Sołectwo/en

VILLAGE (Polish: sołectwo) – a type of an → auxiliary unit of a rural municipality (in urban municipalities auxiliary units are usually: → housing estate, district). Institutions of the village mayor and village offices in Poland have been historically written in the functioning of local communities for centuries. The organisation and scope of activities of the v. are determined by the municipality council with a separate statute, after consultations with residents. The statute should specify: name and area of the v., principles and mode of selection of bodies, organisation and tasks of bodies, scope of tasks transferred to them for implementation. The resolution-making body in the v. is the village meeting, and the executive – the village administrator (sołtys). Detailed regulations regarding the organisation of the village meeting can be found in individual statutes. As a rule, the right to participate in such an assembly is vested in all residents of the v. with active electoral rights. The village meeting may be summoned by the village administrator, the village council or municipality local-government bodies (municipality council, village mayor) as well as at the request of a specific number of residents. Statutes usually contain the obligation to hold such meetings at least once a year. The activity of the village administrator is supported by the village council, which has no autonomous competences and is an entity with advisory and consultative powers. The village administrator and members of the village council are elected in a secret ballot, directly, from among an unlimited number of candidates, by permanent residents of the v. who are entitled to vote. In order to carry out the tasks of the v., the Act on the → village fund allows the separation of a part of the municipality’s budget for the implementation of the tasks of the v., while providing funds from the state budget for co-financing this fund, depending on the degree of affluence of the municipality [ P. Antkowiak ].

Literature: B. Dolnicki, Samorząd terytorialny, Warszawa 2016