In four rulings dated 17 November 2023, the Luxembourg Constitutional Court answered preliminary questions put to it in disputes involving the municipalities of Leudelange and Niederanven.
The question relates to the definition of the concept of “adjusted population” (population ajustée), which is used by two laws affecting the financial resources of the municipalities in Luxembourg. One of the laws uses the concept to determine the amount to be paid to each municipality from the balance of the “Global Endowment Fund for Municipalities” (Fonds de dotation globale des communes) and the other law uses the concept to determine the amount of contributions that each municipality must pay to the “Employment Fund” (Fonds de l'Emploi).
In 2017 and 2018, none of the aforementioned laws gave a precise definition of the concept of "adjusted population". The Constitutional Court was asked whether the absence of a precise legal definition would be consistent with the constitutional principle of municipal autonomy provided for in Article 107 of the Constitution and Article 9 of the European Charter of Local Self-Government of 15 October 1985. According to the Constitutional Court, the absence of a precise legal definition is contrary to the principle of municipal autonomy, given that requirements relating to the financial resources of municipalities must be determinable by a legal text on the basis of sufficiently precise conditions and procedures set out in the law.
The Court's conclusion should not have a major impact on Luxembourg legislation insofar as, from 2019, a legislative amendment has introduced a precise definition into Luxembourg legislation.
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