Provinces (Caphiria)

In Caphiria, Provinces (Banlieueregio) are the highest level administrative divisions of the state. Provinces receive their power and authority from the Constitution of Caphiria, which delineates the admission of provinces, the concept of 'parallel autonomy', and the governance of provinces. Parallel autonomy refers to the unique relationship in which provinces - and by extension the provincial government - are administered directly by the Imperator, who passes autonomy to them through his imperium maius. This means that provinces have their own sovereignty that is separate from the Imperium yet they are directly controlled by it.

Each provincial government is free to organize its executive departments and agencies in any way it likes. This has resulted in substantial diversity among provinces with regard to every aspect of how their governments are organized, though the Imperium does mandate certain things for the sake of continuity. In theory, the praetor is subservient to the Imperator, effectively acting as his representative. In practice, however, praetors have de facto authority over their province and the Imperator seldom interferes at the provincial level. Praetors are part of a sub-committee within the Tribunal Assembly, an assembly of the Corcillum responsible for the public administration of Caphiria.

The government of each standard province is known as the provinciarum, which is led by its praetor, who is elected from the citizens of the respective province. Provinces hold legal and administrative jurisdiction within its bounds and share parallel autonomy with the central government. Only by majority vote from the Senate can provinces be formed or dissolved; not even the Imperator has the (legal) unilateral authority to admit a province into the Imperium.

Caphiria has 25 mainland provinces and one special administrative province for Venceia.

Government and politics
The central government delegates many functions (such as education and the police force) to provinces and prefectures, but retains the overall right to control them. The provinciarum - the provincial government, is free to organize its executive departments and agencies in any way it likes. This has resulted in substantial diversity among provinces with regard to every aspect of how their governments are organized, though the Imperium does mandate certain things for the sake of continuity across the state.

Because Caphiria is a unitary state, provinces lack separate legislative authority and therefore cannot write their own statutory law. They levy their own taxes and, in return, receive a decreasing part of their budget from the central government, which gives them a portion of the taxes it levies. They also have considerable budgets managed by a regional council made up of representatives voted into office in provincial elections.

The main functions of provinces are planning regional development, executing public investment projects, promoting economic activities, and managing public property. However, they do have responsibilities for several things:

Responsibilities
Provinces are charged with the duty to make sure the roads under their care are well maintained. The roads and highways in each state are divided between local, provincial and national governments. Provinces build and maintain roads and highways through their local provincial Ministry of Transportation. These provincial transportation departments oversee the building of new roads, and the maintenance of interprovincial transportation for the Imperium's Ministry of Transportation. The states are also responsible for public safety, as in the case of provincial troopers.
 * The building and upkeep of secondary roads
 * Other building plans which cover more than one local authority's area
 * Caring for national parks
 * The building and upkeep of hospitals
 * The building and upkeep of state schools of secondary education
 * Household waste collection and disposal
 * Car registration
 * Accommodation of foreign refugees
 * Financial support for culture
 * The building of pedestrian zones and clean transportation systems
 * Financial support for school exchanges
 * The building and upkeep of public libraries
 * Revitalisation of the economy
 * Encouraging tourism

If the Imperium issues a mandate, it is the duty of the state to make plans and implement them to fulfill the mandate. Examples of mandates are if the imperial government requires provinces to cut air pollution, or requires that a province's public transportation meet particular safety standards. The imperial government is required by law to fund the mandated programs.

Provincial governments are also responsible for the education of their residents. Provinces have freedom in administering the imperial public education system, which receives the lion's share of state and local money. The nations 150,000 school districts are governed by elected school boards.

Provincial governments also have the duty of drawing funding to operate its programs. Provinces collect insurance trust revenue from administering retirement, unemployment compensation, and other benefit programs. Provinces also collect fees, such as tolls, and lottery ticket sales, hospital charges and liquor sales. Provinces levy sales taxes for consumer goods, at 3 to 5 percent, as well as income taxes.

Provinces can perform additional functions, based on varying local laws in each region. In addition, provinces have considerable discretionary power over infrastructure spending, e.g., education, public transit, universities and research, and assistance to business owners. This has meant that the heads of wealthy provinces such as Narico or Isuriana can be high-profile positions.