MUNICIPAL REFORM IN THE CONDITIONS OF THE MARITAL STATE OF UKRAINE: LEGISLATIVE REGULATION AND PROBLEMS OF IMPLEMENTATION
Authors:   Mariupol State University, Kamardina Y. , Demchenko M. ,   Mariupol State University
Published: August 2024

The article examines theoretical and legal approaches to identifying problematic aspects of legislative regulation and the practice of implementing municipal reform in Ukraine under martial law. Attention is drawn to the fact that even in the conditions of martial law, the further need for reforming local self-government is determined as an integral prerequisite and factor for the implementation of the strategic course of the state - integration into the European Union. Attention is drawn to the fact that municipal reform is a process that includes a certain set of organizational and legal measures that lead to significant changes in the system of local self-government, determined by social needs and the principles of the formation of effective local self-government according to European standards (decentralization and subsidiarity), aimed at satisfying the interests of the citizens of the respective territory in all spheres of life and coordinating the interests of the state and territorial communities. The problems of legislative regulation and the practice of implementation of municipal reform are analyzed and it is emphasized that in today's difficult conditions it is critically important to continue legislative activities to improve the development of local self-government institutions, primarily related to European integration procedures and the complex of post-war state reconstruction. It was established that the first direction is obviously the territorial concept, which, in turn, requires clear definition and specification regarding the procedure, grounds, criteria for the post-war formation of territorial communities and the legislative definition of their administrative centers. The second direction is directly related to the scope of competence of local self-government bodies, executive authorities and their officials, because a number of unresolved problems remain relevant today. The third direction is aimed, first of all, at increasing the amount of financial capabilities of local self-government bodies, necessary for the implementation of their legally defined powers. Issues of administration and providing access to local taxes and fees are characterized by considerable importance, in particular, the revision of the issue of personal income tax. The need for the adoption of bills that will regulate issues related to communal property, legal responsibility of local self-government bodies, mechanisms for involving and stimulating the public in decision-making, improvement and further development of various forms of people's power, local democracy, formation of competitive principles of service in local self-government bodies, etc., remains relevant. An extremely positive state achievement is the fact of continuation and categorical refusal to suspend the further implementation of the decentralization reform in the martial law regime. It should be noted that, although the current situation is characterized by a decrease and a slowdown in the adoption of decentralization bills, such changes are temporary, because they are mostly caused by a shift in legislative focus and priorities towards solving the problems of martial law. Keywords: reform, municipal reform, European integration, local self-government, decentralization.