French General Code of Local Authorities
In forceI. - With effect from 2020, a budget allocation is introduced for municipalities with a significant proportion of their territory classified as a Natura 2000 site or included in a national park or within a regional or marine nature park. This grant comprises four fractions. The amount allocated to eligible municipalities under each of these fractions may not be less than 3,000 euros.
II. - The first fraction of the allocation, equal to 17,300,000 euros, is divided between municipalities with fewer than 10,000 inhabitants whose per capita financial potential is less than twice the average per capita financial potential of municipalities in the same demographic stratum and whose land territory is more than 50% covered by a Natura 2000 site mentioned in article L. 414-1 of the Environment Code. The individual allocation is determined in proportion to the population and the proportion of the municipality's land area covered by a Natura 2000 site on 1st January of the previous year.
III. - The second fraction of the allocation, equal to 4,800,000 million euros, is distributed among municipalities with fewer than 10,000 inhabitants whose per capita financial potential is less than twice the average per capita financial potential of municipalities in the same demographic stratum, whose land territory is wholly or partly included in a national park mentioned in article L. 331-1 of the Environment Code and which have signed up to the national park charter mentioned in article L. 331-3 of the same code. Municipalities newly eligible for this fraction following their adherence to the aforementioned national park charter receive, in the first year of eligibility, an allocation reduced by two thirds and, in the second year, an allocation reduced by one third. Notwithstanding I of this article, the amount allocated to municipalities eligible for this fraction may not be less than 3,000 euros. The individual allocation is determined on the basis of the population and surface area of each municipality included in the core area of the national park. For municipalities whose land territory is wholly or partly included in the heart of a national park created less than seven years ago, the individual allocation is tripled.
IV. - The third fraction of the allocation, equal to 700,000 euros, is divided between municipalities with fewer than 10,000 inhabitants whose per capita financial potential is less than twice the average per capita financial potential of municipalities in the same demographic stratum and whose territory is wholly or partly located within a marine nature park mentioned in article L. 334-3 of the Environment Code. The individual allocation is calculated by dividing the amount of this fraction by the number of municipalities concerned.
IV bis.The fourth fraction of the allocation, equal to 18,800,000 euros, is distributed among municipalities with fewer than 10,000 inhabitants which, at 1 January of the year for which the allocation is made, are characterised as sparsely populated or very sparsely populated, as defined by the Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques, whose per capita financial potential is less than twice the average per capita financial potential of municipalities in the same demographic stratum and whose territory is classified, under the conditions provided for in IV of article L. 333-1 of the Environment Code, in whole or in part as a regional nature park. The individual allocation is determined on the basis of population.
Municipalities newly eligible for this fraction following the classification of all or part of their territory as a regional nature park receive, in the first year of eligibility, an allocation reduced by two-thirds and, in the second year, an allocation reduced by one-third. This paragraph does not apply to communes newly eligible in 2022.
V. - The terms of application of this article are specified by decree in the Conseil d'Etat.
