Paper/Speech Details of Conference Program for the 31st NISPAcee Annual Conference Program Overview WG9: The Rule of Law & Public Administration Author(s) Michael Frey University of public administration Kehl Kehl Germany Rahel Alia Müller, University of applied sciences Kehl, Germany Title Cross border regions and climate change: Legal tools of cross border friendly legislation for coherent actions File Paper files are available only for conference participants, please login first. Presenter Michael Frey Abstract The selected topic will show from an applied legal and administrative science perspective which legal tools under the label of cross border friendly legislation could enhance the capacity of cross border regions to act coherently in order to face climate change. It will present the European law inducted idea of how territorial and social cohesion can serve as a valid legislatory aim. Additionally, it will develop how these tools can be considered as improving steps towards openness, transparency and effectiveness, as well as citizen participation. It focuses the problem that due to the rule of law as well as the principle of sovereignty, borders constitute the background as real obstacles for a coherent cross border development. The contribution will answer the research question how these legal obstacles can be overcome by a legal and administrative toolbox of a cross border friendly legislation. From an applied research perspective it will show how these tools could be used to solve concrete issues of cross border cooperation in the field of renewable energies and climate change actions (cross border heating networks, hydroelectric power or hydrogen plants and pipelines). Legal starting point is the principle of sovereignty, including at its maximal extension the right to renounce or to extend the use of sovereign rights in one's own country or in a neighboring country by means of treaties. Between these two extreme possibilities, there are numerous other options for overcoming border effects in the legal sphere. First of all, centralized and decentralized opening clauses would be conceivable. In addition, such regulations would also be conceivable as experimental clauses, limited in terms of space, time or content. In terms of anticipation, the introduction of a binding cross-border impact assessment procedure would be worth considering. Accounting administrative competencies, they could be exercised jointly by cross-border one-stop agencies. This could also be seen as an instrument for improving the participation of civil society, information transparency as well as an early warning radar for legal administrative application problems. By using the legal methodology set these findings will be concretised. It is expected to find out that tools of cross border friendly legislation on all levels could help to solve concrete legal obstacles. Providing this legal tool box offers a preventative, innovative way for public actors to not only react but also to be prepared for several situations. On the EU-Level opening clauses for cross border situations in regulations as well as mandatory cross border compatibility could be established as a legal aim for the national transposition of EU-directives not only to avoid cross border obstacles due to an incoherent transposition, but also to improve EU-integration within public administration and public policy. On a state level treaties could serve as legal basis for the cession of sovereignty rights, opening and experimentation clauses could also help as on a substate level, measures to increase the “capacity to act” of the multi level structure. Apart from the cession of administrative competences to cross border institutions, it is possible to develop these institutions to cross border one stop agencies. On all levels, a mandatory cross border impact analysis would prevent cross border issues due to incompatibility of national legislation. With the example of cross border climate change actions, it will develop legal and administrative instruments to improve cross border territorial cohesion.
