Later replaced by Law No. 22 of 1999 on Regional Administration, this statute acknowledges some element of regional autonomy granted to regional jurisdictions. In its preamble it states that implementation of regional administration, apart from being based on the principles of decentralisation and deconcentration, is based on the principle of duty to assist (tugas pembantuan). Moreover, that the status of regional governments is to be, as much as is possible, uniform.
The statute places great emphasis on the duty to assist, noting that the central government can assign level I regional governments tasks, and level I regional governments can, in turn, assign tasks to level II regional governments. It also regulates the appointment, dismissal, authority, and permissible conduct, of regional heads.