Congress of Mayors: the president of rural mayors of Moselle takes stock of the main issues

The mayors of France are meeting until Thursday, November 21 in Paris. 106th Congress which is being held while they are faced with many challenges. Safety of elected officials, illegal occupation of land by travelers…and above all reduction of expenses requested by the government. For Jean-Marie Mizzon, the president of the rural mayors of Moselle, “many communities have already been on the rocks for several years“.

“Almost all small municipalities are already under tight management”

“Communities cannot meet the financial burden asked of them by the government“, according to the senator and former mayor of Basse-Ham. While the draft budget for 2025 provides an effort of five billion euros for communities“Almost all municipalities are already under tight management. We must not forget that the smallest have almost no agents, it is sometimes the elected officials who do part of the work. Many communities have already been on the rocks for several years, explains Jean-François Mizzon. The room for maneuver is almost non-existent.” unlike large communities which, according to him, are the most capable of reducing “this bitter potion from the government“.

Illegal occupation by Travelers: “national elected officials must have the courage to sanction”

Traveling to Metz on November 15, Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau said to himself “very interested in working with local elected officials to find solutions to the illegal occupation of land by travelers“, according to the president of the rural mayors of Moselle. In Metz, Vry, Argancy and Kuntzig this year, several cases of installations have been reported by mayors. “This is a subject that irritates local elected officials, but it is up to national elected officials to have the courage to put in place measures to sanction illicit installations.“, estimates Jean-Marie Mizzon.

Better ensure the safety of elected officials

A Moselle security protocol is of interest to the government. Signed in September, this agreement allows better deal with offenses and attacks on elected officials. He notably associates the Court of Appeal of Metz, but remains little known for the president of the rural mayors of Moselle. “Those who are vehement, verbally or physically, must know that they are now exposed to a criminal response for each attack.“.