The Municipal Council has the authority to adopt ordinances, but that authority must be exercised within the limits of the Constitution, statutory law, and mandatory administrative procedure. The judicial annulment of Article 33(1) shows that these requirements are not a formality but an essential safeguard against local rules adopted without adequate verification or consultation.
The Regional Governor was notified of allegations that the ordinance was unlawful and requested information from the municipality. The available correspondence does not show that the provision was challenged before an administrative court, even though it was subsequently annulled by the court.Korespondentsiia-po-sluchaia-s-Obshchina-Asenovgrad-i-OblUprava.
InstiGuard does not conclude that the Regional Governor breached the law. We raise an accountability question: what were the reasons for the supervisory authority not to initiate judicial review when an independent court subsequently found a substantial defect in the procedure through which the act was adopted?
The Municipal Council defended the ordinance before the Supreme Administrative Court through a cassation appeal. The litigation shows that the municipality’s institutional position was that the ordinance should remain in force despite the findings of the first-instance court.
Following the judicial annulment, the questions are now practical: What policy is currently applied by the municipality? What internal rules are used by the municipal company? Are those rules accessible to the public?
Institutional structure: from the inspectorate to the municipal company
Until 2025, the municipal activity “Inspectorate, Parking and Garages” managed the municipal car parks and contracts for parking spaces. According to an official written response, in July 2025 the Municipal Council established “Eco Transport Asenovgrad” EOOD, explicitly including in its scope of activity the “management of municipal car parks and paid‑parking zones.” In February 2026, by a subsequent decision, the operation and maintenance of the five municipal car parks and the paid‑parking zone were finally transferred to the new company. In this way, the municipality concentrated the management of paid parking in a company that it created and controls itself.
Questions for the Regional Governor
- On what date was the Regional Governor notified?
- What documents, information, and opinions were requested from Asenovgrad Municipality?
- What legal assessment was made of the lawfulness of Article 33(1)?
- Why was no challenge brought before the administrative court, if no such challenge was brought?
- Was the person who submitted the signal informed of the reasons for, and outcome of, the review?
Questions for the Mayor
- What concrete steps have been taken following the final judicial annulment?
- Has a new order, internal rule, or decision been adopted regarding the operation of the service parking subscription scheme?
- Where have these rules been published?
- How does the municipality supervise the practice of Eco Transport Asenovgrad EOOD?
- Why had no written response been provided to the submitted request as of the publication date?
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