The Verkhovna Rada Committee on Organisation of State Power, Local Self-Government, Regional Development and Urban Planning considered the Draft Law ‘On the Principles of Delineation and Distribution of Powers between Levels of Public Administration’ (reg. No. 14412). Following the discussion, the Committee decided to recommend that Parliament include the document in the agenda and adopt it as a basis for the first reading.

As stated in the explanatory note, the Draft Law is intended to solve one of the most systemic problems of public administration in Ukraine – conflict of competences, duplication of powers and legal uncertainty in relations between local governments of different levels, as well as between local governments and executive authorities.

The purpose of the document is to legislate clear ‘rules of the game’ for each level of public administration based on the principles of subsidiarity (providing services as close to the consumer as possible) and decentralisation.

The draft act proposes to define:

• Classification of powers – division into own and delegated powers.
• Clear criteria for the delineation of powers between village, settlement, and city councils, as well as district and regional councils.
• Conditions for delegating state powers to local self-government with mandatory provision of resources.
• Limits of autonomy of local governments in decision-making and their responsibility for the implementation of the powers granted.
• Features of the implementation of government functions in conditions of martial law or a state of emergency.

A separate section contains a provision that the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine must, within one year of the law coming into force, develop and submit to Parliament large-scale amendments to sectoral legislation, bringing it into line with the new framework rules.

The authors of the Draft Law emphasise that, due to the lack of a clear delineation of powers, there is currently duplication of powers, and authorities are often assigned functions without adequate financial support. This leads to a deterioration in the quality of public services at the local level and the inefficient use of budget funds.

Wide consultations preceded the development of the Draft Law. A special working group was set up under the Ministry for Development of Communities and Territories of Ukraine, with the participation of MPs, representatives of ministries, local governments, their associations and international experts, in particular in the ‘Strasbourg format’ moderated by the Council of Europe.

The Committee reports that public discussions on the delineation of powers between executive authorities and local governments at all levels are planned for March–April.