Special rules for performance of acts regarding elections in course of alteration of administrativeterritorial organisation initiated by Government of the Republic upon implementation of administrative reform

(1) The acts regarding elections required for alteration of administrative-territorial organisation initiated by the Government of the Republic are performed pursuant to the procedure provided in this Act, the Administrative Reform Act and the Territory of Estonia Administrative Division Act, taking account of the special rules provided in this section.

(2) Unless the local authorities have performed the acts regarding elections or adopted the relevant resolutionsnot later than by 15 June 2017 or unless these resolutions are identical, the acts regarding elections are performed not later than by 19 July 2017 as follows:

1) the number of the council members of a local authority to be formed upon merger is approved by therelevant county governor according to the number of members of the next council prescribed in the second sentence of subsection 1 and in subsection 2 of § 7 of this Act in such way that the minimum number of the council members provided in subsection 2 of § 7 corresponding to the number of residents of the local authority to be formed as a result of the merger is determined to be the number of the council members;

2) based on the provisions of subsection 5 of § 8 of this Act, the relevant county governor forms one electoraldistrict in the territory of a new rural municipality or city to be formed upon merger, unless the alteration of administrative-territorial organisation initiated by the Government of the Republic comprises local authorities which have agreed, in the course of alteration of administrative-territorial organisation initiated by the municipal councils, on the formation of more than one electoral district;

3) the relevant county governor forms voting districts in the territory of a new rural municipality or city to beformed upon merger based on the voting districts formed in the rural municipalities or cities to be merged for the previous elections according to the valid regulations of the municipal administrations of the rural municipalities or cities to be merged regarding the formation of voting districts and the provisions of § 22 of this Act;

4) the relevant county governor appoints, based on the electoral committees formed by the councils of the localauthorities to be merged, the members and up to two alternate members of the electoral committee of a rural municipality or city to be formed upon merger, pursuant to the provisions of subsection 1 of § 14 and subsection 2 of § 17 of this Act, and specifies the location of the electoral committee.

(3) In the event specified in clause 1 of subsection 2 of this section, a number exceeding the minimumpermitted number of the council members provided in subsection 2 of § 7 of this Act is determined to be the number of the council members if one of the councils of the merging local authorities has approved a larger number as the number of the council members.

(4) Where the municipal councils pursuant to clause 2 of subsection 2 of this section have agreed on theformation of several electoral districts, the county governor forms separate electoral districts in the territory of the relevant merging local authorities.

(5) The rural municipality or city electoral committee appoints the members and alternate members of avoting district committee pursuant to the provisions of § 23 of this Act. In such case, the resolutions of the council provided in § 23 are adopted by a rural municipality or city electoral committee and the acts of a rural municipality or city secretary are performed by the chair of a rural municipality or city electoral committee.

(6) Clerical support to a rural municipality or city electoral committee and voting district committee is providedby the county government.

(7) The expenditure of a rural municipality or city electoral committee and voting district committee related tothe organisation of elections is covered pursuant to the procedure established on the basis of subsection 3 of § 58 of the State Budget Act.

(8) The provisions of subsections 2‒4 of this section apply also to the alteration of administrative-territorialorganisation of the rural municipalities and cities at the initiative of the municipal council specified in Chapter 2 of the Administrative Reform Act, unless local authorities have performed the acts regarding elections or adopted the relevant resolutions by the date specified in subsection 2 of this section or unless these resolutions are identical.

[RT I, 21.06.2016, 1 – entry into force 01.01.2017]