The Town Councils were assigned to look after all legal, military, public health, public works, finance, food supply and communal goods affairs of the colonial towns.
Independence from the Spanish colony in 1810 initiated the process of emancipation of the Municipalities and the opportunity for electoral participation of the Creoles in the election of town representatives but with some restriction.
Women's rights to vote in Chile was first established for Municipal elections in 1935 and their participation to the National Presidential elections in 1949.
During the Allende Government a process of a greater allocation of resources and democratisation was initiated.
However, with the Military Regime taking power in 1973 all Municipal elections were suspended and Mayors were appointed by the Military.
During 1989 following the first elections, after 17 years of dictatorship, the functions of Health and Education were also given to the Municipalities from the Central Government.
With the end of the Military dictatorship the process of Municipal democracy was reinstated, firstly with elections of Councillors in 1992 and then in 1996 with the direct election of Mayors by the people.
The devolution of Education and Health functions and its limitation, because of the lack of resources which have not kept up with the growing demand for services and inflation, has created a most difficult situation for Municipal leaders.
At the same time after 17 years of dictatorship and now with elected governments moving into a period of democratic transition; teachers, health workers and municipal employees have begun to speak out and seeking a greater share of a booming economy. The distribution of funds and the increasing disparities in the provision and access to services by different, but mainly by large disadvantaged groups has created an enormous chasm between rich and poor.
A recent study by a parliamentary (Deputy Jaime Ortiz) found that between 1991 and 1995 the Local Government revenue increased by 52% but the expenditure by 64%.
Today Councils are governed under the Local Government Act 1988 and subsequent amendments. The Mayor as the Chief Executive officer has the Municipal authority regarding its direction, administration and supervision of all its functions.
The role of the Municipal Council is to achieve the effective participation of the community, providing advice to the Mayor and endorsing or issuing opinions on the policies that he/she submits for its consideration.
The Local Government elections of October 1996 were perceived by a large number of people as a crucial step in a democratic path that in Chile is now taking place. For the first time Mayors were elected, in large and small Municipalities, with priorities for greater social cohesion, provision of better community services, housing and education.
Although about 10% of registered voters did not participate in the elections, these were carried out in a climate of civic maturity, with an evident desire of community participation in the development and modernisation of the social structure in Chile.
However, elected Council members also recognised that the micro-economic reforms which have taken place in the last two decades, have created a climate within Central Government which is going to be extremely difficult to change because of the role that it has had as part of economic globalisation.
Organisational structure and functions vary from Council to Council but generally they have the following Divisions or Departments.
a) Division of Coordination and Planning
b) Division of Municipal Management
c) Division of Control (Audit)
d) Division of Legal Counsel
e) Division of Community Services
f) Division of Municipal Works
g) Division of Transport
h) Division of Finance and Administration
Mayors under the present Local Government Act, have the discretionary powers to appoint directors in the Divisions of Coordination and Planning, Legal Counsel and Community Services.
The development of policies, budgets, plans and general Municipal Coordination are the responsibilities of the Director of Coordination and Planning, who assist the Mayor in the overall development and administration of the Municipality.
The programs provided by Community Services in Local Government in Chile can generally include the following:
The main aim of this program is to contribute to minimise the socio-economic problems which affect the population and is mainly directed at people in extreme poverty.
The main tasks include the assessment of eligibility to social security services and provision of benefits where applicable.
The eligibility criteria and provision of subsidies are all determined by the Central Government under the "1991 Social Investment Fund" which in turn are administered and provided by municipalities, welfare organisations and private bodies.
There are a number of social programs which have been introduced since the election of democratic governments. However, these are mainly oriented to poverty alleviation rather than expanding people's opportunities for social integration and with the very stringent assessment eligibility only a very small number of people can receive benefits.
As a result of this, social workers in Local Government expressed a great degree of frustration since the bulk of their work is in dealing with cases which are not eligible for any benefits under the criteria set by the Central Governments and about 30% of the people seeking assistance are considered outside the guidelines for eligibility criteria.
The main aim of this program is to address the housing problems of the particular Local Government area under the Central Government Urban and Housing Development Program.
The role of Councils is to provide information on government subsidies available for provision of housing, eligibility criteria and administration of funds.
Community workers also assist in the formation and coordination of community groups to keep them informed of waiting periods for construction of houses and the maintenance of a registry for applicants seeking allocation of housing.
Shortage of stock, calculated to be around 16%, and long waiting periods are a problem for Councils and workers who cannot satisfy the large demand for housing provision.
From 1982 to 1988 more than 33% of the Municipality Investment Annual Budget has been allocated on public housing. This has been translated in the construction of 16 houses in 1982, 32 in 1983, 13 in 1984, 19 in 1985, 14 in 1986 and 10 in 1987.
Eligibility for Housing Subsidy requires a minimum saving and payment of 25% of the total value of the house. This limits of course a large number of people since due to their low wages or labour instability,do not have the capacity for saving nor the ability to meet the government loan repayments for a 12 year term.
This program has the main aim to promote the active participation of community organisations and precinct groups in the overall development of the Municipality.
Within this program Councils also maintain an up to date register on demand for labour, statistics on actual unemployment levels and trends on the labour force according to the three main criteria of: unemployed, unemployable or vagrant.
Under the Community Development Program Councils also provide information, coordination and technical support to community organisations and precinct groups. They also assist in the promotion of art and craft centres, social and sporting activities.
In the Municipality of San Carlos there have been an increase in the number of community organisations established by 31% between 1992 and 1996.
Of the 83 precinct groups established 81% of these maintain an active participation and 19% are not functioning. However, the average participation of the population is about 20%.
The precinct groups with the larger number of residents registered, are in rural areas where the main issues are improvement or maintenance of bridges, roads and provision of drinking water and public health.
Councils were handed over the functions of public health in 1989 at the conclusion of the dictatorship. The main aim of Health Services is to ensure the optimum provision of health services through the planning, administration and control of physical, human and financial resources.
The health program and funding is determined by the Central Government Health Ministry and all Municipalities now have to top up the health budget since the government allocation of funds has not kept up with inflation and other human and physical resources requirements.
In the Municipality of San Carlos there is one public hospital and six rural clinics with problems of overcrowding and long waiting list for some surgery services.
However, San Carlos now has five private health clinics providing a wide range of services to cater for those who can afford insurance premiums or the actual cost of the services. A General Practitioner Consultation cost approximately $33.00 and respite accommodation in a private nursing home for a frail aged patient cost approximately $200.00 (two hundred dollars) per day.
Government funded hostels, nursing homes or programs equivalent to Australia's Home and Community Care (HACC) are not provided.
Hospices run by benevolent organisations and individuals are provided for the destitute aged population. However, for the bulk of the people in their later years of their lives they have to rely solely on family or friends assistance.
As in the case of health services, education was handed over to Local Government in 1989. The main aim of this program is to provide the optimum conditions for the education process in educational institutions under the Municipal responsibility.
Councils are responsible for overall implementation of education curriculum and the provision of human, financial and physical resources determined by the Central Government Education Ministry.
Due to the reduction in funding allocation from the national purse, Councils also have to allocate monies from within their own funds to cover the deficit in the Education budget.
At a national level Chile now has about two thirds of Universities in private hands. In the City
of San Carlos out of 9 schools 5 are run by private entities and the Municipality has to provide
for another 42 public schools in rural communities
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