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The establishment in France in 1945 of the Council of Departmental and Communal Public Services reflects a redefinition of the role of the home secretary vis-à-vis the local authorities. More broadly, it illustrates a transformation in the method of regulating state action and decision, in that decision making passes from elected representatives to high-level officials. Although this was not a sudden change but occurred over time, it heralded the modernizing experiments of the first years of the Gaullist Republic, in particular the determination to propose a complete overhaul of communal organization by doing away with groupings of elected representatives.