According to the Government’s policy outline, municipalities cannot in future have significant responsibility for social welfare and health care funding. Municipalities’ main responsibility for funding is considered to be in conflict with the municipal autonomy safeguarded by the Constitution.

The funding of the future autonomous areas will be prepared primarily on the basis of the central government’s responsibility for funding. Alternatively, there will also be further investigation of a model that would be partly based on the autonomous areas’ own right to levy taxes. The effects of these alternative solutions will be assessed and compared.