It became an outlook that "Large merger at the Heisei era" to press the merger to cities, towns, and villages by the country initiation ends in fiscal year 2009.

It became an outlook that "Large merger at the Heisei era" to press the merger to cities, towns, and villages by the country initiation ends in fiscal year 2009.
Local Government System Research Council reports it to the Prime Minister in the end of June. Cities, towns, and villages where 3232 had existed at the end of March in 1999 were almost reduced by half in 1776 and now ten years.
There is a criticism such as becoming of it the difficulty to carry resident's voice by the merger though the expansion of administrative and fiscal foundations corresponding to promotion of declining birthrate and a growing proportion of elderly people and decentralization of power was an aim, too.

Ministry of Public Management, Home Affairs, Posts and Telecommunications bases the report of Tisei, and after ten fiscal years, the policy is converted to the support of a voluntary merger.
The extension is put off though "Merger exception new law" including a fiscal favorable treatment to cities, towns, and villages of the merger comes the time limit at the end of March in '10.
In resident's anxiety relief to the merger, the countermeasure such as putting the autonomy tela in each region on the average of the municipality continues and is perceived.

The source
http://www.nikkei.co.jp/news/seiji/20090523AT3B2200F22052009.html