comuni

A comune, plural comuni, is the basic local government unit in Italy. It encompasses a city, town, or rural area and its surrounding territory, including any inhabited subdivisions called frazioni. Comuni administer local services and regulate land use within their borders, and they are nested within larger administrative levels such as provinces or metropolitan cities and regions.

Governance and elections are conducted at the municipal level. The executive branch is headed by a sindaco (mayor), who is directly elected, and a giunta comunale (municipal cabinet). The legislative body is the consiglio comunale (municipal council), elected by residents, which approves the budget and local regulations. The sindaco and council work with civil servants and, in many cases, form a short-term executive team of assessori to manage specific policy areas. The comune also interacts with the prefecture and regional authorities on broader issues.

Key functions of the comune include maintaining civil registry records (anagrafe) for births, marriages, and deaths, and issuing vital statistics. It oversees local police (Polizia Locale) for safety and enforcement of ordinances, urban planning and building permissions, and public works. Other responsibilities typically cover waste management, local transportation and roads, social and cultural services, schooling at the municipal level, environmental protection, and the upkeep of cultural and historic heritage within the municipality. Tax collection and local charges, such as property taxes and waste fees, are also administered by the comune.

Comuni vary greatly in size and population, from large metropolitan cities to small villages. There are also inter-municipal arrangements, such as unioni di comuni, to share services and governance. As of recent decades, Italy has around eight thousand comuni, with many undergoing mergers to improve efficiency.