A municipality must also have a municipal manager, elected by the municipal council. The municipal manager is not a member of the local council. Local authorities can also set up other organs, for example school boards, equality commissions, boards of management or planning and human resource divisions.
The municipal council expresses the will of the residents. It lays down the general operative and financial outlines and decides on the main objectives. The council is a future-oriented strategic director that defines long-term objectives and goals.
The municipal board is responsible for municipal administration and financial management. It prepares matters to be decided by the council, executes the decisions and ensures their legality. The board’s responsibilities are more practical than those of the council. Municipal boards hold a strong administrative position in Finland.
The municipal council may set up committees to work under the municipal board. The committees handle functions of a permanent character assigned by the council. The responsibilities of the committees may include, for example, social and health care services, education, urban planning, the environment, and cultural and leisure services.
The municipal manager works under the municipal board as the head of municipal administration, financial management and other functions. Finland is taking the first steps towards a mayor system based on elected officials. In connection with the revision of the Local Government Act, proposals have been made to establish the mayor model by legislation.
Finland believes in equal representation and participation of both genders in municipal decision-making. According to gender quota regulations, at least 40 per cent of the members of municipal organs must be women, with the exception of the elected municipal council.
The percentage of women is 36 per cent in the councils, 46 per cent on the boards and 48 per cent on the committees. One in four municipal boards and councils has a female chairperson, and a fifth of municipal managers are women.