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European Territorial Authority of Alsace – towards a principle of differentiation

March 2019

European Territorial Authority of Alsace – towards a principle of differentiation

The French decree establishing the European Territorial Authority of Alsace through the merger of the Bas-Rhin and Haut-Rhin Departments was published on 28 February. The new authority will come into being on 1 February 2021.

Deliberations on the draft law will begin in the Senate in the first week of April. Jacqueline Gourault, the Minister for Territorial Cohesion, who brought forward the draft law, explained in a press release:

"The future territorial authority, which will be within the Grand Est Region, will exercise the competences of departments, but will also enjoy […] specific competences tailored to Alsace’s particular characteristics. These new responsibilities thus anticipate the principle of differentiation of territorial authorities’ competences that is proposed by the Government as part of the constitutional revision. […] While respecting the competences of the Grand Est Regional Council and the Strasbourg Eurometropolis, the European Territorial Authority of Alsace will be the lead partner for cross-border cooperation in its territory. It will be responsible for drawing up an Alsace cross-border cooperation plan, which will contain an operational component relating to structural projects and a component concerned with cross-border movements."

Draft law and impact assessment [FR].

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