Mainz Public Corporate Governance Code
Within the framework of local self-government, the state capital of Mainz has municipal companies provide essential public services in the economic, social, and cultural spheres. It is obliged to ensure responsible corporate governance at its affiliated companies, taking into account the tension between public services oriented toward the common good and business-oriented profitability and the generation of surpluses for the municipal budget. In addition to supporting these companies in fulfilling their corporate purpose and ensuring that their economic efficiency is optimized, it must also ensure that public interests are taken into account in the management, control, and supervision of the companies and that the city and democratically legitimized bodies retain political control.
Basis for action
On April 17, 2013, the city council adopted the "Public Corporate Governance Code" (available for download at the bottom of this page), which was developed by a working group of Zentralen Beteiligungsgesellschaft Mainz mbH (ZBM) on behalf of the city council. Large parts of investment management are already standard practice, but the code now gives them a new and more binding quality. In the future, it will serve as a basis for action, as a handbook for city councilors in their supervisory board activities, as a required profile for investment companies, and as information for citizens on processes in the area of investments. This includes clarity about the tasks of the supervisory bodies, the management, and the shareholders, transparency about salaries and the handling of conflicts of interest, and insight into the fundamentals of corporate law.
Rules of conduct
The Mainz Code also includes rules of conduct. The planned standardization is consistent across the municipal group and includes guidelines and rules of conduct for donations and gifts, among other things. The implementation and adaptability of the regulations is ensured in the Code by the annual report on compliance with the rules and by the requirement for regular review and adjustment of the regulations set out in the Code.
Change from 2016
On October 4, 2016, the city council approved amendments to the Mainz Public Corporate Governance Code, which had been revised by a working group of the Zentralen Beteiligungsgesellschaft der Stadt Mainz mbH (ZBM) on behalf of the city council.
Changes were made to the following points:
- A.2.2 Supervisory Board, duties
- A 2.6 Supervisory Board, Performance of Supervisory Board Mandate
- A 3.1 Management, Basic principles
- A 3.5 Management, conflicts of interest
- A 3.8 Management, age limit
- A 3.9 Management, Interaction between Management and Supervisory Board
- C 1.12 Compliance contact
The changes are both editorial adjustments (A.2.2, A.2.6, A.3.5, A 3.9) and modifications to the content (A 3.1, A 3.8, and C 1.12):
- In future, the composition of the management and the first hierarchical level will be regulated with regard to women and men (A 3.1).
- The age limit for members of the management board will be made more flexible (A.3.8).
- In addition, there are plans to set up an independent office at the City of Mainz to which employees can turn in confidence (C 1.12).