They warned that the proposed Law on Sports threatens municipalities with a reduction of 2,5 million euros per year

The Committee for Social Activities of the Union of Municipalities of Montenegro held its constituent session, at which the Secretary of the Secretariat for Local Self-Government of the Municipality of Herceg Novi, Vesna Samardžić, was elected as the president of that body, while the Secretary of the Secretariat for Culture, Social and Other Issues of the Municipality of Pljevlja, Sanja Đondović, was elected as the vice president.

At the first session, chaired by Vesna Samardžić, the Committee "gave a negative opinion" on the Bill on Amendments to the Law on Sports. As explained, the proposed law establishes a Sports Development Fund, which would be partly financed from the Equalization Fund in the amount of five percent.

"The Committee warned that this provision is contrary to the Law on Financing Local Self-Government, which clearly defines that the funds of the Equalization Fund are intended exclusively for financing municipalities. By reducing it, the 17 municipalities that are beneficiaries of the Fund would be directly harmed, as their funds would be reduced by around 2,5 million euros per year, which is unacceptable for local self-governments," the Association of Municipalities said.

They said that they would submit the Committee's statement to the Ministry of Sports and Youth, with the expectation that the proposed arguments would be accepted. It was emphasized that the Union of Municipalities "will continue to consistently represent the interests of its members in further legal proceedings."

The Committee also considered the Draft Law on Amendments to the Law on Youth, assessing that most of the proposals of the Union of Municipalities have been taken into account in the work of the Working Group so far. The partnership between the Ministry of Sports and Youth and local governments was particularly praised. The Committee also pointed out the need to recognize administrators of youth services in the salary system, which would ensure the continuity of their work and the availability of services to young people.

The Committee, which consists of seven members - representatives of local governments from Montenegro, monitors and considers drafts and proposals of laws, strategies and other regulations in the field of social activities, and provides opinions and proposals to protect the interests of municipalities and improve local public policies.