10. COMMUNAL AND PROVINCIAL ADMINISTRATION. Local Government —The local government in Italy is adminis tered partly by bureaucratic functionaries ap pointed by the central government and partly by independent civic corporations under the administration of officials elected by the people. Many of the public services have in various portions of the kingdom special adminis trative officials. Thus, justice, the army and the navy, the administration of the mercan tile marine (heads of departments and mari time regions, and commanders of the ports) ; the Ministry of Industry and Agriculture (in spectors of industry, of mines and forests) ; postal communication, telegraphs and tele phones (departmental and local administra tion) ; higher and secondary instruction (uni versities, schools) finance (sub-treasurers). The greater number of the local services that are under government control are administered by prefects and sub-prefects. There is a pre fect, a political and administrative magistrate appointed and paid by the government in every province. This magistrate is assisted in the administration of the various services by other functionaries and by various colleagues.
Above all he is assisted by counsellors of the prefecture, who individually administer some of the various branches of the service, such as the superintendence of the communes, the chari table foundations, the public works, principally on the rivers (when there are not special com panies for the purpose, called partnerships), and on the government roads, the prisons, etc. The counsellors of the prefecture, three in num ber, constitute a council (the Council of the Prefecture), which gives advice to the Prefect on affairs of importance and audits the accounts of the communes. In the superintendence of the communes and the provinces, the Prefect is assisted by the provincial administrative a body presided over by the Prefect, consisting of two counsellors of the prefecture (besides a supplementary), and four other members (two supplementary) elected by the provincial council. The provincial aGiunta) is empowered to approve the most important acts of the communes and of the provinces. Five members of the gGiunta) constitute a tribunal for the consideration of various ad ministrative questions with appeal to Division IV and V of the Council-of-State. There is a Provincial Benevolent Committee to super intend the charitable foundations. In the de partment of elementary and secondary instruc tion, the Prefect is assisted by a superintendent of instruction and a school provincial council. Public hygiene is under the superintendence of a provisional physician and veterinary, and a provincial sanitary council. In forestry there is a provincial council of forestry.
The police department is also under the direction of the Prefect; it has many repre sentatives throughout the province according to the needs, police commissioners, sub-commis sioners, delegates and the regular police.
There is a Sub-Prefect, a functionary paid and appointed by the government, in every region or district. The regions and districts number 284. The Sub-Prefect has the same duties as the Prefect, especially as regards the police.
The Mayor of each commune acts as a gov ernment official in matters of general concern; he is dependent in this capacity on the Prefect and Ministry. In the small communes in the
same way the Mayor is head of the police.
The communes and provinces are independ ent public organizations under the administra tion of elected officials.
On 1 Jan. 1916 there were 8,343 communes. Some of these are large cities; others, little rural communes. All are civic corporations, organized uniformly according to the general law (Provincial and Communal Law of 4 May 1898, with various subsequent amendments). Latterly there has been manifested a tendency to establish special regulations, financial rules, according to the various character and needs of the communes (Laws for the Southern prov inces and the Islands, 1 July 1906). The affairs of every commune are administered by a Com munal Council, a aGiunta;) and a Mayor. The counsellors are elected by the electors of the commune. There are four general requisites in order to be entitled to vote: Italian citizen ship; and age qualification of 21 years; capacity to read and write; and that the citizen be of the male sex. The earlier restrictions were re moved by the electoral law of 30 June 1912. The election of members of the Communal Coun cil takes place every two years, when a third of the counsellors are elected. The election is on a single ticket which is voted on throughout the commune. The representations of the minority is assured by the fact that each elector is prohibited from inscribing on the ticket more than four-fifths of the names of the candidates for election. The vote is a secret one. All the electors are eligible for the position of Com munal Counsellor except in some cases of in compatibility. The Communal Council meets twice a year in ordinary session; and in ex traordinary session whenever it is necessary to do so. The power of deliberating on the inter ests of the commune belongs exclusively to the Communal Council. It decides on the regulation of local police, of hygiene, building permits, de termines within the limits of the law the com munal taxes, goes over the expense bills, ap proves the annual budget, nominates and licenses employees, and administers the wealth of the commune. The communal “Giuntao is composed of a number of members, varying from 10 to 2 (besides two to four supplementaries) according to the population of the commune. The mem hers of the *Giuntail are elected' by the Council, and chosen from among the Counsellors. They are all elected anew every four years. The prepares the matters of deliberation for the Council and itself deliberates on matters of secondary importance. It may, in case of urgency, deliberate on matters belonging to the Council; but these deliberations must be sub mitted to the Council for ratification at its first meeting. The Mayor may be recalled by the Council, suspended from office by the Prefect and removed by royal decree. The Mayor pre sides over and convokes the aGiuntap and the Council, and carries their deliberations into execution, makes stipulations for contracts, represents the commune in law, supervises the communal force of employees. In case of urgency, he may issue regulations in regard to public safety in matters of hygiene or building permits, which can be put into force at once.