The Executive Yuan yesterday unveiled a draft administrative areas delimitation act, with officials saying that the bill would serve as the legal basis when rezoning administrative regions to help balance regional development.
The bill covers the founding, abolition or adjustments of administrative areas ranging from special municipalities, counties and cities to townships, county-governed cities and districts.
The delimitation of administrative areas at the special municipality, county and city level may be proposed by either local governments or the Ministry of the Interior, the agency overseeing the legislation, while delimitation of townships, county-governed cities and districts should be recommended by local governments, the bill says.
Adjustments may be made in the form of a full or partial merger between two or more administrative areas, dividing an existing administrative area or merging part of an existing administrative area into another, it says.
The bill does not deal with plans to promote counties or cities to the level of special municipalities, which is governed by local government laws, but rather with the delimitation of administrative areas to respond to government restructuring, plans to facilitate governance, national land development, changes in geographical conditions and special circumstances caused by changing political, economic, social or cultural climates.
All concerned agencies planning to propose the rezoning of administrative areas must publicly preview such plans for 30 days, conduct polls and hold public hearings to gather opinions, the bill says.
Responsible agencies should submit a plan that includes assessments of the benefits and potential drawbacks of a proposed rezoning; results of necessary border scoping work; the proposed delineation of new borders; and detail any personnel, assets and the tasks of agencies and schools under their jurisdiction that would be transferred as a result of rezoning, it says.
The ministry should seek the opinions of local governments on a proposed rezoning plan, while plans drawn up by local governments should be approved by the councils of all cities or counties involved, the bill reads.
If requested by the ministry, cities or counties should submit a written record of their opinions, as well as those of their councils, it says.
Rezoning plans proposed by special municipalities that involve Aboriginal territories must obtain the approval of concerned Aboriginal district offices, while such plans would need to gain the consent of Aboriginal city or county councilors if proposed by Aboriginal district offices, the bill says.
Plans that concern Aboriginal administrative areas in two or more cities or counties must be approved by all Aboriginal district offices and the Aboriginal councilors of all areas involved.
The difference in size between administrative areas at the local government level can sometimes be huge, which has caused smaller areas to suffer in terms of budget and administrative staff, Deputy Minister of the Interior Hua Ching-chun (花敬群) said.
The problem can be effectively solved if the bill is passed by lawmakers, which would provide a much-needed reference for rezoning and adjusting administrative areas, he said.
Even though Premier William Lai (賴清德) in December last year said that the government would prioritize the task of rezoning administrative regions — special municipalities and counties — to balance regional development, Hua said the ministry has not set any plans to push such policies, as those issues should be allowed to “run their courses” after sufficient discussion has taken place to avoid becoming politicized.
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