a Local Council fails to carry out any function within its responsibility, and the Council persists in not carrying out such function notwithstanding a warning given by the regulator, such function may be carried out by any department, authority or agency at the expense of the said Local Council, and such expenses shall be deducted from the financial allocation of that Local Council and transferred to the entity which has carried out such function instead of the Council.".

Amendment of the First Schedule to the principal Act.

43. In the First Shedule to the principal Act, for the coat of arms for the locality of Kalkara there shall be substituted the

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following:
<.. image removed ..>
Kalkara

44. The Second Schedule to the principal Act shall be amended as follows:

(a) for the words "Qormi (Città Pinto)" there shall be substituted the words "Ħal-Qormi (Città Pinto)";
(b) for the word "Żebbuġ (Città Rohan)" there shall be substituted the words "Ħaż-Żebbuġ (Città Rohan)";
(c) for the words "Żabbar (Città Hompesch)" there shall be substituted the words "Ħaż-Żabbar (Città Hompesch)";
(d) for the word "Attard" there shall be substituted the words "Ħ’Attard";
(e) for the word "Balzan" there shall be substituted the words "Ħal-Balzan";
(f) for the word "Dingli" there shall be substituted the words "Ħad-Dingli";
(g) for the word "Għargħur" there shall be substituted the words "Ħal-Għargħur";
(h) for the word "Għaxaq" there shall be substituted the words "Ħal-Għaxaq";
(i) for the word "Kirkop" there shall be substituted the words "Ħal-Kirkop";
(j) for the word "Lija" there shall be substituted the words "Ħal-Lija";
(k) for the word "Luqa" there shall be substituted the words "Ħal-Luqa";

Amendment of the Second Schedule to the principal Act.

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(l) for the word "Safi" there shall be substituted the words "Ħal-Safi";
(m) for the word "Sliema" there shall be substituted the words "Tas-Sliema";
(n) for the word "Tarxien" there shall be substituted the words "Ħal-Tarxien"; and

Amendment of the Sixth Schedule to the prinicipal Act.

(o) for the word "Imġarr" there shall be substituted the words "L-Imġarr".

45. The Sixth Schedule to the principal Act shall be amended as follows:

(a) Standing Order 2 contained therein shall be amended as follows:
(i) in the proviso to paragraph (2) thereof, immediately after the word "Provided" there shall be inserted the word "further";
(ii) in paragraph (2) thereof, immediately after the words "as the Mayor may fix" there shall be added the following two provisos:
"Provided that this meeting shall not be held before the lapse of two working days from the meeting which was not held due to lack of quorum:
Provided further that the Mayor or whoever is presiding shall wait for up to half an hour from the established time before declaring lack of quorum;"; and
(iii) immediately after paragraph (2) thereof, there shall be added the following new paragraph:
"(3) In the minutes of that meeting the Executive Secretary shall register the Councillors present, the time elapsed before the meeting was deferred and the day and time of the deferred meeting.";
(b) In Standing Order 5 contained therein, immediately after paragraph (l) thereof there shall be added the following new paragraph:
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"(m) In every Local Council meeting the last item of the agenda shall be the adjournment of the meeting when the date and time of the next Council meeting shall be fixed.
If there is no unanimous agreement when the next meeting is to be held, the date and time shall be decided by a vote requiring a simple majority.
Such date and time shall not be changed for any reason and the Executive Secretary and the Mayor shall ensure that the agenda of the next meeting is delivered to the Councillors at least five days before the date of the meeting. In this manner the Councillors shall have the opportunity to prepare for what will be discussed during the meeting.";
(c) in paragraph (8) of Standing Order 14A contained therein, immediately after the words "for their safe custody." there shall be added the words "The Executive Secretary shall also ensure that the approved minutes are posted on the official website of the Council.";
(d) immediately after paragraph (4) of Standing Order
29 contained therein, there shall be added the following new paragraph:
"(5) Sub-Committees appointed by the Council shall be directly answerable to the Local Council.";
(e) Standing Order 32 contained therein shall be amended as follows:
(i) paragraph (1) thereof shall be re-numbered as paragraph (a) thereof, and immediately after there shall be added the following new paragraphs:
"(b) The Executive Secretary shall attach a copy of the Schedule of Payments with the agenda when forwarding the said agenda to the Councillors.
(c) During the meeting requests for payment received after the agenda for that meeting was sent may be brought up.
(d) The Executive Secretary shall mark on each invoice the word "approved" and the date and
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Amendment of the Seventh Schedule to the principal Act.

Substitution of the Eighth Schedule to the principal Act.

reference of the meeting when approval was given.".

46. In the Seventh Schedule to the principal Act, paragraphs 1 to 7, both inclusive, shall be deleted and paragraph 8 shall be renumbered as paragraph 1.

47. For the Eighth Schedule to the principal Act, there shall be substituted the following new Schedule:

"EIGHTH SCHEDULE (Article 55)
Financial Allocation to Local Councils shall cover the following:
1. Landscaping and Maintenance of Parks and Gardens;
2. Roads Maintenance and Roads Fixtures;
3. Waste Management; and
4. Administration;
as worked out in the table below:
1. The Formula

The apportionment for each category will be worked out as follows:
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1.1 Landscaping and Maintenance of Parks and Gardens

Total area of parks gardens, soft areas and verges in each locality in proportion to the total area of parks, gardens, soft areas and verges of all the localities added together

multiplied by

Total apportionment allocated by Government for the maintenance of parks, gardens, soft areas and verges

1.2 Roads Maintenance and Road Fixtures

2a. Street Sweeping and Weed Cutting of Urban Roads

Total length of urban roads per category of road (a, b, c and d) in each locality in proportion to the total length of urban roads in of all localities added together per category (a, b, c and d) respectively

multiplied by

Total apportionment allocated by Government for the cleaning of urban roads per category (a, b, c, d) respectively
Where a, b, c and d are the road lengths for the four categories of urban roads of locality determined according to the frequency of cleaning required.

2b. Cleaning of Non Urban Roads

Total length of non urban roads in each locality in proportion to the total length of non-urban roads in all the localities added together

multiplied by

Total apportionment allocated by Government for the cleaning of non-urban roads

2c. Maintenance of Roads, Bus Shelters, Roads Signs, Markings and Street Lamps

[(Total length of non urban roads in each locality in proportion to the total length of urban roads in all of the localities added together multiplied by 30%)

added to

(Total length of urban roads in each locality in proportion to the total length of roads in all of the localities added together multiplied
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by 70%)]

multiplied by

Total apportionment allocated by Government for the maintenance of roads, bus shelters, roads signs, markings and street lamps

1.3 Waste Management

Total number of properties in each locality in proportion to the total number of properties in all of the localities added together

multiplied by

Total apportionment allocated by Government for waste management

1.4 Administration

Total number of councillors in the locality in proportion to the total number of councillors in all of the localities added together

multiplied by

Total apportionment allocated by Government for administration.

2. Explanatory Note

Amendment to the Ninth Schedule to the Principal Act.

The workings related to the four functions in Section 1 of this Schedule are explained in detail in the document titled ‘Funding Module for Local Government 2009’ held by the Department for Local Government.".

48. . In the Ninth Schedule to the principal Act, for the word "hamlets" wherever it occurs, there shall be substituted the word "communities".

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49. The Tenth Schedule to the principal Act shall be substituted by the following new Schedule:

"TENTH SCHEDULE
Time-table of Elections for Local Councils
2009 Elections in one-third of the Local Councils specified hereunder*
2010
2011
2012 Elections in half the Local Councils specified hereunder**
2013 Elections in half the Local Councils specified hereunder
***
2014
2015 Elections in half the Local Councils (2012 group) ****
2016
2017 Elections in half the Local Councils (2013 group)
2018
2019 Elections in half the Local Councils (2012 group)
2020
2021 Elections in half the Local Councils (2013 group)
* elections are held in Imdina, Bormla, |abbar, Rabat (G), Birkirkara, Fgura, Gudja, G]arb, G]axaq, Kalkara, Lija, Marsaskala, M[arr, Msida, Nazzar, Pietà, Rabat (M), San {wann, Sannat, Sliema, Tarxien, Xg]ajra and Mtarfa
** the Local Councils which will hold elections this year will be
22 Local Councils which were meant to hold their elections in 2010 which are Birgu, Isla, }al-Qormi, }a\-|ebbu[ (Malta), Si[[iewi,
}’Attard, }al-Balzan, }ad-Dingli, Bir\ebbu[a, Floriana, G\ira,
G]ajnsielem, }al G]arg]ur, }amrun, Iklin, Ker`em, Kirkop, }al- Luqa, Marsa, Marsaxlokk, Mosta, Munxar, Nadur, Paola, Qala, }al- Safi, San {iljan, San Lawrenz, San Pawl il-Ba]ar, Santa Lu`ija, Swieqi, Xag]ra, |ebbu[ (Gozo) and |urrieq

Substitution of the Tenth Schedule to the principal Act.

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*** this year elections will be held for those Councils which held their election in 2009 and eleven Local Councils which were meant to hold their elections in 2011. Valletta, Mdina, Bormla, }a\-
|abbar, |ejtun, Rabat (Gozo), Birkirkara, Fgura, Fontana, Gudja, G]arb, G]asri, G]axaq, Kalkara, }al Lija, Marsaskala, Mellie]a, L-
Im[arr, Msida, Mqabba, Naxxar, Pembroke, Pietà, Qrendi, Rabat
(Malta), San {wann, Sannat, Santa Venera, Tas-Sliema, Ta’ Xbiex,
}al Tarxien, Xewkija, Xg]ajra and Mtarfa
**** this group will, once only, have a term of three years - but before it would have had a term of five years (part of it) so that elections are brought to a year in/year out situation".

Objects and reasons

The object of the Bill is to give effect to the proposals for Local
Government Reform.