DESIDERIO LUISANA

REGIONALISM. A COMPARISON BETWEEN FRANCE AND ITALY.

FOCUS ON EXTERNAL ACTION OF LOCAL AUTHORITIES.

In contemporary Europe, the region has become

a significant territorial collectivity. Regional question in

Italy is part of the reforms of the Second Republic.

Inside the European context, however, France is in

a particular situation: Jacobin-Bonaparte’s model based on

the unit, uniformity and centralization of the state is still

alive in the political consciousness and in the organization

of the state.

In some political systems, sub-national entities also have

legislative powers. In France these entities do not have

legislative powers, but only administrative ones. France is

considered the archetype of centralized administration.

French nationalism has been a limit for the territorial

realities: these have not been able to take an autonomous

dimension and their cultural identity was not recognized.

This is an example of unitary system, in which only central

Government has legislative powers.

The distinctive features of a Regional State, are the

following: Regions have their own Statute of Autonomy: the

Statute of Autonomy represents the autonomy, but is not

complete as a Constitution; Regions do not have their own

judiciary system (with the exception of Italy, where the

Regions have their judiciary system called TAR, Regional

Administrative Tribunal); the Second Chamber of Parliament

doesn’t represent sub-national entities, but in the

Constitution of Italy is written that the Second Chamber,

which represent the all Italian nation, is elected on a

regional bases; Regions don’t take part in the Constitutional

amendment procedure; Regions don’t have powers in core

subject matters, such as criminal law; Constitutions contain

a list of subjects matters which are of exclusive competence

of Regions: an exception is represented by Italy that, after

the reform of 2001, gave to Regions legislative powers on

subjects that were not specifically assigned to central

Government.

LEGISLATIVE TRADITIONS: FRANCE . The French Republic is a unitary

state. There is a long tradition of centralization in both

administrative and political areas. However, in the last

thirty years, there have been legislative measures aimed at

changing the structure of the French state; and these

measures introduced, in France, local authorities, in order

to be able to relocate the powers to get a better

administration.

France is structured on four levels of administration:

o State

o Regions

o Departments

o Municipalities

With regard to local government there are three levels of

governance: Regions, Departments and Municipalities.

Municipalities were born in 1781. Their high number is

justified because there are no limits in size of territory or

population. Municipalities have their own executive power, as

regions and departments; there is a municipal council that

represents the common relations with the outside world.

Departments were also created in 1789: there are one hundred,

of which four are located in the overseas territory

(Martinique, Guadeloupe, Reunion, Guyane francaise).

Interventions reserved to departments are of social nature.

The law of 1982 gave executive powers to departments.

Determination of the Regions in France is the duty of the

legislator. The French State, although is a highly

centralized ordering, however, has felt the need to create

structures to have direct contact with citizens. With the

creation of regions after the birth of the Constitutional

Charter, the legislator could better understand the needs of

the people and he created an apparatus for this purpose (ad

hoc). Regional institutions in France administer the

territory; make choices in their areas of competence

(education, transport, culture, tourism) through partnership

with other Regions. French Regions, therefore, have a

planning function.

I think it is essential, to discuss of the French state not

only in abstract terms (and to compare it to Italian case),

do a brief overview of the historical and political events

that led the France in the today situation; so as to better

understand the dynamics involving the institution of which I

will discuss in this essay. In this way I will put the theme

of regionalism on historical and political bases that are

fundamental for a critic and conscious analysis of the

argument.

The French Jacobin model is based on four principles:

The Unit. The French Constitutional Council has

declared incompatible with the Constitution the

expression "people of Corsica the French people ..." as the

statement "Corsican people" implies recognition of

a territorial diversity, cultural and linguistic,

incompatible with the principle of the French State one and

indivisible.

The Supremacy   of the State . The state - of which the French

Jean Bodin was one of the first theorists - is the

only holder of sovereignty and the only source of law that

defines rights and duties of individuals who inhabit it and

territorial authorities that compose it.

The   Centralization . As has been indicated by

Alexandre de Tocqueville, begins under the "Ancient Regime".

Only the center sovereign can decentralize their skills or

re-centralize them into itself (as King Louis XIV said “selon

mon bon plaisir”, to my own discretion).

The   Uniformity   of the   law . This is a French special feature.

Local authorities are creations of the center. In

France, after the Revolution of 1789, have been created more

than 35,000 municipalities and 89 departments. The 

Territorial Collectivity are instruments of domination of the

center on the periphery and symbols of French identity.

The postwar period was the time of planning, public

investment, but also the time of' "regional

planning" (aménagement du Territoire) and voluntary actions

to reduce any differences between Paris and the so-

called French Desert. In this perspective were created 22

regions. Initially the region was instrumental

in planning and became a public institution with limited

powers. What characterizes the evolution of French

doctrine on solutions with regard to decentralization, is

the constant search for a democratic and constitutional

basis of the powers of local authorities. However, is

rejected the idea of the ownership of the power of primary

standards by the local authorities.

In 1919 Minister of Commerce, Clémentel,

creates 15 regional economic groups in France with economic

functions for the reconstruction of postwar.

In 1954, with the end of IV Republic, Clémentel Regional

policy gets stronger. There was the phenomenon

of functional regionalization, because of the need

of territorial administration and planning.

In 1981, with the victory of François Mitterrand, the

region will become a true territorial collectivity. It was

one of the main objectives of the Reformation of 1982. This

important reform, begun in 1981, changed the

relations between center and periphery, between the State and

the Regions: today, in France, the Region is, next to the

Municipality and the Department, the third level of local

government. The French decentralization can be defined as the

process that caused the transfer of responsibilities

from central government to local authorities by a law

passed in 1982.

When the left, with the election of

François Mitterrand, President of the Republic, came to

power in 1981, decentralization seems to be one of the main

elements of his political project. The task was given to

Gaston Defferre, Minister of the Interior. In the summer of

1981 convened an extraordinary session of parliament

to consider his project of law "on the rights and freedoms of

the Municipalities, Departments and Regions".

Decentralization becomes the first reform carried forward

from the left. Therefore, the real revolution in favor of

local authorities took place with the reform of 1982.

The main steps of the reform process:

The law of March 2, 1982 on the Rights and Freedoms of the

Municipalities, Departments and Regions. This law has

specified the relationship between the State and Regions and

has granted to the Regions a minimum of financial autonomy.

The “Lois de décentralisation”, reinterpreting art. 72 of the

Constitution of France, created Regions from 1982.

The Law of 31 December 1982 on Paris, Lyon and Marseille for

the decentralization of large urban management.

The Law of 31 December 1982 on the Regions and Overseas

Departments.

The Law of 7 January 1983 and the Law of 22 July 1983 on the

division of powers in the various local authorities.

The minister proceeded to the launch of these laws to

avoid the block that a constitutional reform would have

caused. For this reason, there were many appeals to

the Constitutional Council by the political opposition.

Therefore, the Constitutional Council, over the years,

developed an extensive jurisprudence on the provisions of the

Constitution relating to local authorities.

Major contributions of this reform are the following:

The legitimation of three levels of decentralized territorial

administration (the municipality, the department and the

region). The Region becomes a territorial community with a

council elected by universal suffrage.

The accentuation   of local democracy . At each administrative

level, there are a

council and an executive elected and separated from the

State.

The devolution. Gaston Defferre stated that "the devolution

must be accompanied by decentralization” and this means that

enforce local authorities also means implementing a

redistribution of the means of action which the State has in

the area.

The reorganization of responsibilities between State and

Local Authorities. Municipalities, departments, regions but

also the State have a general jurisdiction and therefore can

address any matters concerning them unless they are legally

of jurisdiction of another community. The “Lois de

décentralisation” confirmed some powers of the local

authorities and granted others transferring them from State

to local authorities.

The reuse of administrative and financial resources.

Decentralization has, in fact, materialized in the creation

of new departmental and regional administrations.

The Reform of 1982 results as a real transformation of the

local structures that particularly interested the

intermediate communities, those departments and those regions

that do not exist as local authorities before the

implementation of the reform. There have been many criticisms

against the process begun in 1982:

a) The decentralization wanted to uniformly enforce the power of

Municipalities, Departments and Regions without taking into

account the diversity of these three entities (with regard to

the economic, fiscal and demographic fields). It

is unrealistic give powers to communities that do not

always have the ability to exercise them.

b) After 1982 the French government has delayed the process of

regionalization. The situation of France with regard to

regionalization is quite particular: while the majority of

European countries, with dimensions comparable to those in

France, have been able to improve the administration at

regional level (such as the regions in Italy), France has

kept the leadership role at the department level. However,

some measures in the field of regionalism have been

successful: is the case of plan contracts State/Regions.

Beside the single and central State, Regions are involved in

the development of national programming plans. In this way

both the objectives of national and regional level are put in

place in the form of Plan contracts State / Region. These

documents define priorities and establish the financial

obligations of all partners (State, Region and other

communities) and allow the implementation of concrete

projects on agriculture, on development of regional

industries, on research and cultural policies etc…

THE NEW CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE FRENCH TERRITORIAL ADMINISTRATION MADE BY

THE LAW OF 1992 . French regionalism appeared incorporated into

the central system; the territorial government was

constitutionally poorly protected, because the art. 72

protected local authorities from interferences of the

executive, but not in front of the Parliament. The incomplete

nature of legislation in terms of relationships within local

communities outside the French territory was the subject,

after the decentralization reforms of the eighties of last

century, of a broad consensus among political forces. The

only exception was represented by the Communist Party (PCE),

ideologically against the decentralized cooperation because

they believed was an element of weakening of the principle of

national sovereignty (there is a difference with the case of

Italy, in terms of ideologies, that I will explain). The

French legislature has, therefore, provided to fill the gaps

left in the past with a law (February 6, 1992) concerning the

territorial administration of the Republic. Measures that

will be taken from the 90s aim to renovate the territorial

organization too fragmented and to encourage cooperation

between all local actors and in particular between the

decentralized institutions. The territorial reorganization is

part of a reform movement of the state that, since then, it

continues to occur. Administrative reorganization implemented

by the 1992 Act includes:

Redefinition of the Regional apparatus;

State control in matters interfering with the European

integration;

The decision to start a cooperation between two

neighboring Regions for the socio cultural and economic

development;

The grouping of Municipalities.

The relaunch of the devolution and the exploitation of the

position of the Prefect of the Region is another issue of the

law of February 6, 1992 (also known as ATR, Territorial

Administration of the Republic), which contains the title IV

dedicated to the decentralized cooperation. The article 131

of the law established that the local authorities may enter

into agreements, singularly or through their groups: these

agreements are conventions with foreign sub-national

authorities; the decentralized communities must not exceed

their areas entrusted to them by law and they must respect

the international obligations taken by the French State. The

recognition of the “jus contrahendi” (effected by the law of

1992) to the decentralized communities is the cause of the

express repeal of the law of 1982. Finally, the law of 1992,

implies the removal of the limits established by the

Convention of Madrid, in which there’s only one reference to

the relations between local authorities of different

countries that have, at least, a common border. The only ban

remained unchanged is the inability of French local

authorities to conclude cooperation agreements with foreign

states. Typically, the law of '92, has tried to delete items

too restrictive introduced with the reforms in the eighties

(for example the fact that the local authorities could only

conclude cooperation agreements with communities of different

countries who had in common a border with France, and not at

interregional level); doing this has increased the field of

action of the communities in France, while maintaining those

limitations that are typical of the French Republic (State

sovereignty and Constitutional statements), and that every

part of the European Union has been specified in national

legislation (respect to the Community standards). Dominates

the principle of subsidiarity: to bring the state to the

citizens and break the excessive centralization, it is

determined that the normal level of state action is

"unfocused" and closer to the citizen. The central government

should do only that which cannot be done at the local level

in the deconcentrated structures. The region is responsible

for the implementation of EU and national policies concerning

economic and social development, the organization of the

territory, the environment, culture, the city politics.

Continuing to analyze art.131 of this law of 1992, it emerges

that the decentralized local cooperation agreements come into

force only after they are sent to the representative of the

state (Prefect), as said in the law of 1982. Is assigned to

the Prefect a role in the management of public policies of

the State: he guarantees compliance with the national

interests at the local level. In fact may be situations in

which the external action of a regional authority is

inappropriate in the light of national interests of France.

The other articles of the law of 1982, contain rules for

participation of foreign local authorities to bodies of which

French local authorities (involved in decentralized

cooperation) are part. Is the case of the SELM (company with

mixed economy at local level); is promoted local economic

development for decentralized cooperation in cross-border

dimension. It is also provided that the territorial

authorities of a member state of the EEC can participate in

projects of decentralized cooperation (interregional and

cross-border) with the French local authorities, within a

public interest group (Groupement d'intérêt public, GIP). The

GIP is a person under French law which must necessarily

establish its headquarters in France and is subject to French

administrative law; it is considered as a legal person “sui

generis” (with administrative and financial autonomy). The

title IV of the law of 1992 closes with an article

establishing a body called the National Commission for

decentralized cooperation. This body makes proposals on the

subject of action abroad of local authorities.

CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM OF MARCH 2003 . The unity of the France

constitutional system has recently been remedied by the

constitutional reform of March 2003, which introduced at

art.1 the principle of decentralization aimed at balancing

the principle of “unité et indivisibilité” (fundamental

feature of the French state). The principle of free

administration of local authorities has often clashed with a

number of other constitutional principles that the

legislature had to take into account: 1. the relationship

between the principle of indivisibility of the Republic and

the principle of free administration. The recognition of a

territorial diversity is incompatible with the Constitution.

(sent. 82-138 DC 1982, conseil constitutionnel) 2. The

legislative powers that cannot be delegated under the

principle of national sovereignty.

The decision of 1982 ruled on the reasons that led to the

violation of art. 72, 73, 74 of the Constitution. Taking into

consideration Article. 72, which states that local

authorities are the Municipalities the Regions and Overseas

Territories, is important to say that the others local

authorities are created by the law. To contest the conformity

of the special status of Corsica to this constitutional

provision, Article 72 is interpreted as if it claimed a

creation of a new category of local authorities, not of local

and regional authorities exceptions of common law. In fact,

in the light of Articles 73 and 74 of the Constitution, it is

shown that there is not a difference (within the metropolitan

area) that could justify the differences in institutional

organization. It is right to point out that the art. 72 is

relative to all communities of the French Republic; and that

Article 73 and 74 apply only because they give provisions

about the Overseas Territories. The sentence also expresses

his views about the reasons that would lead to the violation

of Article 2 of the Constitution. France is an indivisible

Republic: now must be considered the principle of

indivisibility. What has been under examination of the

Constitutional Court is contrary to the principle mentioned,

because the special statute of Corsica contains serious

risks of disruption of national unity. Taking into account

art. 24, paragraph 3 of the Constitution, the constitutional

provisions do not invest the special status of Corsica,

provided that the entry into force of the Statute should not

require the involvement of the organic law and of a law for

changing the electoral rules in the Senate and the rules to

guarantee the representation of local authorities. Finally,

in accordance with art. 44 of the law of the statute of

Corsica, the State representative in the region of Corsica

exercise all the checks required by Title III of the law on

the rights and liberties of the Municipalities, Departments

and Regions on all categories of administrative and

budgetary. Therefore, there was no need to raise any question

of accordance with Constitution in front of the

Constitutional Court, which decided that «the law on the

special status of the region of Corsica: the administrative

organization, shall be declared not contrary to the

constitution».

There is a difference between the free administration of the

French regions and the autonomy of the Italian regions and of

other European countries. Reforms amends art. 1 of the

Constitution, stating that the organization of the Republic

is decentralized. Against this important modification, there

was the appeal to the Conseil constitutionnel by 60 senators.

They believed violated Article. 89 of the constitution,

where there is expressed the impossibility of reviewing the

republican form of government. With the decision n.2003-469

of March 26, the Conseil constitutionnel has declared

inadmissible the appeal, holding that the laws of

constitutional revision cannot be the subject of his opinion.

Is inevitable, therefore, the coming of a variety of

different institutions, expression of underlying reality,

next to the state. The existence of local authorities

represents social pluralism, typical of contemporary

democracies.

The French constitutional revision is the product of a

process started from the beginning of the eighties and

evolved through several legislative reforms, without

affecting the Constitutional text: reforms “without affect

Constitutional text”, an expression much in vogue in Italy to

describe the work of so-called Bassanini laws. The

legislative reform has anticipated the constitutional one,

that there was only later, in response to the need to

provide the legislation of a "constitutional cover". The

necessity to modify the Constitution as a result of

legislative reforms appears, in France as elsewhere, dictated

by two fundamental reasons. On the one hand, the need to

exercise, through the constitutional revision, the "right to

the last word "as a result of decisions of the Constitutional

Court on censuring the actions of the legislature, considered

contrary to the Constitution in force. The use the

constitutional revision to "bypass" negative judgments of the

judge of laws is common in many jurisdictions (especially in

France and Austria) and represents the translation of

Kelsen's conception of law, so what cannot do the source of

lower grade (the law) may always the one of a degree higher

(Constitutional reform). The decision of the Conseil

constitutionnel of the March 26, 2003 has recognized that 's

"last word", represented by the Constitutional revision, it

is the last, final, and after it the judge of the laws must

remain silent. The Conseil constitutionnel recently has taken

a more rigorous attitude than that of the Italian Court to

reforms “Bassanini”. On the other hand, several provisions

are justified by the need to reward Constitutional reforms

already implemented, in order to increase their stability;

this is the case of multiple provisions of the Constitutional

Act of 28 March 2003. In the art. 72 now appear Regions, that

purchase a status of local authorities recognized by the

Constitution. The article 72 configures the principle of

subsidiarity, whereby there is a criterion for the allocation

of responsibilities. It would therefore be natural for the

State to proceed to the devolution of legislative powers to

the Regions in those areas where we see the natural vocation

of the entity to exercise administrative powers. However, the

French subsidiarity is placed in an unitary State; the

principle facilitates the transfer of powers to local

authorities. The acceptance in the French Constitution of the

notion of subsidiarity places the French experience to the

level of European standards, but the principle is ambiguous.

Only the Constitutional Council will clarify the meaning and

define the limits of the principle of subsidiarity. There is

a relationship between the European principle of subsidiarity

and the French one; the EU intervenes only to the extent that

a Member State cannot achieve the objectives quite

effectively. When the autonomy of local authorities is stated

in the Constitution for that reason alone is not subject to

the availability of the legislature, especially if it is

rigid Constitution (as in the cases of France and Italy).

Reform is not the final stage of the decentralization

process: it must be followed by the full allocation of

legislative power to local authorities, with the associated

recognition of their ability to compete with the state to

constitute the Republic. Remarkable is the distance, for

example, from the recent Italian Constitution, in which,

according to the new art.114 of the Constitution, popular

sovereignty is also carried through territorial autonomy.

THE CASE OF ITALY . The Italian order originated as a

centralized order. The model was similar to the French case;

it was the Napoleonic model. There was the centralization of

the power in the hands of the central Government and

uniformity (same organization for al the municipalities). The

projects that wanted to develop, with the creation of the

Regions, particular forms of local autonomy government, were

set aside (Minghetti, Minister of the Interior in the first

Govern of the unit Italy, was a supporter of this thesis).

Italy had to wait the end of Fascism to see made the first

acts of recognition of local governments. The discussion

about the Regional order was the center of the Costituent.

The politics were divided: not all agreed with the idea of an

institutional pluralism, because they feared that the reforms

they were about to undertake, would have been hampered by

existing of the local authorities of large size, with

significant and legislative powers. Meuccio Ruini wrote «The

Region does not born in a federalist way»: when the State approve its

Statute, it exercises an act of autonomy. Therefore, Title V

of the Constitution was devoted to the discipline of ordinary

Regions. The art. 116 refers to the individual Special

Statutes for the regulation of the other five Regions.

Finally, the Italian Republic, as defined in the art. 5 of

the Constitution, is involved in the develop of the local

authorities, in the implementation of the largest

administrative decentralization, in the distribution of the

political power across the all territory, but this Republic

remain “one”.

The constituent, divided the Italian Republic into Regions,

Provinces and Municipalities. The regulation of the

Municipalities and the Provinces was delegated to the

ordinary law. The discipline of the Regions was in the

Constitution, but in part their regulation was given to the

Statutes, the fundamental Chart that every Regions would have

given to theirselves for the internal organization. Until

2001, the competences of the Regions were only competitor or

distributed (as we can read on the art. 117 of the

Constitution). These competences were given from the

Constitution to the Regions, but the fundamental principles

of the competences given remained in the hands of the State.

The laws of the State gave the fundamental principles of the

matter on which the Region would have legislated. The

Regional law would have to respect the national interests and

those of the other Regions and the international obligations

too. To make sure the observance of these limitations was

provided a preventive State control on all Regional laws,

with the possibility of the remittal to the Regional Council

in the cases of contrast with the national interests or of an

excess of jurisdiction in the Region: in these cases the

Govern had the possibility of raising the question of the

constitutionality in front of the Constitutional Court.

The Constitution of 1948 said:

The administrative functions was entitled to the

Regions;

The Region could exercise its functions giving them to

the Municipalities or the Provinces;

The Regions had financial autonomy “in the forms and into the

limitations established by the laws of the Italian Republic” (art. 119);

There was a prohibition for the Regions to impede the

mobility of people and things;

All the Regions had autonomy in the definition of their

Statutes for the internal organization;

The administrative acts of the Regions were submitted to

the legal review from the State.

To regards to Municipalities and Provinces, the Constitution

postponed to the general laws of the State (art.128 of the

Constitution).

The foundation of the Ordinary Regions came only in 1970,

after the entry into force of the Constitution. From the

nineties there were great changes that have innovated the

entire system of regional and local autonomies.

To analyze the Regional order we have to take into account

the Constitutional law 1/1999 and the Constitutional law

3/2001. The Regions, the Provinces and the Municipalities,

are defined in the art. 114 (is not a federal organization).

The legislature sais that these are entities derived; they

are not originals, because only the State is sovereign and

original. In the Italian order the Regions born thanks to

the decision of the Constitution of the one and indivisible

Italian Republic.

Statutory authority was enforced by the reform of 1999. What

do the Statute of a Region? How the Statute is created by

the Region?

The Statute create the form of government, the fundamental

principles of a Region and the rights of popular

initiatives. This is the necessary content of a Statute. The

Statutes born after the reform of 1999 had provided values

principles and rights expression of the local authority

which they referred to. The art. 123 of the Constitution

provides that the Statute will be approved by the Regional

Council with an absolute majority. The govern can bring it

to the Constitutional Court within thirty days from the

publication: from the first publication shall run three

month, during one-fifth of the members of the Regional

Council or one-fiftieth of the electors can ask that the

Statute be submitted to the referendum. The Statutes must

respect the general limitations to the harmony with the

Constitution of Italy.

THE REFORM OF 2001 . The art. 117 provides on the legislative

power of the Regions and the State. The difference from the

old text is that the Regions now have the general

competences, on the contrary the State has listed

competences. Today are provided:

Matters under the State competence, defined exclusive

competence, on which only the State can work;

Matters of Regional competence, defined competitor

competence, on which the State has to say the

fundamental principles, binding the Regions, but the

Region makes specified laws;

Residual regional competences are identified by

subtraction than those already provided.

The article 117 defines general limitations for the exercise

of any legislative function; both Regional and State law are

submitted under three limits: the respect of the

Constitution of Italy; the obliges coming from the

Communitarian order; the International obligations.

The law of the State, even after the reform, maintains a

central role.

DIVISION OF THE COMPETENCES IN ITALY . The matters of the exclusive

competence of the State are listed in the line 1 of the art.

117. Some are defined in the field of materials (for example

the immigration or the defense of the State); others are

established taking into account functions that State has to

realize (for example environmental protection).

The matters of competitive competence between State and

Regions are those on which the Regional legislative power

must exercise taking into account the respect of the

fundamental principles of the subject established by the

Italian State. The Constitutional Court believes that the

fundamental principles cannot have a rigid and universal

characteristic. In the definition of the border between

fundamental principles and detailed rules (in this case,

given by the Regions), the Constitutional Court plays a

central role: it has to identify balance between State

standards and Regional provision and the effective sphere of

the Constitutional competences.

Residual Regional competences, as sais art. 117 at line

four, are the matters not given to the legislative powers of

the State: they are under the power of the Regions. The

Constitutional Court sais that before using the residual

standard, must be applied the criterion of prevalence, with

which the non-nominated matters (objects of the residual

competence) before being recognized to Regions, they must be

submitted to a direct verification aimed to understand if

they cannot be bring under the list of the matters expressly

recognized.

The Constitutional Court, however, has recognized the

principle of subsidiarity: it can be used by the State to

define, with a law, administrative functions that are in the

field of the concurrent or residual legislative competence

whenever must be realized needs of unitary nature. It is

necessary, in the belief of the Constitutional Court, that

the law made by the State following the principle of

subsidiarity respects the principles of plausibility,

proportionality and serious collaboration.

CONTROL EXERCISED BY THE ITALIAN STATE . Today the Regional

legislation is no more subjected to the previous control of

the central Government. Has been repealed art. 125 of the

Italian Constitution in which were provided controls of the

State on the Region’s administrative acts. However, the

Constitution do not dispossesses the State of their powers

as granter that can exercise on the Regional acts.

The power as substitute is given by the art. 120, line 2, of

the Constitution to the Government. It can exercise this

power in some cases: when rules or International treaties

are not respected; when there is a public danger; in the

field of judicial protection of the Italian Republic. The

powers as substitute are exercised in the limitations

established by the law of the State, taking into account the

principle of subsidiarity and the ones of serious

collaboration. The Constitutional Court has defined a

variety of elements that must be the main features of the

use of the powers as substitute: the powers as a substitute

have to be established by the law; the substitution can be

for the performance of acts that are required for the

interests of unit; a body of the central Government has to

exercise the power as a substitute; the law must give

guarantees for the exercise of this power, taking into

account a mode in which the substituted entity can avoid the

substitution with his own act.

The power of dissolution of the Regional Council and of

removal of the President of the Region is given to the

State, as “extrema ratio” when we are in front of serious

behavior: so when appear acts contrary to the Constitution

or serious violations of the law and when is required for

reasons of national security.

RELATIONS BETWEEN REGIONS AND OTHERS SUBJECTS IN ITALY . In the field

of International relations, the Region can conclude, in

their competences, agreements with States or with foreign

sub-national entities. The only limitation to this power is

the respect of the law (art. 117, line 9, Italian

Constitution). The International relations are matters of

competitive legislation. With regards to the relations

between Regions and EU, in their competences, the Regions

participate to the formation of the Communitarian acts and

to the development of these acts. In their matters the

Regions can give immediate actuation to the Communitarian

acts. The Region can also conclude agreements with others

Regions to better exercise its functions.

THE TRADITION OF UNITARY STATE IN FRANCE AND THE DECENTRALIZED

COOPERATION. External action of local authorities and

decentralized international cooperation have the same

meaning, but the second definition is more accurate because

it refers to external initiatives of local authorities for

cooperation in the humanitarian field and in the field of

international solidarity.

France's approach to the issue of external relations of

local authorities has always been faithful to the rules of

the imperial decree of 1810; inside this decree was

established that only the Ministry of Foreign affairs was

responsible for what came from foreign countries inside the

French government. This is due to the fact that the priority

of the French state has always been to maintain unity,

especially in international relations of France: so the

opportunities of cooperation with foreign local authorities

that arose to French ones, were comparable to relationships

that develop between local administrations of different

countries. In the seventies of last century in France it

began to feel the need to figure out what role effectively

had the external actions of local authorities. The need for

cross-border cooperation can be traced: in the field of

environmental protection (where the cooperation with

neighboring countries is essential); in the economic field

(especially for Regions); in the relations with foreign

private individuals to promote local development (these

types of agreements have been concluded primarily by French

regions, due to the decision to transform the shape of the

French state, inserting in the Constitution the

decentralization). These three aspects are the cause of the

birth of the need to establish a legislative framework

within which external actions of local authorities could

find justification. In the tradition of French decentralized

cooperation is of great importance the Convention of

friendship signed in 1980 by Gaston Defferre (Mayor of

Marseille) and the Council President of the City of Algeri,

Khelifa Belaid: the two cities implemented a program for

housing construction, for the professional training of young

Algerians, for intercultural exchange ...

THE EXTERNAL POWER OF THE REGIONS OF FRANCE . The creation of a

regional foreign power in a constitutional framework of unit

such as France could take the tone of an attack on the

Constitution: this because one of the pillars of the French

state, the legacy of the revolution, is the concept of

national sovereignty. Since the eighties the French doctrine

has begun to deal with the issue of external relations of

the local authorities, establishing that the foreign power

was a State reserve, but “l’action étrangère” (as sais

M.C.SPECCHIA to regards of the external actions) should not be

considered under international law. there is a principle

according to which relations between local authorities of

different countries is not prejudicial to the national

dimension, and therefore do not affect the principle

of state sovereignty. The principle of state reserve refers

to the principle of unity of the French state and therefore,

even if the subnational entities have legal capacity, on the

external always works the unitary State. However reform

began in the eighties has changed the features of the French

centralist state, because he has put in place operations

aimed at decentralizing; this is what led to the

formation of a new conception of the French state and has

also represented the end of the nineteenth-century tradition

of a unitary state. The period of the reforms of the

eighties has carried out the objective, on the one hand, to

minimally reduce the field of action of the state, on the

other side to transfer part of the state powers to local

authorities to give them more responsibility and more

ability to negotiate with foreign entities. In fact, the

limited space given to the Regions of France on the

international level is certainly due to the tradition of the

indivisibility of the French state and to the role that the

Regions have in the Constitution. As already mentioned,

the constitutional revision of 2003 was a turning

point, because it was assigned primary legislative powers to

the Regions (which previously belonged only to

the government). Do not think that the French local

authorities have the political prerogatives which instead

have the Italians (with reference to regional sources of

primary rank).

We have to take into account the external relations.

“L’action a l’étranger” (this is the way in which M.C.SPECCHIA

defines the international relations of the French local

authorities) means the legal relationship implemented by the

local authorities and aimed at creating partnerships with

local authorities of third countries; third parties that not

necessarily have to be geographically close to the French

state. The sovereignty of the French state is not limited

whenever are relations between local authorities of

different states. We must take into account the division of

powers between State and Regions: The French doctrine

distinguishes between political powers (of the state) and

administrative powers (given to the local authorities). In

this way the doctrine introduces a difference between the

external actions of local authorities and state powers in

foreign policy; a difference involving the constitutional

recognition of the external actions of local authorities and

that represents the power of free administration of the

regions. The art. 72 of the French Constitution is crucial

in the treatment of regulation of local authorities: is

established that “they are free to administer theirselves” (“s’administrent

librement”). Above all is protected the respect for the law,

placed as a limit to the external action of local

authorities: this prevent to the regions the overrunning of

the sphere of competences of the state (among them is the

foreign policy). Regions can then take decisions on those

matters which can best be realized at their level. In fact,

Article 72 provides for the competitive system between the

State and Regions, according to which there is a division of

responsibilities between them. At this point it is necessary

to take into consideration the role of local authorities on

the international scene: recognition of their competence at

international level puts them in direct competition with the

state, because of their intervention in matters that were

traditionally covered by state reserve. Decentralization on

the one hand and Community law on the other hand, play a

role of pressure on the French centralism; pressure that

wants to strip the State of certain powers. Because of that,

in the future could fade the idea of Nation.

There has been a process of recognition of the existence of

external activities of local authorities by the

jurisprudence.

a) Primarily, the State Council (Conseil d’Etat) has given

the interpretation of the concept of local interest; it

has identified the principles from which can be deduced

the interest of a local authority to exercise certain

powers. These principles are the following: the

existence of a public interest, the presence of a

public need to satisfy, the neutrality of the local

authority over political conflicts.

b) Second, the Constitutional Court ruled to recognize

external action to local authorities too. It considered

that local authorities could be part of an

international organization with legal personality,

without this undermine the State sovereignty and its

exercise (Const. Court, decision n. 94-358 DC, January

26, 1995). The constitutional council limits the powers

of local authorities only if the agreements are

concluded with foreign law, based on the principle of

national sovereignty.

DECENTRALIZED COOPERATION . Today the decentralized cooperation

means  the use of legal systems that local authorities have

to implement their capacity to act outside: included in the

concept of external action of the French territorial

communities, there are border cooperation, interregional

cooperation, cooperation with local authorities of foreign

countries, external relations with overseas communities. The

constitutional reform of 2003 gave limited powers to local

authorities and does not provide any jurisdiction in foreign

relations, although not totally rule out the hypothesis of

the competence of the French regions in EU decision making.

Cross-border cooperation, which corresponds to neighborly

relations that are established between adjacent local

authorities that share a border area with France, differs

from the decentralized cooperation, which includes all the

actions of international cooperation ending for common

interests between local French and foreign local authorities

(fields ranging from humanitarian action to that statement).

With the laws of 1982 in terms of domestic law, decentralized

cooperation received legal recognition. The law 82-213 says

that with the permission of the government regional

council can arrange regular contact (within the CBC)

with Foreigners who have devolved a common border with

the region of France; were later also included the

municipalities and departments, as well as was established

that cross-border cooperation requires certain formalities

such as an agreement or authorization.

To develop decentralized cooperation, the French

legislature, since the early nineties, has

provided the institutional figure of the Groupement

d'intérêt Public (GIP), a non-profitinstitution created for

the purpose of establishing cultural cooperation

and research; tool that promotes collaboration at several

levels of territorial government levels is apractice

established in the early eighties. Framework law of

1992 extended the foreign powers of local authorities in

terms of decentralized cooperation; the formula provided is

the contract. French public authorities may enter

into contracts with local authorities abroad; there are no

references to the territorial contiguity. Bodies of

decentralized cooperation can invest GIP or company of mixed

economy. Article 133 of the Law of 1992 says that GIP can be

created "to perform activities of incentive policies for

social development and urban" and "deal with what is

required by the cross-border and interregional cooperation

programs involving the local authorities member states of the

European community".

In addition to GIP, art. 133 regulates the participation of

foreign local authorities in the capital of

a local SEM, which can be created to make planning or

execution of public services, industrial or business trends.

Both GIP and SEM are established in a complex way: then the

local authorities often turn to private associations, such as

the Groupement européen d’intérét économique (GEIE), with only

economic vocation. A further opening of the French

recognition of International competence of the Regions has

had with the Law 82-1171 on the DOM, which provides that the

regional councils of DOM can be consulted on the draft of

Regional cooperation existing between the French State and

the States of the Indian Ocean and the Guyana’s in the

economic sphere, social and scientific. the sphere of

allocation of DOM in order to international relations is as

follows:

a. In matters reserved to the State, President of the

Regional Council may be authorized by the executive to

negotiate agreements with States, territories or

neighboring Regions;

b. In matters reserved to the regions, Regional assemblies

may ask the State to allow their Presidents to

negotiate, in accordance with International obligations,

agreements with States, territories or neighboring

Regions: the project must be approved by the Regional

Council. Being delegated competence, Presidents acting

as officials of the State.

c. In the matters reserved to both State and Regions, we

must distinguish between the case in which the Regional

Council has had the delegation for negotiation and

ratification of the agreement and the case in which the

monocratic territorial body has not received this

delegation. In this second supposition, the Conseil

opposed to the participation of the President of the

Regional Council to ratification of the agreement,

because with no delegation he would act as a

representative of the territory, not of the State.

SOURCES OF INTERNATIONAL LAW FOR THE REGULATION OF DECENTRALIZED

COOPERATION . With regard to cross-border regional cooperation,

is necessary to draw the European framework Convention on

Transfrontier Cooperation between territorial authorities,

signed in Madrid in 1980 and ratified by France in 1983. The

Convention require a commitment (by the participating

countries) to promote trans frontier cooperation of the sub-

national authorities. The ratification by France was

accompanied by a statement of reserve, with which France

declared that there would be application of the rules of the

Convention only with the signing of interstate agreements. In

this way, France introduced a major limitation to the freedom

of local authorities in terms of decentralized cooperation.

French state made real the uncertainty, present at the

Constitutional level, on the development of external action

of local authorities. The development of external action of

local authorities has always been a kind of threat to the

State authority and to the principle of unit of the French

Republic. In the Convention there are formulas of agreements,

covering six types of topics: groups of local authorities,

cross-border associations, bodies of cross-border

cooperation, contracts of private law for the provision of

services between border authorities, arrangements for the

management of public cross-border affairs, contracts of

public law for the provision of services between border

authorities. The last two categories of contracts are aimed

to provide public services abroad and the creation of cross-

border bodies under public law with legal personality. The

Convention specifies that each state has the ability to

request, before the conclusion of such contracts under public

law, a prior conclusion of interstate agreements (as agreed

upon by France in the ratification of the Convention). In any

case, applies the principle that the local authority should

enter into agreements only within their own power. In

addition to this Convention, the Council of Europe launched

an Additional Protocol on November 1995. In the article 1 of

this Protocol, is stressed again the right of local

authorities to conclude trans frontier cooperation

agreements, taking as a limit its powers, the national law

and the international obligations. These Trans frontier

cooperation agreements has the same value, in the national

level, of the acts that the local authority make. Protocols

of Agreement on cooperation, concluded by the French regional

authorities with cross-border authorities, are of minor

importance. These Protocols are aimed at create communities

of work on common interests and problems. Other international

instruments are agreements between states for cross-border

cooperation; the creation of this type of agreements dates

back to the Franco-Spanish treaties of Bayonne (concluded in

1856, 1858, 1866).

SOURCES OF FRENCH NATIONAL LAW.

According to the Articles 19 and 52 of the Constitution of

1958, the President of the Republic and the Government have

the competence in the field of negotiation and conclusion of

international treaties involving the State. These

Constitutional dispositions don’t involve the field of the

decentralized cooperation. The Constitution of France

doesn’t contain express provisions in terms of external

actions of the local and regional authorities. French local

authorities exercise the powers that the legislature granted

them through free decisions subject to legal supervision.

The actions taken by the local authority concern: the

inhabitants of the territorial community; the relationships

with the central State authorities: taking into account

Plans Contracts concluded with the State or with the other

local authorities in France, I have to explain that Plan

Contract is a new instrument of approach between State,

Regions and local communities, which is realized with a

particular form of subsidiarity. The phenomenon of

contracting in France involves all the fields of the public

law, of the management of the territory and of the public

services. This model of policy-making rule the relations

between the national policy and local policy. The

contractual instrument allows to keep that connection with

the central State typical of the French centralist

conception. The contract as a way of realization of the

principle of subsidiarity, is that the French system of

administration of services is characterized by a very

intense level of intergovernmental relations, for which

agreements between local authorities appear to be the most

suitable instrument to deal with the sorts of issues. In

other institutional realities, the instrument used for this

purpose is Regulation. We can identify four different types

of contracts (those for the Financing, those for

Cooperation, those for the exercise of the competences,

those for the administrative assistance). The Plan Contracts

have to be considered as the key tool for the development

and the territorial policy and as an element of real

participation of the local authority in the choices and in

the definitions of their own develop, in the field of the

recognition of their autonomy. The legal nature of the Plan

Contracts has been clarified by the State Council, which has

defined these contracts as instruments to recognize mutual

obligations between the parties (so one of the parties can

have compensation in the event of a possible infringements

of the contractual provisions by the other party. In this

contest, the Region plays a key role, because it become the

interlocutor of the central Government and local actor for

the development of Plan Contracts; the external dimension,

developed through relations with foreign authorities. The

external dimension of the powers conferred to the local

authorities meets the limit of the powers of the state

services, which define and protect the national interests.

The response of the State bodies is next to the initiative

of decentralized cooperation exercised outside the national

territory. On the level of ordinary legislation were

introduced innovations in cross-border cooperation since

twentieth century. The law of 1982 established that the

Regional Councils could have contacts with decentralized

communities of different countries, who must have in common

with the French territorial communities a border. These

rules were highly restrictive because: only Regions can work

in the field of cross-border cooperation; are considered

only cross-border Regions, with a limitation of the

international cooperation; is required the previous

consensus of the central government of Paris; the external

action resolves itself into mere contact, so that it will

lead to a minimalist concept of decentralized cooperation.

Confined spaces of concrete operations, recognized in 1982

to the decentralized international cooperation of local

authorities in France, have been expanded in 1983 by Prime

Minister Mauroy. He pointed out that external contacts could

be established by regions, but also by municipalities and

departments; in addition, actions outside of the local

authorities were permitted regardless of the presence of a

common border. We need to understand this measure of the

Prime Minister to clarify an issue that is regulated by art.

72 of the Constitution. A new body was created by the Prime

Minister Mauroy; the Delegate to the external action of

local authorities. The Minister of the external

relationships has the power to make negotiations, on behalf

of the central Government of France, with foreign States and

international organizations. But if there are external

measures developed by local or regional

authorities interfering with the national foreign policy,

the Ministry of Foreign Affairs coordinates and monitors

decentralized cooperation agreements, even if they do not

commit the French Republic towards foreign States or

international organizations. The “Délégué pour l’action extérieure des

collectivités locales” has to advise on the questions about the

relationships between French local authorities and the

foreign sub-national entities. Special arrangements in the

field of external action were introduced in 1982 for the

Overseas Regions (Guadalupe, Guyana, Martinique, Reunion).

THE RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN FRENCH LOCAL AUTHORITIES AND EU . We have to

take into account the relations with the EU institutions and

the Community decision-making process. The participation of

the French Regions to the process of elaboration of

Community policies is quite weak compared to the similar

Italian territorial entities. The relations with EU is

indirect, mediated by the constitutional orders of the

States and conditioned by the tradition of local government

of individual nations. European subsidiarity wants to

centralize again, this time at the supranational level, the

scope of intervention of the Community institutions,

allowing the extension of their powers beyond the powers

given them by the Treaty. French regional subsidiarity want

to make active the principle of the good performance of the

free administration of local authorities. The Art. 72 is

therefore inappropriate in defining the division of

responsibilities for each subject area, that also offers

Community intervention by local authorities. The legislature

has the freedom to transfer the skills with the only limit

to identify the most appropriate level of territorial

administration for the exercise of an allocation of

competence. The art .1 of the Constitution does not

favor the assignment, to the French territorial, of

legislative powers that exceed the authorization of

Parliament. The transfer of legislative powers is an

important step for future involvement of local

authorities in community decisions, which at the time in

France is centralized in the hands of the executive; and the

constitutional law of 2003 did not introduce innovations

such as to induce the French government to involve local

authorities in Community policies. The institutional

structure of France offers no space for Regions for

intervention in decision-making process: this role is played

by the Executive and Parliament. French local authorities

are involved at European level through the phenomenon of

“institutional lobbing” (practiced by public bodies and occurs

with representative offices placed in institutional

community). These representative offices are constituted in

various ways: by a single Region or a large town, by two or

more Regions (or municipalities) in France, by two or more

Regions from different States who have common interests to

be protected (in this case the trans-national cooperation

joins the representation of Regional interests at European

level). The purpose of the representative offices in

Bruxelles is to know in real time the news about local

interest to access to EU funds and, also, to influence the

content of the Community decision. . The regional lobbyist

must be a representative of a local authorities, should be

familiar with EU decision making, have to promote dialogue

with European officials and must prepare reports on the

official concerned. Lobbying policy emphasizes the

institutional weakness of the Regions in the Community.

Institutional lobbying, on the one hand, highlights the

fragmented scene in which are the Regional realities of

Europe, separated by policy and legal differences, on the

other hand, expresses the adherence by the European

Commission to informal contacts (it, to enhance its ability

to negotiation, takes these forms of consultation with

Regional representatives, to have the consent of local

governments on their own initiatives). Currently the regions

have only an advisory role in decision making and each

national parliament should consult regional parliaments with

legislative powers. The European Commission has stressed

that the involvement of regions in European policy must

remain a matter of domestic constitutional law, even if the

neutrality feature of the EU is disappearing. Therefore,

there is a gradual erosion of the state structure for the

loss of sovereignty due to pressures from below (regions)

and from above (EU): the state continues to be central in

the Community process (guarantee of a minimum regional

presence in the European context).

CONCLUSIONS . Today we can see a progressive expansion of the

notion of the local public interest in France. Therefore,

this local public interest is involved in initiatives

undertaken by the French decentralized communities in the

field of international relations. The actions of the local

authorities in the decentralized cooperation must respect

the neutrality principle, avoiding taking part in

international disputes or matters of a political nature. The

correlation between international action of local

authorities and the need to develop decentralized

cooperation in accordance to the public interest, leads to

the exclusion that the decentralized local authorities may

be interested in issues concerning the foreign policy of the

French State. However, there is an area in which the French

territorial communities are regarded as a kind of almost-

subjects of international law: it is the external action of

a humanitarian nature, based on the principles of

international solidarity.

The local authorities in the exercise of the external

action: are limited by the area of skills defined by the

national law and they cannot work in the sphere of

competences reserved to the State or to other territorial

communities; they must respect the international commitments

of the France; they cannot conclude conventions with a

foreign State; the conventions concluded with foreign local

authorities are subjected to the legal control by the common

law; the local authorities of States members of EU can be

part of two types of bodies (GIP or SEM); they can be part

of foreign law’s bodies, only if they comply their

responsibilities of national law. The formula that involves

the creation of two major categories of local authorities,

metropolitan and overseas, has been fully accepted by the

constitution with the reform of March 2003: in this way is

facilitated testing of models for the protection of local

interests, but it is also complicated the emersion of

representative institutions at the European level of the

Regional level. There is not, in the Constitutional reform,

a reference to the relationships between local authorities

and Community and International order. A way to overcome

this lack, is offered by the instruments of the

decentralized cooperation.

FOREIGN POWER OF ITALIAN REGIONS . The Italian Constitution does

not provide a definition of "foreign power" of the region:

is therefore established the practice of using this phrase

in the conventional sense, in order to identify all the

skills that the regions (and the Autonomous Provinces) may

exercise with external projection compared to the national

borders. This phenomenon has come for reasons related to the

gradual evolving of regional activities imposed by the need

to compensate, in terms of separation of powers, the danger

that to the internationalization of many subjects could

correspond a generalized centralization in the hands of

central government. We must distinguish the Regional

external power from the International and Communitarian

relations and from the International policy. Taking into

account the State ownership of the International relations,

any external action of the Regions is insignificant to the

International order (or, in some way, it must be accompanied

by an agreement concluded by the State). In the Constitution

of 1948 was not provided the attribution of external powers

to the local entities of wide area. The practice has seen

the affirmation of a limited exercise of activities and

relationships with local authorities and foreign States by

the Regions. In the period before the 2001 reform of the

regions enjoyed a limited foreign power of which had,

however, to give an account to the State, from which they

were required to obtain the prior "green light" in the form

of consensus. Even in the absence of constitutional

provisions in the matter, the will of the Regions to find

opportunities to project its own sphere of activities beyond

national borders, however, had found outlets in the practice

of international relations. The possibility for Regions to

relate to foreign countries, however, assumes importance

since the competence of the Regional cease to have a

territorial dimension but they take national dimensions. In

this regard, I invoke the Case No. 170/75 in which the

Constitutional Court stated that "the formulation of its

agreements with subjects of any other jurisdiction belonged

exclusively to the organs of a sovereign state". The d.p.r.

n°616/77, reserving to the State functions relating to

international relations in matters transferred or delegated

to the Regions, stated that "the same could not carry out

promotional activities without prior agreement with the

Government and in acts of government policy and

coordination". The foreign power of the Regions has

established itself in the Italian order in the last thirty

years, during which was identified, in the foreign Regional

power, a co-operative procedure consisting in the duty of

the Regions to inform the State and the corresponding duty

of the State to give reasons for any block of activities,

except the always possible Constitutional conflict. The

result is an initial tolerance by the State of some Regional

foreign activities. The Constitutional Court has defined

legal limitations to the development of the relations

between State and Regions in the field of foreign power; it

is the instrument for the adaptation, to new realities, of

the constitutional system. However, is reserved to the State

determination of foreign policy, the conclusion of

International treaties (ius contraendi) and the control over

the regional activities (the principle of unity and

indivisibility of the Republic). The Regions can exercise

the foreign power only in the matters of their competence.

Until the EU has begun to assume importance to the regions,

especially with regard to provision of funding to support

activities of all kinds, the only foreign power which was

related to Regional sphere was purely international. In this

sense, the regions were authorized by the Government in

various ways to carry out activities of various sorts, from

the promotional activities to the International activities.

It is essentially a set of activities, for content and

procedures, that do not commit the State and do not affect

significantly in the foreign policy and International

relations of the State. The new formulation of the article

117 of the Italian Constitution provides:

Exclusive legislative competence of the State in

matters of foreign policy, international relations and

relations of the State with the EU;

Concurrent legislative competence of the Regions with

regard to international relations and to relations with

the EU;

The Regional expertise for the implementation and

execution of international agreements and acts of the

European Union;

The opportunity for the Regions, in matters within its

competence, to conclude agreements with States and

agreements with local authorities of another State, in

the cases and forms governed by the laws of the State.

Was introduced the negotiating power of the Regions (treaty-

making power), real innovation of the reform. The State,

while reserving the power to the Regions to stipulate in

matters within its competence, it is placed in a position to

be able to restrict them, so it seems preferable to speak of

"international legitimacy" of the Regions after the reform,

indicating that internal dimension. With the Law “La

Loggia”, was defined the treaty-making power of the Regions,

even if there are limitations to avoid that the Regions

conclude policy agreements with other States, which can bind

Italy (as sais art. 80 of the Constitution). The limitation

of power is exercised by the State with the necessity of

providing to the Regions the full powers of signature, after

having verified whether the initiatives of Regional

expertise in the International sphere are in conflict with

the addresses of foreign policy. The regions are therefore

obliged to inform the State in advance of their wish to

share. The agreements concluded in the absence of the

transfer of full powers are null and void. The

Constitutional Law 3 / 2001 introduces some significant with

regard to relations between Regions and Community legal

order. In particular, participation of the Regions

concerning the stages of formation and application of

Community law, the law “La Loggia” states that «Regions and

Autonomous Provinces directly contribute, in matters within their competence, to

the formation of Community acts, participating, in scope of the delegations of the

Government, to the Council's activities and working groups and committees of the

Council and the European Commission, following modes to concert in the State-

Regions Conference». With regard the reception of Community acts

in the Italian order, Regions have a leading role within the

areas of its competence. Here an abstract of the art. 117 of

the Italian Constitution to better understand the role of

the Regions: «The Regions and Autonomous Provinces [...] ensure the

implementation and execution of international agreements and acts of the

European Union, in accordance with the rules of procedure established by State

law, which governs the procedures for exercising the replacement power in case

of failure»: The Constitutional provision has highlighted the

role of government in the exercise of a replacement power.

The Regional foreign power, now takes a different dimension

according to the international activity regard relations

with to EU Member States or foreign to it. In the first

case, regional autonomy is complete and free from

constraints imposed by the law “La Loggia”; outside the EU,

the ability of the Regions to take commitments, binding the

State, at the International level, must be exercised in the

fields defined by the legislature and with respect to the

foreign policy of the Italian State. Therefore, the treaty-

making power of the Regions is a mere proposal right and can

be always limitated by the State. Finally, Regions do not

have an International subjectivity, because they are not

involved in the foreign policy of the State, although there

were decisions that would affect the Regional territories.

«... We Regions with legislative powers have the right, and in a certain measure

also the duty, to claim a direct participation in the process of taking

Community decisions. A government that has to implement - and in

some cases develop - a Community provision legislatively, should be able to

participate in his genesis, for reasons relating to the effectiveness and proper

application of this rule. In addition to the simple application, the assumption by

us of concrete areas of competences, complementary to the action of the Union,

makes us the key elements for good operation of the latter. The European Union

can not only work from top to bottom. It is necessary that the government closest

to citizens apply their own policies and take action in other areas. And especially

considering that very often we work together with other Regions - think of border

cooperation and interregional - and therefore we are weaving a real European

network, a network that gives to the European building cohesion and filling it with

content…».

Statement on Governance in Europe.

Roberto FORMIGONI, Presidente della Regione Lombardia,

Erwin TEUFEL - Ministerpräsident von Baden-Württemberg,

Jordi PUJOL i SOLEY - President de la Generalitat de

Catalunya

Anne-Marie COMPARINI - Présidente du Conseil régional Rhône-

Alpes

Milan October 10, 2001

SITOGRAPHY

www.dpce.it

www.scienzegiuridiche.unical.it

www.biblioteca.formez.it

www.gips.unisi.it

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Integrazione Europea e asimmetrie regionali : modelli a confronto, G.

D’Ignazio, Giuffrè.

Corso di diritto pubblico, Barbera-Fusaro, il Mulino.