One of the characteristics of the reform of public administration in Poland has been its great dynamism. The government has been determined too push forward fundamental changes in the political and financial structure of the state in an unprecedentedly short time. This is because of the awareness that public administration reform, as well as the three social sector reforms, need to go hand in hand with the economic transformation that Poland has been undergoing since 1989.
 
      The public administration reform has been supported since 1989 by a wide spectrum of people awaree of the necessity of introducing administrative changes and systemic transformation of the state, alongside economic and political reform. The beginning of their work dates as early as 1981.
 
      In 1990 local self-government at the gmina level was introduced. This marked the first phase of public administration reform which proved to be a great success. The preparations for the next phases were instigated in the years 1991 - 1993. However, the four following years saw the abondonment of public administration reform.
 
      Once a post-solidarity coalition returned to power, the newly formed government of Prime Minister Jerzy Buzek made the reform of the state its fundamental and most important objective.
         Thus, the next stages of public administration reform had to be introduced simultaneously. It must be emphasised that the radical transformation of the education, health care and social security systems were undertaken, parallel to the public administration reform. The simultaneity of thhese reforms contributed to the fast pace of both parliamentary and governmental work on the reform.
 
      The basic phases of the work on the public administration reform in 1998 are shown below. These phases cover the period from December 11-th 1997, when Profesor Michal Kulesza was appointed Government Plenipotentiary for the Systemic Reform of the State, to the end of December 1998, when the legislative elaboration of the reform was completed and its implementation began.
 
 
PREPARATORY PHASE

1. December 11-th, 1997 - appointment of Michal Kulesza, Secretary of State in the Chancellery of the Prime Minister, as Government Plenipotentiary for the Systemic Reform of the State.
   
2. December 30-th, 1997 - the Council of Ministers approves the internal act regulating the preparation and introduction of the public administration reform.
   
3. January 6-th, 1998 - the Council of Ministers approves:
   • the schedule of territorial reform,
     
   • the initial list of the lawws necessary for amendmnts in relation to the reform,
     
   • the estimated calculation of the costs of the reform.
4. January 1-st - 15-th, 1998 - appointment of 14 working teams for the elaboration of the Competance Laws.
   
5. January 27-th, 1998 - appointment of the Council for the Systemic Reform of the State, advising on the reform too the Prime Minister.

1. January 27-th, 1998 - the Council of Ministers accepts draft Laws:
   • on Governmental Administration in the Voivodship;
     
   • on Voivodship Self-Government;
2. February 6-th, 1998 - the first Sejm reading of the draft Systemic Laws:
   • on Poviat Self-Government;
     
   • on Voivodship Self-Government;
     
   • on Governmental Administration in the Voivodship;
3. June 5-th, 1998 - the Sejm adopts the final texts of the Systemic Laws.
   
4. June 26-th, 1998 - the Systemic Laws are signed by the President.

1. March 13-th, 1998 - the Council of Ministers adopts the draft Law on Introduction of the Three-Tier Territorial Division of the State (12 voivodships).
   
2. July 1-st, 1998 - the Sejm adopts the Law with the Senate amendments (15 voivodships).
   
3. July 2-nd, 1998 - the President vetoes the Law.
   
4. July 3-rd, 1998 - the Sejm does not manage to overrule the President's veto.
   
5. July 24-th, 1998 - the adoption by the Sejm and Senate of a new version of the Law (16 voivodships).
   
6. July 26-th, 1998 - the President signs the Law.
   
7. August 7-th, 1998 - 3008 poviats are established by the regulation of the Council of Ministers.

1. March 24-th, March 31-st, April 15-th, April 21-st, 1998 - the Council of Ministers accepts five subsequent parts of the draft Competence Law.
   
2. April 24-th, 1998 - the first reading of the five parts of the Competence Law in the Sejm.
   
3. July 24-th, 1998 - the Sejm adopts the final text of the Competence Law.
   
4. July 30-th, 1998 - the President signs the Competence Law.

1. May 14-th, 1998 - the Council of Ministers accepts the draft Law on Public Finance and the draft Law on the Revenues of Territorial Self-Government Entities in the Years 1999 and 2000.
   
2. November 26-th, 1998 - the Sejm adopts the final text of the Law on Public Finance.
   
3. December 16-th, 1998 - the Law is signed by the President.
   
4. December 17-th, 1998 - the Sejm adopts the Law on the Revenues of Territorial Self-Government Entities in the Years 1999 and 2000.
   
5. December 22-nd, 1998 - the Senate accepts, without amending, the above Law.
   
6. December 29-th, 1998 - the Law is signed by the Preesident.

1. August 18-th, 1998 - the Council of Ministers accepts the draft of the Implementation Provisions for the Laws Reforming Publiic Administration.
   
2. October 13-th, 1998 - the Sejm adopts the final text of the Implementation Provisions.
   
3. October 27-th, 1998 - the Council of Ministers accepts the draft Law on Amending Some Laws wiith respect to the Implementation of the Systemic Reform of the State.
   
4. October 28-th, 1998 - the President signs the Implementation Provisions.
   
5. December 29-th, 1998 - the Sejm adopts the final text of the Law on Amending Some Laws with respect to the Implementation of the Systemic Reforrm of the State.
   
6. December 30-th, 1998 - the Law is Signed by the President.

1. February 24-th, 1998 - presentation of the document: Basic Criteria for the Territorial Division of the State into PPoviats and Voivodships.
   
2. March 24-th, 1998 - adoption by the Council of Ministers of the document Dialoogue and Development outlining the actions for the maintenance of the conditions for the development of the areas and towns losing their hitherto administrative status.
   
3. April 20-th, 1998 - beginning of the consultative meetings with representatives of the relevant social groups and milieus.
   
4. April 21-st, 1998 - the Prresident approves off conducting common elections to the councils of gminas, poviats and voivodships by agreeing to postpone the elections to the gmina councils for autumn.
   
5. May 12-th, 1998 - formation of the Inter-Ministerial Team for the Implementation of Public Administration Reform headed by Janusz Tomaszewski, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Internal Affairs and Administration, with Jozef Ploskonka as the Secretary of State and the Executive Secretary of the Team.
   
6. May 12-th, 1998 - creation of the post of Government Plenipotentiary for the Decentralisation of Public Finace and the appointment of Jerzy Miller, Undersecretary of State in the Ministry of Finance, too the Position of Secretary of State and Government Plenipotentiary for the Decentralisation of Public Finance.
   
7. May 14-th, 1998 - adoption by the Council of Ministers of the working document concerning the initial proposal of the schedule for the implementation of public administration reform.
   
8. June 2-nd, 1998 - adoption by the Council of Ministers of the schedule for the implementation of the public administration reform.
   
9. June 8-th, 1998 - commencement of the proces of inventorising territorial public administration assets by the Team for the Implementation of Public Administration Reform.
   
10. August 11-th, 1998 - announcement of the electoral calendar.
    
11. October 11-th, 1998 - elections to gmina, poviat and voivodship self-governments.
    
12. November 30-th, 1998 - provisional poviat and voivodship budgets for the year 1999 are established.
    
13. January 1-st, 1999 - commencement of work by poviat and voivodship self-governments as well as new voivods and other administrations.

 
      Although the legislative phase has finished, it is worth noting that the real reform starts only now - with the commencement of work by all levels of public administration.
 
      The key elements of the impleementation phase include public information and training programmes for newly elected self-government officials and their staffs.
 
      In the spring of 1999, the Law on Supporting Regional Developmeent is expected to be adopted by the Parliament.