The Government’s decision to grant Balti the status of territorial-administrative unit of 2nd level is a political one, and mainly aims at moderating the Communists’ initiatives of tensing the situation. However, this status will not offer the Balti administration the possibility of accumulating larger financial resources and manage them autonomously. For it to be possible, it is necessary to reform the entire financial relations system between the center and local administrations, based on principles of local autonomy, thinks Mihai Roscovan, expert in local administration and doctor of economics. “Recently, a Ministry of Finance’s work-group has approved the concept of financial decentralization, and currently legislative amendments are being developed, in particular to the Law on local public finances. The adoption by Parliament of legislative amendments on local finances and the implementation of a new system of inter-budgetary relations will create an environment favorable for the establishment of an authentic autonomy, not only for Balti, but for most of Moldova’s cities”, the expert said. Mihai Roscovan also recalled that until now several requests for municipality status have been made by several cities – Cahul, Orhei, Ungheni, and Soroca. “I remind you that after territorial-administrative antireform, implemented by the Communists in 2003, the aforementioned cities lost this status. I assume that Soroca and Cahul, being controlled by the Communists, might follow the “Baltians path”. And, in a way, these requests are justified”, said the local administration expert. Thus, he points out, the Government should prevent this movement of the municipalities by adopting a clear public policy on municipality status. “Presently, according to Law, we have 5 municipalities – Chisinau, Balti, Comrat, Tiraspol, and Tighina. However, each of them has a different municipality status. Chisinau is a municipality of 2nd level, incorporating 18 local public administrations of 1st level incorporating 34 localities. This status resembles the status of a Soviet-era rayon rather than the status of a European capital. Balti is a municipality of 1st level, but it also includes one village, Elizavetovca, thus having the additional function of financial intermediary with the central Government”, said Mihai Roscovan. The municipality of Comrat is under the subordination of ATU Gagauzia and has nothing to do with the central administration, the expert says. “I am not even mentioning the Transnistrian municipalities; nobody knows their status. Thus, it is important, for once, to clarify the notion of municipality, in the sense of giving a content that would differ from the status of city and commune. As I see it, the municipality status should be given to the cities that have a special development potential, and have enough administrative capacity to provide public services no only to the citizens of the respective cities, but also to suburbs located within a radius of 15-20km”, says Mihai Roscovan. According to the expert, we have 10-12 towns of such type in Moldova. Besides, the clarification on the municipality status should happen in the larger framework of the territorial-administrative reform, which is a precondition for successfully accomplishing the decentralization reform that is to be implemented after the expiry of the local elected officials' term in office in 2015. On July 26, the Communist councilors of Balti have decided to hold a referendum on the extension of the city's autonomy. At the Government meeting on August 1, it was decided to grant the municipality of Balti the status of territorial-administrative unit of 2nd level, similar to that of the country’s districts and of Chisinau municipality.