Administrative and legal mechanisms for the implementation of powers of local self-government bodies in amalgamated territorial communities

Abstract

The article is devoted to a comprehensive analysis of administrative and legal mechanisms for the implementation of powers of local self-government bodies in united territorial communities of Ukraine. Based on a systemic approach, five structural components of such mechanism are identified: normative (Constitution, laws, by-laws, community statutes), institutional (council, executive committee, mayor, starostas, Administrative Service Centers), procedural (regulations, administrative procedures, budget cycle), resource (financial, human, and material-technical resources), and guarantee (judicial protection, prosecutorial supervision, prefect institution). The legal nature of own and delegated powers of local self-government bodies is clarified in the context of the constitutional principles of community autonomy and subsidiarity enshrined in the Constitution of Ukraine and the European Charter of Local Self-Government. It is proved that the expansion of community powers carried out as a result of the decentralization reform of 2015–2020 was not supported by adequate resources, which caused a systemic gap between the normatively established competence and the real capacity for its implementation. Problematic areas of power implementation are identified: unclear delimitation of functions between levels of government following the abolition of district councils, financial incapacity of small rural communities, acute personnel deficit, incomplete establishment of the starosta institution, and uneven coverage by Administrative Service Centers. The impact of martial law on administrative and legal mechanisms is analyzed: changes in the priorities of local self-government bodies, simplification of management procedures, functioning of civil-military administrations, deformation of financial mechanisms, and aggravation of personnel problems due to mobilization. Prospects for post-war improvement of mechanisms are determined taking into account European integration standards and foreign experience, particularly the Polish gmina model. The author’s position on the priority of building institutional capacity of communities over further expansion of their powers is substantiated.