Local Public Finances 2020 — Papers 2 and 3

To improve Parliament’s information, since 2019 the Court has presented its annual report on local public finances in two stages. Issue 1, on the financial situation in 2019, was published last June. Booklets 2 and 3, published jointly, focus on the impact of the health crisis on local finances, and one aspect of local public management — this year, a review of the implementation of metropolises. Mobilised alongside the state to deal with the health crisis, local authorities will see their financial situation deteriorate in 2020. Of a moderate overall scale, the impact of the crisis will be very uneven across the categories of local authorities and will increase disparities. Moreover, the first assessment of the establishment of the 21 metropolises examined in the report is unconvincing. Their creation has not yet had the expected structuring effects in terms of mutualisation, transfer of competence and outreach.