OFFICIAL GAZETTE FOR THE OCCUPIED DUTCH TERRITORIES, YEAR 1941 [Verordnungsblatt fuer die Besetzten Niederlaendischen Gebiete] Part 33, Page 637.
Eighth Order of the Reich Commissioner for the
Occupied Dutch Territories concerning Special
Measures Affecting Administrative Organization,
August 11, 1941.
Pursuant to Section 5 of the decrees of the Fuehrer concerning the exercise of governmental authority in' the Netherlands of May 18, 1940 (RGB1. I, p. 778), I hereby order as follows: CHAPTER I—Provisions concerning the Function of
Representative Bodies and Agencies of Public Law Section 1
(1) All functions of the Municipal Councils and Provincial States (Provinzialstaaten) shall be suspended; elections to these representative bodies shall not take place.
(2) The functions of the following bodies shall likewise be suspended:
1. The Joint Councils of Mayors and Aldermen.
2. The Provincial Councils.
3. The Council of the States-General.
4. The Election Boards (Articles 32, 33, and 58 of the
Election Statute).
(3) The functions of the Municipal Council shall be suspended, as determined by the mayor; these of the Provincial Councils, as determined by the commissioner of the province.
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3342-PS
CHAPTER II—Provisions concerning Local Administration
Section 3
The powers and duties of the Municipal Council and the Joint Council of the Mayor and Aldermen shall be assumed by the mayor. The same applies to the powers and duties of those municipal boards which shall be suspended in pursuance of an order made in accordance with subsection 3,. sentence 1, of Section 1.
Section 4
(1) The mayor shall appoint, for a term of six years, no less than two but no more than six aldermen as his representatives
and agents in the administration of municipal affairs.
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Section 5 .
(1) The appointment of an alderman shall be subject to ratification by the supervising authority.
(2) With the consent of the supervising authority the mayor shall be authorized to dismiss an alderman without notice. At the request of the supervising authority the mayor shall dismiss any alderman without notice.
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Section 7
(1) The mayor shall appoint councilmen from among the Netherlands nationals domiciled in the community.
(2) The number of councilmen shall be determined in accordance with Section 5 of the Municipalities Act, subject, however, to a reduction by half of the number prescribed there and diminished by one.
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Section 9
(1) The mayor shall report immediately to the supervising authority any appointment of a councilman that he may make.
(2) At the request of the supervising authority, the mayor shall without delay dismiss any councilman.
Section 10.
(1) It shall be the duty of the councilmen:
1. To advise the mayor and to submit to him suggestions
on the administration of municipal affairs.
2. To promote understanding of his measures among the
citizenry.
(2) The councilmen shall not receive any compensation for their activities.
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3342-PS
Section 12
(1) The term of a councilman shall be four years.
(2) It shall terminate before that time: first, if the councilman removes his domicile from the community; secondly, if he is removed from office.
. Section 13
(1) The mayor shall call a general meeting of councilmen in every instance in which, in accordance with the provisions of the Municipalities Act, a resolution of the Municipal Council is necessary.
(2) The mayor shall determine the agenda. The general meetings shall be public whenever the mayor so orders. Such order shall be made public.
(3) The several items of the agenda shall be discussed in the general meetings; no vote shall be taken nor any resolution adopted. The councilmen shall be required to state their opinion if it varies from that of the mayor; such statement shall be made part of the record.
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Section 14
(1) The supervising authority shall see to it that the administration of the mayor conforms to law and furthers the public interest.
(2) The supervising authority may issue instructions to the mayor. The mayor shall be bound to follow these instructions.
(3) The Secretary General of the Ministry of the Interior shall also be authorized to issue instructions in accordance with subsection 2 to mayors of communities mentioned in subsection 1, No. 2, of Section 15, except in matters relating to the Waterstaat; the Secretary General of the Ministry of Waterstaat shall exercise this authority in regard to all matters relating to Waterstaat.
Section 15
(1) The supervising power shall be exercised in all matters except those of the Waterstaat:
1. For the communities of the Hague, Amsterdam, and
' Rotterdam, by the Secretary General of the Ministry Interior.
2. For all other communities, by the commissioner of the
Province notwithstanding the authority of the Secretary General of the Ministry of the Interior vested in him by virtue of other provisions of law.
(2) The supervising power in matters of the Waterstaat shall be exercised in all communities by the commissioner of the prov-
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ince notwithstanding the authority of the Secretary General of the Ministry of Waterstaat vested in him in pursuance of the law.
CHAPTER III—Provisions relating to Provincial Administration
Section 16
(1) The powers and duties of the Provincial States shall be assumed by the commissioner of the province.
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Section 18
(1) The commissioner of the province shall be authorized to request information from, to submit suggestions and, in cases of emergency, to issue instructions to, all public authorities or agencies in the province unless the authority of such agencies shall extend beyond the limits of the province; the authority to issue such instructions, in case of emergency, shall exist notwithstanding the power of the central authorities concerned to issue such instructions.
Secondly, he shall be authorized to require information from, and to suggest to, all agencies whose powers shall extend beyond the limits of the province unless they constitute central authorities.
(2) The commissioner of the province shall have power to issue the instructions mentioned in subsection 1, No. 1, to officials of the Netherlands police force only if the commissioner takes measures within the usual scope of his official duties which these police officials are required to carry out. The commissioner of the province and the director general of the police shall provide each other with such information as they may require for the fulfillment of their official duties. They may submit suggestions to each other.
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Section 19 —
(1) The commissioner of the province shall appoint, for a term of six years, no less than two but no more than six provincial administrators as his agents and representatives in the administration of provincial affairs.
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The Hague, August 11, 1941.
Reich Commissioner for the Occupied Dutch Territories
SEYSS-INQUART
693259—46—6
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Order suspending the operation of municipal councils in the Netherlands, and placing administrative duties with the mayors and appointed (advisory) aldermen under the supervision of the government
Authors
Arthur Seyss-Inquart (Nazi official, Austria, Poland, Netherlands)
Arthur Seyss-Inquart
Austrian Nazi politician, and Nazi ruler of occupied Netherlands, convicted of crimes against humanity and sentenced to death (1892-1946)
- Born: 1892-07-22 (Stonařov)
- Died: 1946-10-16 (Nuremberg)
- Country of citizenship: Austria; Austria-Hungary; Nazi Germany
- Occupation: jurist; lawyer; politician
- Member of political party: Fatherland Front; Nazi Party
- Member of: Schutzstaffel
- Position held: Federal Chancellor of Austria (period: 1938-03-11 through 1938-03-13; replaced by: Anschluss; replaces: Kurt Schuschnigg); Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs (period: 1945-04-30 through 1945-05-02; replaced by: Lutz Graf Schwerin von Krosigk; replaces: Joachim von Ribbentrop); Reichskommissar; member of the Reichstag of Nazi Germany
- Employer: Austrian Federal Government; Reichskommissariat Niederlande
Official Gazette for the Occupied Netherlands Territories (German regime)
Date: 11 August 1941
Literal Title: Eighth Order of the Reich Commissioner for the Occupied Netherlands Territories concerning Special Measures Affecting Administrative Organization, August 11, 1941.
Defendant: Arthur Seyss-Inquart
Total Pages: 3
Language of Text: English
Source of Text: Nazi conspiracy and aggression (Office of United States Chief of Counsel for Prosecution of Axis Criminality. Washington, D.C. : U.S. Government Printing Office, 1946.)
Evidence Code: PS-3342
HLSL Item No.: 453265
Notes:This document was apparently not entered as evidence.