Mongolia 1992 Constitution (reviewed 2001) - Page 4 of 6

Table of Contents

CHAPTER FOUR. Administrative and Territorial Units of Mongolia, Their Governance

The territory of Mongolia shall be divided administratively into aymag (province) and a capital city, the aymag shall be subdivided into soum (county), the soum into bagh (sub-county), the capital city shall be divided into districts, and districts into horoo (sub-district or committee).
The legal status of towns and villages, located in the administrative and territorial units, shall be determined by law.
The issue for revision of administrative and territorial units shall be decided by the State Great Hural (Parliament), on the basis of the proposal by respective local Hural (assembly or meeting) and local citizens, taking into account a structure of the economy and a location of the population.

The aymag, the capital city, soum and district are administrative, territorial and socio-economic complexes with their specifically assigned functions and their governance being prescribed by law.
The border lines of aymag, the capital city, soum and district shall be approved by the State Great Hural (Parliament) as submitted by the Government (Cabinet).

The governance of administrative and territorial units of Mongolia shall be organized on the basis of a twining the principles of both self-governance and the State management [public administration].
Local self-governing organs in aymag, capital city, soum and district shall be the Hural of Citizen Representatives (Local assembly) in their respective territory, the General Hural of Citizens (Local meeting) in bagh and horoo, and their Presidiums during the interval period between the sessions of the Hural of Citizens’ Representatives (Local assembly) and the General Hural (Local meeting).
The Hural of aymags and the capital city shall be elected for a term of four years. The number of representatives for these Hural as well as for soum and districts Hural, and the procedure for their election shall be determined by law.

The State management (public administration) in the territories of aymag, the capital city, soum, districts, bagh and horoo shall be implemented by the Governors of respective aymag, the capital city, soum, district, bagh and horoo.
The candidates for governors shall be nominated by the Hurals of respective aymag, the capital city, soum, districts, bagh and horoo, and the Governors of aymag and the capital city shall be appointed by the Prime Minister; the Governors of soum and districts by the Governors of aymag and the capital city; and the Governors of bagh and horoo by the Governors of soum and districts, respectively for a term of four years.
If the Prime Minister or Governors at higher instance should refuse to appoint the candidates for Governors of their lower instance, then until the new nominations and appointments are conducted by the procedure prescribed in Section 2 of this Article, the previous Governors shall be still vested with their powers.

In conjunction with their task on implementation of the decisions of respective Hural, the Governors, in their capacity as a representative of the State and government, shall be accountable to the Government (Cabinet), as well as to the Governors of higher instance for the enforcement of laws and decisions by the Government and from the higher organs of their subordination, in the respective territories.
The Governor shall have a right to veto decisions by the Hurals of respective aymag, the capital city, soum, district, bagh and horoo.
Where the Hural by a majority of votes of their representatives overrides the veto, then such Governor may tender his/her request for resignation to the Prime Minister, or to the Governor at higher instance, if he/she considers that he/she will not able to implement the concerned decision.
The Secretariat shall be an administrative office for governors of aymag, the capital city, soum and district. The organizational structure and limits for the personnel size of secretariat shall be determined by the Government (Cabinet) either individually or on the uniform basis.

The local self-governing organs shall independently decide matters of social and economic life of their respective aymag, the capital city, soum, district, bagh and horoo territories, and in addition shall organize participation of the population in resolving issues of a national scale as well as matters of higher instance units.
The organs of higher instance shall not make a decision on matters that are under the authority of local self-governing organs. If the law and decisions of relevant higher organs of the State do not specifically prescribe regarding the decision-making on definite matters of local life, the local self-governing organs may make autonomous decisions in conformity with the Constitution.
The State Great Hural (Parliament) or the Government (Cabinet) may delegate, if deemed necessary, some matters within their powers for decision-making to the Hural (Local assembly) of aymag and the capital city, or to the Governors.

The Hural of aymag, the capital city, soum, district, bagh and horoo shall issue resolutions within their respective authority, whereas the governors shall issue ordinances.
The resolutions of Hural and ordinances by Governors shall be in conformity with legislation, the decrees by the President, or with decisions by the Government (Cabinet) or by the higher organs of their subordination, and shall have a binding within each of their respective territories.
Administrative and territorial units, their governance competence, organizational structure and operational rules of procedure shall be prescribed by law.