Local Government Revenue Systems in EU Countries and North Macedonia

The European Union does not have a jurisdiction over the organization and funding of the local government. Regulating local government is in the jurisdiction of the member states, although in the federal (Austria, Germany) and union member states (the UK) the federal units (states) and devolved governments will regulate local government affairs. As there is no single dominant model of local government organization and funding, the differences amongst the countries are significant, despite the fact that all the EU member states have ratified the European Charter of Self-Government, which provides a very broad framework for regulating local government. The study has shown that there is no dominant model of local government organization and local government fiscal decentralization. Even in the countries where local government has had long tradition, where the autonomy is confirmed by the Constitution (or the equivalent highest legal act), fiscal autonomy may not be guaranteed. Local government revenues, in the majority of the countries, highly depend on the tax sharing with and transfer from the central government.