Civic Participation: Petitions, Citizen Initiatives and Local Referendums
Civic participation does not end at the ballot box. The Basic Law gives everyone the right to approach public bodies. In the municipalities there are further tools that let residents influence decisions close to home. What options exist, and how do they differ? This article introduces three important forms: the petition, the citizen initiative and the local referendum.
The Right of Petition and Who Can Use It
The right of petition rests on Article 17 of the Basic Law. It says that everyone has the right, alone or together with others, to address written requests or complaints to the competent authorities and to the elected assembly. It is among the simplest ways to take part, because the right belongs to every natural person, including foreigners and minors. A petition does have to be submitted in writing, though.
Petitions to the Bundestag are handled by the Petitions Committee, which the Bundestag sets up under Article 45c of the Basic Law. It is the competent contact point for such submissions.
Citizen Initiatives and Referendums in the Municipality
At the local level there are two linked instruments: the citizen initiative and the local referendum. The citizen initiative is a drive by residents that aims to bring about a vote on a particular matter. The referendum is the vote itself, in which the residents of the municipality decide the question directly.
Not every subject can be put to a referendum, because state rules exclude certain matters. Anyone considering an initiative should therefore first check whether a vote on the issue is allowed at all. The exact conditions and the list of excluded topics differ from state to state. A referendum can therefore run differently in one municipality than in a municipality of another federal state.
How Did the Referendum Reach the Municipalities?
The development happened step by step. Baden-Württemberg is seen as an early example, since the first rules and uses date back to the 1950s there. Other federal states followed gradually. Many of them introduced such rules only after 1990.
Today citizen initiatives and local referendums exist in the municipalities of all federal states. Residents across the country thus have access to this form of direct decision making. The details of the procedure, however, depend on the rules of the state in question.
Petition or Referendum: What Is the Difference?
A petition is a request or complaint to a body that examines the matter. A citizen initiative and a referendum, by contrast, lead to a vote by the residents of a municipality. With a petition, a written concern is directed to those in charge, while a referendum serves the direct decision on a local question.
This distinction shows how varied civic participation can be. It ranges from a personal letter to the joint decision of a whole municipality. Which route fits depends on whether you want to bring a problem to an agency or call for a vote on a local matter.