Skip to content
Digital services Agendas and minutes Announcements

Initiatives

Individuals or groups of Tuusula residents can take initiatives on matters concerning the municipality. In addition to municipal initiatives, residents can influence matters by providing feedback, participating in resident meetings, and submitting reminders and statements.

Municipal initiative

You can submit a municipal initiative electronically or deliver it in writing to either the municipal registry office or TuusInfo. Electronic initiatives are submitted via the kuntalaisaloite.fi service maintained by the Ministry of Justice. The service also allows you to browse initiatives submitted after 1 January 2019 and the responses to them. The first

signatory of the initiative will be notified of the processing of the initiative and asked for additional information if necessary. The municipality will inform the initiator of the measures taken as a result of the initiative.

A free-form municipal initiative must be of general significance. It cannot conce only the initiator of the initiative. The initiative must be processed within six months of its submission if at least two per cent of the municipality’s residents are the initiators.

Basics of drafting a good initiative:

  • The title explains what the initiative is about.
  • The initiative is concise, clear and easy to read.
  • Only the most relevant arguments and facts are included.
  • The initiative contains proposals on how to proceed.
  • The author's contact details are included.

Initiative to hold a municipal referendum

Four per cent of the municipality’s residents aged 15 or over can initiate an advisory municipal referendum. The signatures of the initiators (statements of support) are collected on paper or electronically (with strong authentication) on the information network. Statements of support collected on paper must be signed by hand and must include the name and date of birth of the initiator.

When the initiative gains sufficient support, it must be submitted to the municipality. The municipal council must decide without delay whether to hold a referendum on the initiative. A referendum may be held for the entire municipality or for a specific part of the municipality. The first municipal referendum in Finland was held in Tuusula on 12 May 1991. An initiative to hold

a referendum may also be submitted for a welfare area. This requires at least three per cent of the residents of the welfare area who are 15 years of age or older.  

You can read more about the law gove ing the procedure to be followed in advisory referendums held in welfare areas and municipalities on the finlex.fi website.

Council initiative

A municipal councillor, council group or youth councillor may submit a written council initiative on matters conce ing municipal activities or administration. The initiative is submitted in writing at a council meeting after the matters mentioned in the meeting notice have been dealt with.

Council initiatives and the responses to them can be found on the council initiatives page of the municipality’s website.

Citizens’ initiative

A citizens’ initiative can be submitted via the kansalaisaloite.fi service maintained by the Ministry of Justice. The initiative will be submitted to Parliament for consideration if it has collected at least 50,000 statements of support within six months. A citizens’ initiative can be submitted by any Finnish citizen who is eligible to vote, and it can propose a new law, the repeal of an existing law or an amendment to it.

This content has been translated using AI