1. This Law may be cited as the Local Government Service Law.

2.

(1) A service to be called and known as the Local Government Service (hereinafter referred to as "the service") is hereby constituted.

(2) The service shall consist of all monthly paid officers and servants of Municipal Councils, Urban Councils and Development Councils other than the officers and servants whose posts are specified in the Schedule hereto.

(3) Every person who was, on the day immediately preceding the 23rd day of May, 1974, a member of the Local Government Service constituted by the repealed Act shall, with effect from such date, be deemed to be a member of the service constituted under this Law.

(4) Every member of the service shall be deemed to be a public servant within the meaning and for the purposes of the Penal Code.

(5) Every member of the service shall be deemed to be a public servant within the meaning and for the purposes of the Public Servants (Liabilities) Ordinance.

3.

(1) There shall be established a Local Government Service Commission (hereinafter referred to as the" Commission.

(2) Any legal proceeding instituted by or against the Chairman and any member of the Commission shall be instituted in the name of the Commission.

4.

(1) The Commission shall consist of Chairman and not less than four other members, all of whom shall be appointed by the Minister.

(2) A person shall be disqualified from being the Chairman or a member of the Commission or from continuing as Chairman or a member of the Commission (a) if he is, or becomes a member of Parliament; (b) if he is, or becomes a member of any local authority.

(3) Where any member of the Commission, other than the Chairman is, by reason of illness or other infirmity or absence from Sri Lanka, temporarily unable to perform the duties of his office during any period, the Minister may appoint any other person to act in his place during such period.

(4) Where the Chairman is, by reason of illness or other infirmity or absence from Sri Lanka, temporarily unable to perform the duties of his office during any period, the Minister may appoint any other member of the Commission to act in his place during such, period.

(5) A member of the Commission including the Chairman may resign his office by letter to that effect addressed to the Minister.

(6) The Minister may, without assigning any reason therefore, remove the Chairman or any other member of the Commission and such removal shall not be called in question it any court.

(7) Every member of the Commission, including the Chairman, shall, unless he vacates office earlier by death, resignation r removal, hold office for a term of five years:

Provided, however, that if the Chairman or any other member of the Commission vacates his office prior to the expiration of his term of office, his successor shall, unless such successor vacates his office earlier, hold office for the unexpired term of office of the person whom he succeeds.

(8) The Chairman and other members of the Commission may be paid such remuneration as the Minister may with the concurrence of the Minister in charge of the subject of Finance, determine.

5.

(1) The Chairman shall preside at all meetings of the Commission. In the absence of the Chairman from any meeting of the Commission the members present shall elect any member from among themselves, to preside at such meeting.

(2) The quorum for any meeting of the Commission shall be three members, and the Commission may regulate the procedure in regard to its meetings.

(3) All questions for decision at any meeting of the Commission shall be determined by the vote of the majority of the members present. In the case of an equality of votes the Chairman, or the member presiding shall have a casting vote.

(4) No act or proceeding of the Commission shall be invalidated by reason only of the existence of a vacancy among its members or any defect in the appointment of a member thereof.

5A.

(1) There shall be a Secretary to the Commission who shall be appointed by the Minister.

(2) The other officers of the staff of the Commission shall be appointed from 'the service or the transferable service of the Government.

6.

(1) Subject as hereinafter provided, the Minister shall be responsible for and have the powers of appointment, transfer, dismissal and disciplinary control of members of the service.

(2) The Minister shall provide for and determine all matters relating to members of the service including the formulation of schemes of recruitment, payments and remuneration and codes of conduct for members of the service, the procedure for the exercise and delegation of the powers of appointment, transfer, release, retirement, abolition of posts, dismissal and disciplinary control of members of the service.

(3) The Minister may, notwithstanding any delegation of powers as is referred to in this Law, exercise the powers of appointment, transfer, release, retirement, abolition of posts, dismissal and disciplinary control of members of the service.

(4) No institution administering justice or any other institution, person or authority shall have the power or jurisdiction to inquire into, pronounce upon or in any manner call in question any recommendation, order or decision of the Cabinet of Ministers, the Minister, the Local Government Service Advisory Board, the Local Government Service Disciplinary Board, a public officer or a member of the service regarding any matter concerning the appointment, transfer, release, retirement, abolition of posts, dismissal or disciplinary control of the members of the service.

7.

(1) The Minister may, from time to time, delegate any or all of his powers under this Act, to the Commission.

(2) Any member of the service aggrieved by an order of dismissal or any other order relating to a disciplinary matter, made by the Commission, in the exercise of the powers delegated to it under subsection (1), shall have a right to make a single appeal against such order to the Minister.

8. The Minister may call upon the Commission to furnish such file, other document or information as the Minister may require in respect of the performance of the duties and exercise of the powers of the Commission.

9.

(1) The Commission may delegate to any public office , head of a local authority, or any member of the service, subject to such conditions as may be prescribed by the Minister its powers of appointment, transfer, dismissal or disciplinary control of any category of members of the service.

(2) Any member of the service aggrieved by any order of dismissal or any other order relating to a disciplinary matter made by any person to whom the Commission has delegated its powers under subsection (1), shall have a right of appeal to the Commission and the Commission shall on any such appeal have the power to alter vary or rescind such order.

10. The Minister shall have the power to alter, vary or rescind-

(a) any order of dismissal or any other order relating to a disciplinary matter, made on appeal or otherwise, by the Commission having regard to all the circumstances of the case;

(b) any appointment made by any person to whom the Commission has delegated its powers under section 9 having regard to the relevant scheme of recruitment.".

13. There shall be established a Department of Local Government Service.

14.

(1) There shall be appointed a person to be or to act as the Director of Local Government Service to perform any duty Or function imposed on him under this Law or delegated or assigned to him by the Minister by Order published in the Gazette.

(2) There may be appointed such number of Deputy Directors, Assistant Directors and other officers and servants as may be necessary to carry out the functions and duties imposed on the Director of Local Government Service by this Law or delegated or assigned to him by the Minister.

15.

(1) There shall be established a Fund to be known as the Local Government Service Pension Fund for the payment of pensions and gratuities to the pensionable members of the service.

(2) The Local Government Service Pension Fund established under the repeated Act shall be deemed to be the Local Government Service Pension Fund established under this section.

16.

(1) There shall be established a Fund to be known as the Local Government Service Widows and Orphans Pension Fund for the payment of pensions to the widows and children of the pensionable members of the service.

(2) The Widows' and Orphans' Pension Fund established under the repealed Act shall be deemed to be the Local Government Service Widows' and Orphans' Pension Fund established under this section.

16A.

(1) There shall be established a Fund to be known as the Local Government Service Widowers and Orphans Pension Fund, for the payment of pensions to the widowers and orphans of pension able members of the service.

(2) The Fund established under subsection (1) shall be administered by the Director of Local Government Service or any state officer all used by the Minister for this purpose.

17.

(1) There shall be established a Fund to be known as the Local Government Service Provident Fund for the grant of benefits to non-pensionable members of the service.

(2) The Local Government Service Provident Fund established under the repealed Act shall be deemed to be the Local Government Service Provident Fund established under this section.

18. From the 23rd day of May, 1974, the administration of each of the Funds established under sections 15, 16 and 17 shall be transferred to the Director of Local Government Service or any public officer appointed by the Minister for that purpose.

19.

(1) Every local authority shall cause and permit every person who is appointed or transferred under this Law to any post in the service of that authority to perform and discharge the functions and duties of that post and shall, out of its funds, pay the salary and allowances of each such person.

(2) On or after the 23rd day of May, 1974, no post in any local authority other than a post specified in the Schedule hereto shall, notwithstanding anything in any other written law, be abolished by such local authority except with the approval in writing of the Minister.

19A.

(1) The Minister shall, having regard to the work or services to be exercised or performed by a local authority under any law, have the power to direct such local authority to create such post or posts as he may deem necessary.

(2) Every local authority shall forthwith comply with any direction of the Minister made under subsection (1).

20. The payment of any sum by a local authority by way of contribution to the Local. Government Service Pension Fund or the Local Government Service Widows' and Orphans' Pension Fund or the Local Government Service Widowers' and Orphans' Pension Fund or the Local Government Service Provident Fund under this Law shall be deemed to be a purpose for which the funds at the disposal of the local authority may be expended under the written law relating to the powers of that local authority, and such sum may, in the case of a local authority which has defaulted in the payment of any sum to any of the aforesaid funds, be deducted from any moneys payable by the Government to such local authority.

20A.

(1) At the request of any Government Department, Corporation or Statutory Board, any member of the service may with the consent of such member and the Commission be released. from such service for the purpose of being temporarily appointed to the staff of such Government Department, Corporation or Statutory Board as the case may be, for such period as may be determined by such Government Department, Corporation or Statutory Board or be released for the purpose of being permanently appointed to such staff.

(2) Where any member of the service is temporarily appointed to staff of any Government Department, Corporation or Statutory Board and if at the time of such temporary appointment his substantive post in the service was a post declared to be 3 pensionable post in terms of regulation 3 of the Local Government Service Pension Regulations of 1975, the said Government Department, Corporation or Statutory Board shall pay to the Director of Local Government Service to be credited to the Local Government Service Pension Fund for every complete month during which he is in the employment of such Government Department, Corporation or Statutory Board such sum not exceeding twenty-five percent of the salary payable to him in his substantive post in the service as may be determined by the Minister in charge of the subject of Local Government.

(3) Where any member of the service is at the time of his temporary appointment to the staff of any Government Department Corporation or Statutory Board a shall, for the purposes of this Law be deemed to be service in the Local Government Service and accordingly he shall, while he is in the employment of such Government Department, Corporation or Statutory Board, continue to pay to the Local Government Service Provident Fund such contributions as he is liable under this Law to pay and in respect of him such Government Department, Corporation or Statutory Board shall pay at the close of each financial year to the Director of Local Government Service to be credited to the Local Government Service Provident Fund, a sum equivalent to such contribution as the appropriate local authority would have been liable to pay to the Local Government Service Provident Fund had such member not been temporarily appointed to the staff of such Government Department, Corporation or Statutory Board.

(4) Where a member of the Service was at the time of his permanent appointment to the staff of any Government Department, Corporation or Statutory Board, a contributor to the Local Government Service Provident Fund established by section 17 he shall be deemed to have relinquished his post in the service.

21. The Minister may, where he considers it necessary in the interests of the service, by regulation, amend or vary the Schedule to this Law and may, from time to time, replace that Schedule by a new Schedule incorporating all amendments or variations made therein under the preceding provisions of this section.

22. If, in first giving effect to the provisions of this Law, any doubt or difficulty arises in respect of any matter or question for which no provision or no effective provision is made by this Law, the Minister may, by Order published in the Gazette, remove or determine such doubt or difficulty.

23.

(1) The Minister may, from time to time, make regulations for the purpose of carrying out or giving effect to the principles and provisions of this Law.

(2) In particular and without prejudice to the generality of the powers conferred by subsection (1), the Minister may make regulations in respect of all or any of the following matters: (a) the appointment, transfer, release, retirement, abolition of posts, dismissal and disciplinary control of members of the service; (b) the administration, regulation, supervision and control of each of the Funds referred to in sections 15, 16, 16A and 17; (c) the conditions and circumstances in which, and the restrictions subject to which, the members of the service will be eligible for the grant of pensions and gratuities under the Local Government Service Pension Fund established under section 15, and the payments to be made to such members under such Pension Fund; (d) the conditions and circumstances in which, and the restrictions subject to which, widows, widowers and children of members of the service will be eligible for the grant of tension under the Local Government :service Widows' and Orphans' Pension Fund established under section 16 and the grant of pension under the Local Government Service Widowers' and Orphans' Pension Fund established under section 16A, the fixing of the contributions to be made to such Fund by the authority administering such Fund and by the members of the service, the payments to be made from such Fund to such widows, widowers and children, the authorizing of contributions of such members to be deducted from their salaries, and the procedure for making such deductions; (e) the procedure for making deductions from the salaries of contributors to the Local Government Service Provident Fund established under section 17; (f) all matters in respect of which regulations are required to be made.

(3) Every regulation made by the Minister shall be published in the Gazette and shall come into operation on the date of such publication or on such later date as may be specified therein.

(4) Every regulation made by the Minister shall as soon as convenient after its publication in the Gazette be brought before Parliament for approval. Any regulation which is not so approved shall be deemed to be rescinded as from the date of disapproval but without prejudice to anything previously done thereunder.

(5) Notification of the date on which any regulation made by the Minister is so deemed to be rescinded shall be published in the Gazette.

24.

(1) The Local Government Service Act, No. 18 of 1969, is hereby repealed.

(2) Notwithstanding the repeal of the aforesaid Act (a) every regulation or rule made under the Local Government Service Ordinance, No. 43 of 1945,* and the repealed Act, and in force on the day immediately preceding the 23rd day of May, 1974, shall, in so far as it is not inconsistent with the provisions of this Law, be deemed to be a regulation made under this Law and have effect accordingly and may be amended, varied or rescinded by regulation made under this Law; (b) any inquiry or other matter, which on the day immediately preceding the 23rd day of May, 1974, was pending before the Local Government Service Commission established under the repealed Act, may be continued, heard and determined by the Director of Local Government Service unless the Minister directs otherwise; (c) the provisions of subsection (2) of section 55 and section 58 of the Local Government Service Ordinance, No. 43 of 1945,* kept in force by the repealed Act shall remain in force.

25. In this Law, unless the context otherwise requires

"appointment" in relation to members of the service includes promotion of such members;

"local authority" means any Municipal Council, Urban Council or Development Council;

" Minister " means the Minister in charge of the subject of Local Government; and

" repealed Act" means the Local Government Service Act, No. 18 of 1969.