At the constitutive session of the Committee for Social Affairs of the Union of Municipalities of Montenegro, the following was elected Chair of the Committee Vesna Samardžić, Secretary of the Secretariat for Local Self-Government of the Municipality of Herceg Novi, while the position of Vice-Chair was awarded to Sanja Đondović, the secretary of the Secretariat for Culture, Social Affairs and Other Matters of the Municipality of Pljevlja.
At its first session, chaired by Vesna Samardžić, the Committee issued a negative opinion on the Draft Law on Amendments to the Law on Sports. As explained, the proposed legislation establishes a Sports Development Fund, which would be financed in part through allocations from the Equalization Fund amounting to 5% of its resources.
The Committee warned that this provision is contrary to the Law on Local Government Financing, which clearly stipulates that the resources of the Equalization Fund are intended exclusively for the financing of municipalities. Reducing the Fund in this manner would directly affect the 17 municipalities that rely on it, decreasing their allocations by approximately EUR 2.5 million annually, a measure that local governments consider unacceptable.
The Union of Municipalities will submit the Committee’s opinion to the Ministry of Sports and Youth, with the expectation that the proposed arguments will be duly taken into consideration. It was emphasized that the Union of Municipalities will continue to consistently advocate for the interests of its member municipalities throughout the legislative process.
The Committee also considered the Draft Law on Amendments to the Law on Youth, concluding that most of the proposals put forward by the Union of Municipalities had been taken into account during the work of the Working Group. Particular praise was expressed for the Ministry of Sports and Youth’s partnership-oriented approach toward local governments. The Committee also highlighted the need for youth service administrators to be formally recognized within the public sector salary system, in order to ensure the continuity of their work and the availability of youth services to young people.
The Committee, composed of seven members representing local governments across Montenegro, monitors and reviews draft laws, strategies, and other regulations in the field of social affairs, and provides opinions and recommendations aimed at protecting the interests of municipalities and improving local public policies.
