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For over a hundred years, it is the republican State which, in France, has guaranteed the social cohesion of the nation: it is responsible for ensuring equal access for all to the major public services (education, health, justice, etc.) and respect for the law, as well as defending the country’s interests in the world. Why modernize its machinery? Because the world is changing. And in a changing world, this must move with the times if the State is to continue influencing the course of events, and to help take society in the direction democratically desired by the citizens. It is the ministries (1) which implement the public policies (Acts of Parliament, regulations, government measures, etc.) and see to it that they are complied with - hence the necessity to adapt their organization and functioning to political, social and economic changes in the country. This adaptation is all the more urgent because the decentralization legislation, which has transferred some central government powers to the regions, has overturned the "Jacobin" tradition in France whereby "everything came from Paris", i.e. from central government (1). This process of administrative modernization has gathered pace in the past ten years or so with the institution of a specific policy accompanied by technical and financial resources.

Main Areas of Work
Practicalities of reform
Notes

Modernization of France's administration has two major dimensions: bringing central government closer to the citizens, and increasing the effectiveness of national government.

Government serving the needs of the citizens.

There are too many forms, procedures are too complicated, you have to wait too long for a reply, there is no explanation of decisions, everything is too anonymous and so on - these are all criticisms traditionally levelled by the governed at an administration seen as omnipotent, remote and obsessed with petty details. A series of legislative and regulatory measures have therefore been taken in the past few years to make the administration more user-friendly and help the public in their dealings with what should no longer be an administrative jungle.

- Citizens’ rights strengthened. The Act of 12 April 2000 places certain duties on all ministries in their dealings with the public. Ministries are now required to acknowledge receipt of all communications. The time within which a reply must be sent is counted from the date of dispatch as attested by the postmark or any other recognized procedure, e.g. computer records. Officials must indicate their name and job title when dealing with the public - and the latter, if they so request, must be given an opportunity to comment before an adverse decision is taken concerning them. This recent legislation also facilitates public access to government documents.

- Administrative procedures simplified for individuals and companies. A long-term undertaking, the simplification of administrative formalities is being actively pursued. One example is the "prior administrative authorizations" which individuals, local authorities and businesses had to apply for (e.g. in order to engage in certain occupations). The ministry responsible for administrative reform, together with the ministries concerned, has scrutinized the some 4,000 existing regimes, and every year abolishes several hundred prior authorizations or turns them into simple permits issued directly by the préfet (2).

Much has also been done to simplify procedures by doing away with forms. Recent decisions include: abolition from 1 December 2000 of the "civil status form" (essentially, birth certificate together, in some instances, with marriage certificate) required for many everyday operations (application for family allowances, enrollment at educational establishments, etc.). Assuming a rate of one form per inhabitant per year, this is a savings of almost 60 million forms and many hours spent travelling to government offices and waiting at counters.

The drive to simplify the formalities required of companies has since 1997 been led by the office of the Minister of State for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises. Measures already applied include: reduction of the time taken to register companies, simplification of VAT declarations and the single declarations for social contributions and for new employees.

Furthermore, a decree of 2 December 1998 called upon every ministry to draw up an annual plan for the simplification of its formalities. This plan goes to the Interministerial Delegation for the Reform of the State (DIRE) and to the Commission for Administrative Simplification (COSA), a body created in 1998.

- New payment methods

Since the end of 1996, ministries, government agencies and public services have been gradually acquiring terminals for payments by bank card. This programme concerns the payment of duties and taxes to prefectures and sub-prefectures for vehicle registration documents, driving licences, excise stamps etc., to the public revenue department for fines, taxes, customs and indirect duties (tax revenues, excise stamps, road tax disks), to consulates (excise stamps in connection with the issue of civil status forms, visas, etc.). By the end of 1999, almost 9,000 sites were equipped with electronic payment terminals.

- Use of new technologies. Not only can users get direct information from public sites, they will also be able to perform an increasing number of operations without having to go out. Of 2,000 forms surveyed, about 600 were on line in 2000. And in 2001, there will be some twenty online procedures whereby individuals and companies can fill in standard forms on the Internet and e-mail them to the relevant office. Users without a computer will have access to fully-equipped neighbourhood offices and the assistance of trained staff.

- Improvement of the quality of services to users. Ministries have set up "quality procedures" within directorates which are in contact with users. These may include technical support (publication of guides, study days open to the managers and officials concerned), the display of quality targets in reception areas, and incentivization (publicity for commendable initiatives in ministerial house organs and on the Internet at www.innovations-services-publics.gouv.fr).

- Local services for users. Extending the "one-stop shopping" experiments of the past few years, new "public service centres" will offer, in one place, services which come under different ministries (central government and local authority services, social agencies, operators fulfilling a public service mission). In these multi-purpose facilities, specially trained volunteers welcome members of the public and dispense information and advice. They initiate certain administrative procedures and help users formulate and communicate the particulars of their case. They may even issue certain documents and take simple decisions. Starting in autumn 1996, a number of such centers were opened, on an experimental basis, in some twenty departments, and by 2000 there were 260 of them. The Act of 12 April 2000 gave them official status, specified procedures for setting them up, and spelled out their functions. Other local facilities, the "justice and law centers", established mainly in problem housing estates, deal with complaints concerning petty crime and provide advice and information (free interviews with solicitors, round-the-clock access to victim support groups, etc.).

- Resources geared to local needs. The decentralization policy is bringing the government closer to the citizens. Indeed, since 1 January 1998, all individual decisions concerning third parties and falling within the purview of the State have been taken at local level, most frequently by préfets (2).

So far as financial resources are concerned, decentralization aims to adapt public policies to the local context according to the following principle: ministries must put together all the funds they allocate to préfets (2) for each policy (e.g. agriculture, industry, roads). Only funds intended for operations of a national character will continue to be managed centrally.

As concerns the internal management of decentralized services placed under their authority, the préfets (2) now have more of a free hand to reorganize and assign staff: they are thus able to tailor staff resources to meet local needs.

Renovation of public management

The government has also set about modernizing the tools of state management. It has some assets with which to make a success of this reform: skilled staff and offices in every part of France. But this human capital and the material and financial resources still need to be used effectively.

- Human resources (3). Between now and 2012, 45% of Civil Service personnel will have retired. To cope with this mass exodus of experienced staff, the government has decided on a root and branch reform of its personnel management. It has set up a Public Employment Observatory (decree of 13 July 2000). This body is responsible for carrying out statistical studies, harmonizing information-gathering systems, instituting a prospective management of employment, and disseminating this information. By the start of 2002, every ministry will be equipped with a "prospective management plan for personnel, jobs and skills" (GPEEC). Concurrently, it is intended to do away with the statutory obstacles which prevent civil servants from transferring from one ministry to another in response to requirements and to their own wishes. Moreover, there will be new evaluation procedures so that better account can be taken in their career development of the skills they have acquired and results of their work.

Finally, the Civil Service is recruiting more qualified staff and providing them with in-service training. For example, online training is being organized in partnership with the National Distance Learning Centre (CNED). Government officials will be able to access interministerial training sessions via an Internet site, and an "extranet" will be set up to link the training services together. From 1 January 2002, future civil servants will even be able to sign up online to all competitive government examinations.

- New working methods made possible by information technologies. Electronic messaging and intranets are today accelerating the transmission of information and sharing of documents within ministries. Already in service in 25 departments and expected to be operational everywhere by the end of 2000, these information systems (SIT) are networking the State's decentralized services.

- Functioning of the restructured ministries. In conformity with the Prime Minister’s administrative circulaires of 8 July 1996 and 3 June 1998 [circulaires have the status of regulations if they contain instructions to civil servants], ministers are reorganizing their central administrations. The idea is to refocus them on their strategic functions (forward planning, policy making, regulation, piloting projects, supervision and evaluation) taking into account the decentralization of responsibilities and funding to the regions and departments. This reorganization has impelled the government to try out a system of contractualization between central administrations and local services. A ministerial circulaire of 12 July 1996 spelled out the contents and terms and conditions of this agreement between central government and local services. Concluded for a period of three years, this contract describes the services to be offered to users, the objectives and means required to attain them, and indicators to be used in monitoring the fulfilment of these commitments. The contract confers greater autonomy on the local services, which will henceforth be responsible for their internal management: negotiated to cover a period of several years, the budget they are allocated includes both staff resources and operating funds.

- Instituting a real estate policy. The government has about 150 million square metres of land and buildings at its disposal, but finds it difficult to keep tabs on them. To remedy the situation, the Ministry for the Economy and Finance has set up a delegation to look after real estate policy. For their part, in 2001 the ministries are to draw up an action programme designed to modernize the management of their real estate and bring it under tighter control.

- Control of budgetary procedures and management of public finances. In response to repeated criticism of "budgetary opacity" levelled at the ministries responsible for drafting finance bills, the presentation of these documents has recently been modified. Now easier to read, the nomenclature permits a clear identification of the various items of the national budget. The number of items has declined, falling from 1,092 in 1997 to 845 for the 2000 finance bill.

Better still, in 2000 the government announced a revision of the institutional ordinance of 2 January 1959, the reference text for the management of public finances. This reform will give managers greater flexibility in using the funds made available to them. Their work will no longer be expenditure-driven; instead, they will manage their funds in the light of objectives to be reached and will be accountable for their results.

- Preparation of and access to draft legislation. The Prime Minister’s administrative circulaire of 26 January 1998 extended the practice of preparing the impact studies that must be attached to any bill or draft decree in the Conseil d'Etat [highest administrative court and government adviser on questions arising in connection with legislation]. The studies analyze the pros and cons of proposed legislation as well as its practical implications. The public may consult these documents at the Parliament.

Another dysfunctional factor, the proliferation of rules and regulations, also needs to be brought under control. There are 8,000 Acts and 90,000 decrees today, plus the international legislation and European Directives. Too many texts, all over the place, couched in obscure language: the citizens, and sometimes the civil servants responsible for applying them, can no longer cope. This is why since 1999 the government has been engaged in a codification procedure which consists in simplifying and grouping together, area by area, all the existing official texts (Acts, decrees, orders, etc.). The codes already published in 2000 include: the monetary and financial codes, rural code and those relating to trade, the environment, roads, education and public health.

- Follow-up and evaluation of public policies. The decree of 18 November 1998 set up an interministerial mechanism for evaluating public policies. In place since February 1999, the National Evaluation Council (CNE), composed of public figures with appropriate expertise, prepares an annual work programme, submits it to the Prime Minister and makes it public. Subjects for 1999 and 2000: prevention and treatment of AIDS, youth employment schemes, policy on drinking water quality, job promotion in the commercial sector, housing in the overseas departments and territories, road safety, rural development policy and in-service training for civil servants.

Piloting projects

The Ministry for the Civil Service and Administrative Reform is responsible, in concert with the other ministries, for the general guidance of this modernization enterprise. Following a decree of 13 September 1995, amended on 8 July 1998, it is assisted by:

- The Interministerial Committee for Administrative Reform (CIRE) brings all ministers together at least once a year. Its role is to launch and pilot the reforms in the various ministries;

- The Interministerial Delegation for Administrative Reform coordinates the preparation of decisions to be taken and sees to it that they are carried out.

Tools and resources

- Multi-annual modernization programmes (PPM). A Prime Minister’s administrative circulaire dated 3 June 1998 called on ministries to prepare, in concert with staff representatives, modernization programmes tailored to their respective missions and to the expectations they are required to meet. These documents spell out each ministry's commitments and program the actions necessary to fulfill them.

- Internet and intranet. This has been a government priority since 1997, and the "government action programme for France’s entry into the information society" (PAGSI) is being applied widely in the reform of the administration. Using these technologies, ministries will henceforth be able to send data rapidly and exchange interministerial information (intranet). They can also, through each ministry’s website, circulate much practical information and offer interactive services to users, whether individuals or enterprises (information on benefits, timetables, contacts, supply of forms, etc.). In addition to websites for individual ministries, the government has set up interministerial sites. This means that the texts published in the Journal officiel (Acts, decrees, orders, circulaires) are directly accessible at www.legifrance.gouv.fr). Administrative innovations are presented by each ministry for the attention of other government services and the general public at a site created by the Interministerial Delegation for Administrative Reform: www.innovations-services-publics.gouv.fr. Finally, the French government now has its own portal at www.service-public.fr, opened on 23 October 2000. This gives access to 2,600 national and local French sites, 2,000 European and national public sites, 11,000 agencies and 13,000 direct government contacts. Equipped with a search engine, it offers a great quantity of information and administrative services, including 2,500 documents concerning rights and procedures, 600 online forms, a list of Civil Service vacancies and competitive examinations, specific pages for businesses, etc. To provide a contracting authority for interministerial projects and assist ministries, the government issued a decree on 27 August 1998 setting up an Interministerial Technical Support Mission for the development of information and communication technologies (MTIC).

- A fund for administrative reform. With 109 million francs (EUR 16.62 million) for the year 2000, this fund finances reforms worthy of emulation issuing either from the ministries in Paris or from their offices in the regions and departments.

- Decentralization policy. Continuing the implementation of the 1982 Acts on decentralization, the government has since 1998 accelerated the "decentralization" process, i.e. the delegation of responsibility from central administrations to their local ("decentralized") services. The advantages of such a process? Bringing government geographically closer to the citizens, strengthening and developing the skills and capacity for initiative of officials who, in the field, are in direct contact with the public.

- Dialogue between government and users. The government has also emphasized the need for consultation and coordination with the individuals and bodies concerned (officials, trades unions, professional organizations, local authorities, users’ associations), particularly where it is planned to reorganize or transfer a public service. Accordingly, there is now a standing commission on the modernization of public services bringing together representatives of central government, trade unions and users. This dialogue is being further enhanced with the development of mediation. The powers and resources of the Médiateur de la République (national ombudsman) were strengthened in 2000.

(1) The three tiers of the central government structure are: the ministries' central regional and departmental offices.

(2) The regional préfet, a high-ranking civil servant, represents the State and coordinates the central government in his/her region (there are 22 regions in metropolitan France and 4 overseas). He/she also supervises the departmental préfet who is responsible for coordinating central government services at the level of his/her department (there are 100 departments, 96 in metropolitan France and 4 overseas).

(3) - The personnel of central government administrations are governed by the Civil Service Statute. At the end of 1998, the State Civil Service employed 2,247,400 civilian and military personnel (source: directorate-general for the administration and civil service). There is a separate branch of the Civil Service which employs people who work for the local authorities (region, department and commune) and not central government.