Law and government

Bucharest has a unique status in Romanian administration, since it is the only municipality that is not part of a county. Its population, however, is larger than that of any Romanian county, and hence the power of the Bucharest General City Hall (Primaria Generala), which is the city's local government body, is about the same as, if not greater than, that of Romanian county councils.

The city government is headed by a General Mayor (Primar General), currently (as of 2007) Adriean Videanu. Decisions are approved and discussed by the General Council (Consiliu General) made up of 55 elected councillors. Furthermore, the city is divided into six administrative sectors (sectoare), each of which has their own 27-seat sectorial council, town hall and mayor. The powers of local government over a certain area are therefore shared by the Bucharest City Hall and the local sectorial councils with little or no overlapping of authority. The general rule is that the main City Hall is responsible for citywide utilities such as the water system, the transport system and the main boulevards, while sectorial town halls manage the contact between individuals and the local government, secondary streets, parks, schools and cleaning services.

The six sectors are numbered from one to six and are disposed radially so that each one has under its administration an area of the city center. They are numbered clockwise and are further divided into districts without any form of administration (cartiere):

- Sector 1 with population in 2007 of 228,629 including :Dorobanti, Baneasa, Aviatiei, Pipera, Aviatorilor, Primaverii, Romana, Victoriei, Herastrau Park, Bucurestii Noi, Damaroaia, Straulesti, Grivita, 1 Mai, Baneasa Forest, Pajura, Domenii and a small part of Giulesti - the part with Giulesti Stadium
- Sector 2 with population in 2007 of 359,107 including :Pantelimon, Colentina, Iancului, Tei, Floreasca, Mosilor, Obor, Vatra Luminoasa, Fundeni, Plumbuita, Stefan cel Mare, Baicului
- Sector 3 with population in 2007 of 394,812 including :Vitan, Dudesti, Titan, Centrul Civic, Dristor, Lipscani, Muncii, Unirii
- Sector 4 with population in 2007 of 301,172 including :Berceni, Oltenitei, Giurgiului, Vacaresti, Timpuri Noi, Tineretului
- Sector 5 with population in 2007 of 287,480 including :Rahova, Ferentari, Cotroceni, 13 Septembrie, Dealul Spirii
- Sector 6 with population in 2007 of 360,638 including :Giulesti, Cr�ngasi, Drumul Taberei, Militari, Grozavesti (also known as Regie), Ghencea
Like all other local councils in Romania, the Bucharest sectorial councils, the city's General Council and the mayors are elected every four years by the population. Additionally, Bucharest has a prefect, who is appointed by Romania's central government. The prefect is not allowed to be a member of a political party. The prefect's role is to represent the national government at local level, acting as a liaison and facilitating the implementation of National Development Plans and governing programmes at local level. The current prefect of Bucharest (as of 2007) is Calin Deaconescu.

The Municipality of Bucharest, along with the surrounding Ilfov county, forms the Bucharest development region, which is equivalent to NUTS-II regions in the European Union and is used by the European Union and the Romanian Government for statistical analysis and regional development. The Bucharest development region is not, however, an administrative entity.

Justice system

Bucharest's judicial system is similar to that of the Romanian counties. Each of the six sectors has their own local tribunal called (judecatorie), while appeals from these tribunals' verdicts, and more serious cases, are directed to the Municipal Tribunal and further to the Bucharest Court of Appeals, the city's municipal court. Bucharest is also home to Romania's supreme court, the High Court of Cassation and Justice, as well as other national courts such as the Constitutional Court of Romania and the National Military Tribunal.

Bucharest has its own municipal police force, the Bucharest Police (Politia Bucuresti), which is responsible for policing of crime within the whole city, and operates a number of special divisions. The Bucharest Police are headquartered on Stefan cel Mare Blvd in the city centre, and has a number of precincts throughout the city. From 2004 onwards, each sector City Hall also has under its administration a Community Police force (Politia Comunitara), dealing with local community issues. Bucharest also houses the General Inspectorates of the Gendarmerie and the National Police.