Pregledni rad
LEGISLATIVE REGULATION GOVERNING BANKRUPTCY OF THE UNITS OF LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT - COMPARATIVE SOLUTIONS AND CROATIAN PERSPECTIVE
Dejan Bodul
; Pravni fakultet Sveučilišta u Rijeci
Sažetak
as a modern event in developed countries (USA, Chapter 9 of the Bankruptcy
Law) and developing countries also. (In 1996 Hungary introduced the Municipal
Debt Adjustment Act (the Act no. 25); In 1991 Bulgaria enacted the Law on Local
Self-Government and Local Administration, the Law no. 77, 17-IX-9, the last
amendments were introduced in 1999; South Africa introduced regulations on the
same legal issues with the 2001 Law no. 34; Brazil introduced the same Law no.
9496 in 1997, in 2006 Romania enacted bankruptcy provisions concerning the local
self-government within the Law on Local Public Finances, no. 273, § 74 and § 75).
Such legal experiences are important for normative consolidation and potential
reform and understanding of bankruptcy law as well as local self-government
law. Having in mind the institute of municipal bankruptcy from the USA law, the
author analyses possible methods according to which the model in question could
be incorporated within the Croatian law. First of all, the positive bankruptcy law,
at list for now, excludes a possibility to conduct bankruptcy proceedings over the
local self-government units (the Bankruptcy Act (hereinafter BA), Official Gazette,
no. 44/96, 29/99, 129/00, 123/03, 82/06 and 116/10, the Article 3, paragraph 2,
phrase 1). It would be more precise to point out that, at least for now, no concrete ex
post legal solutions have been existing in case of local unit insolvency.Therefore,
we should thing of the institute of bankruptcy of local self-government as an
option due to the fact that states, including Croatia, tend to decentralize services,
expenses, taxes and to increase their debts as well. The present article is of the most
importance for Croatian legislator bearing in mind that it presents the first overview
of models to resolve financial obstacles at the local level. In case if economic
resilience of the local unit encounters the unbearable financial difficulties, the
bankruptcy could be, although the least wanted, an option. The author in nutshell
gives an explanation for key characteristics and variations of the model of local
self-government bankruptcy in SAD and Hungary. As it is the case with bankruptcy
of legal persons, the philosophy of local self-government bankruptcy starts from
the assumption of economic preconditions to distribute risks, and consequently,
this creates a possibility for restructuration and financial adjustment. Nevertheless,
there is a certain specificity in legislator’s ambition to mitigate tensions between
the legitimate rights of creditors and the need to maintain important, public services
and to strengthen ex ante fiscal position of local self-government.Due to the extent
of discussed issues, the article presents a possibility to tackle some certain issues
regarding the decentralization and to offer an overview of numerous issues arising
from the bankruptcy of local self-government. The author gives his best efforts to emphasise, trying to immediately make it clear for the reader even in this overview,
the critical need to also analyse other options in post-transitional countries, which
should explore and present in systematic and impartial manner the alternatives for
insolvent local units and unsuccessful decentralisation.
Ključne riječi
decentralisation; local self-government; insolvency; bankruptcy
Hrčak ID:
87757
URI
Datum izdavanja:
16.4.2012.
Posjeta: 3.103 *