Municipal Bodies Research Articles

Impacts of joint municipal agencification on the democratic governance of waste management

PurposeThe study examines how introducing joint municipal arm's length bodies (ALBs) into municipal waste management has influenced the preconditions of democratic governance.Design/methodology/approachThe authors describe and explain the democratic implications of joint municipal agencification by reviewing the perspectives of representative and participative democracy. Through this approach, the authors apply the exit–voice framework developed by Albert Hirschman to highlight the potential roles and rights of citizens. This research includes country case studies of Finland and Norway. The authors analyse and systematize Finnish and Norwegian waste and organizational policies by reviewing national regulatory documents, commentaries and guidance materials to identify the fundamental missions and institutional traditions of the alternative organizational forms of joint ALBs.FindingsThe study findings highlight that joint agencification has an adverse effect on the democratic governance of waste management policy and services even though these are public monopoly services. They also demonstrate that all joint municipal ALBs limit the classic elements of representative democracy in general, and that private-law ALBs limit residents' rights to influence and participate.Originality/valueThis study contributes to local public management studies by applying Hirschman's theory to comparative reviews of joint agencification and ALBs. It revealed the similarities and differences between the different organizational forms of joint ALBs applied in Finland and Norway. It also demonstrated how the democratic rights of residents depend on how municipalities collaborate.

Electronic Educational Dimension of Law Enforcement in a Pandemic and Post-Pandemic World

It was proposed to teach municipal officials and other bodies related to law enforcement, starting with children of senior school age, critical thinking, methods of correct, reasoned, legitimate and effective behavior, established by universal law enforcement practices. In the educational element of law enforcement work in the criteria of a pandemic and post-pandemic, the development of an artificial origin of the mind will allow to achieve the appropriate goals: optimization of analytics (a quick and comprehensive study of the history and tasks with unclear reasons and relationships that determine the likely development scenarios); predictive quality (full and objective discussion of changes in the external environment, identification of trends and real goals of authorities and individuals in law enforcement; multilateral identification of probable types of history, taking into account the results of conclusions, comparison of cases); ensuring sustainable development (developing a strategy for applying impartial trends in the interests of state authorities, society, and the individual for cooperation to merit sustainable development).

SCHOOL HYGIENE: A STUDY OF SELECT GOVERNMENT SCHOOLS IN DELHI

This paper explores school as the site for examining hygiene and cleanliness. The aims of the study were to examine aspects of school hygiene, understand children’s needs and to equip primary school children with tools and capacities to develop and sustain body and environmental hygiene through an intervention. Children studying in primary classes from twelve schools run by the local urban municipal body in Delhi participated in the study. 846 and 656 children were interviewed during pre and post intervention phases respectively. Data was collected in the form of observations, interviews and children’s responses on hygiene practices. Data was coded and subjected to statistical analysis. Based on data obtained in the baseline assessment, a Health Hygiene Education Module was designed. The pedagogy was based on discussions, demonstrations, storytelling, activities, interactive games and takeaways. Post intervention, a significant increase in percentage of children who reported following effective practices in aspects of oral hygiene, handwashing and use of toilets. Children were motivated and keen to learn. However, lack of infrastructure, resources and basic facilities like running water and soap was observed. Supervision and monitoring of all aspects of hygiene in the school needs to be strengthened

Designing Geographic Information System Based Property Tax Assessment in India

Property tax is the primary source of revenue for municipal bodies. In India, municipal corporations are facing issues in property tax collection, and the primary reason for it is a lack of count of assessed properties under its jurisdiction. Also, the storage of information on the properties is mainly based on manual efforts, which leads to data redundancy and failure to appropriate tax collection. Geographical Information Systems (GIS) consists of technology, personnel, and resources to create, maintain, visualize, search, and share geospatial data and services. The study has been carried out in the Hauz Khas Ward, South Delhi Municipal Corporation, Delhi. This paper aims to develop a spatial database for property tax management. It includes capturing the building footprint, road, land use such as parks, paved area, drains, and demarcation of boundaries such as locality slums, based on a regular grid net with a cell size of 250 m by 250 m. The generated geospatial database has been finally used to evaluate parameters for property tax calculation. Moreover, this spatial database can be organized as different models for any web-based application for municipal services. This study provides a working example of a GIS-based property tax collection solution for whole of India and other South-Asian countries.

Psychological Aspects of the Organization’s Information Security in the Context of Socio-engineering Attacks

The purpose of this review article is to determine approaches to solving existing problems in taking into account the psychological aspects of an organization’s information security in the context of socio-engineering attacks based on the analysis and systematization of sources on this topic.Methods. To achieve this goal, two complementary directions were chosen. The first direction included the investigation of selected specialized journals. The second direction involved the analysis of the representation of this problem in the Scopus database over the past 20 years.Results. The analysis of the psychological aspects of the key elements of a socio-engineering attack is carried out: the knowledge and skills of the attacker, organizational conditions, the characteristics of an employee who is part of information systems and the direction of training and prevention. A model of socio-engineering attack considering psychological aspects is proposed.Conclusions. The study showed that the approaches developed now are sufficient to form the basis for the revision of personnel processes in the organization. The problem of social engineering attacks cannot be solved without the involvement of HR services in terms of changing HR processes, taking into account information security policies. The results of this study will be of interest to specialists in the field of personnel management, personnel training, information security, information technology, artificial intelligence, executives, business owners, heads of state and municipal bodies.

Crimes in the Field of Shared-Equity Construction of Housing and Other Real Estate Objects: Problems of Legislation and Law Enforcement Practice

The author draws attention to the high adaptability of crimes in the sphere of shared-equity construction of housing and other real estate to the modernizing legislation aimed at protecting the rights and lawful interests of bona fide participants of these legal relations. Having such features, typical of economic criminals, as overall and legal literacy, professional competence, good interpersonal skills, connections in state and municipal agencies, psychological adaptability, etc., the offenders in the sphere of shared-equity construction continue to use the modes and methods of criminal activities that can be generally described as attempts to find a formal way to bypass legal requirements, whether the adopted and enforced Federal Law «On Participation in Shared-equity Construction of Apartment Buildings and Other Real Estate and on Amendments to Some Legislative Acts of the Russian Federation» of December 30, 2004 № 214-ФЗ or such considerable amendments to it (effective from July 1, 2019) as obligatory use of escrow accounts by the developer, which prevents the developer from using the monetary funds of the equity holder before fulfilling the obligation to complete the construction of the apartment building and to put it into use. Moreover, in spite of some effective measures undertaken by the state, the number of problematic objects and deceived equity holders continues to grow, and the official statistics do not fully reflect the actual situation and scope of the problem because a considerable share of contracts that are, in fact, shared-equity construction, is still concluded in the unofficially accepted form of an agreement of equity participation in construction, which is substituted by various surrogates of civil obligations (investment agreement, etc.). The objects of shared equity in apartment buildings under construction, the permit for which was obtained after July 1, 2019, are often sold through front persons or organizations controlled by the developer (and appearing as equity holders in sham agreements on equity participation in construction) through a claim reassignment agreement, which does not reflect the actual side of such legal relations. The author presents his recommendations for more thorough research of the subjective side of the actions under consideration, which will make it possible to prove the fake nature of such agreements and to identify the latent socially relevant connections between persons involved in such legal relations, right down to the corruption links with specially authorized officials in state and municipal bodies.

KOSOVO AND NORTHERN MACEDONIA: LOCAL ELECTIONS ARE NOT THE LOCAL-SCALE ISSUES

The topic of the article is the 2021 elections to the municipal bodies of Kosovo and Northern Macedonia. Although usually of little attention, in the present case they went beyond local importance calling into question the stability of the governments. Backing from the protest vote the ruling parties in both states were dependent upon turned out to have had a limited shelf life during the socio-economic crisis caused by the pandemic, which their long-time opponents have effectively used. This even prejudged the extremely negative outcome for those who are currently at the helm. In neighboring Bulgaria, too, the strength of the new government began to cause increasing doubts due to discrepancies between the president and the prime minister, seemingly political associates. The enhanced cooperation between Sofia and Skopje has raised hopes for an early compromise in their long-standing dispute related to the problems of Macedonian identity, language and their common history. However, this development runs the risks of becoming a hostage or a victim of internal political strife in neighboring countries. In such a case Brussels and Washington that have urgently pressed for the lifting of the Bulgarian veto on the start of talks for accession of North Macedonia to the EU, will once again find themselves in the unenviable position of «the tail wagging the dog!».

Actual problems of the information support for the introduction into agricultural circulation of unused defense and security lands by example of the Krasnodar Territory and the Republic of Adygea

The article considers problems and directions for improving the mechanism of information support for the introduction of unused defense and security lands into agricultural circulation. It is concluded that the existing system of information support for accounting for unused lands in the Russian Federation does not fully reflect all the needs for analyzing the current state of such lands and possible options for putting them into agricultural circulation. Structural links of interdepartmental interaction between authorized and interested state and municipal bodies, legal entities and individuals have not been built. The author presumes that it is necessary to introduce unused defense and security lands into circulation in accordance with the types of their previous use, and also proposes a mechanism aimed at solving the existing problems of information support for the introduction of such lands into circulation.

Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment—A green-building rating system for catalysing climate-change mitigation/adaptation in India

Green-building rating systems (GBRSs) are critical for implementing climate change (CC) mitigation strategies because they can help reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the building sector. From the Indian policy perspective, the ClimateSMART Cities Assessment Framework (CSCAF) provides cities a roadmap toward mitigating CC while planning/implementing their actions and facilitates realising energy efficiency and green buildings through GBRS adoption and incentivisation. Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment (GRIHA) is a comprehensive GBRS aligned with CSCAF and India’s climate goals, facilitating the implementation of Government of India’s relevant policies and climate-adaptation measures within a building project’s different phases. This paper examines existing institutional mechanisms for incentivising GRIHA-rated projects and provides recommendations for municipal bodies, regional developmental authorities, and state governments for strengthening resource efficiency in the built environment through GRIHA. Residential buildings are considered because their contribution to GHG emissions is the greatest among buildings. Data were collected through literature review, reviewing smart-city proposals and latest state annual action plans, Right to Information queries, and structured interviews of stakeholders. Feedback from green-building certification agencies, project proponents, and government officials revealed a need for local-level information dissemination and guidance on institutional mechanisms for incentivising green-rated projects. Further, to understand the implementation mechanisms for GRIHA-linked incentives, residential projects under some local-government agencies were documented as case studies, providing useful insights into prevalent mechanisms for availing incentives while facilitating GRIHA compliance. The information provided herein can be useful for local governments in other developing countries for guiding the building sector toward mitigating climate change.

OVERVIEW OF THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT POWERS IN THE FIELD OF THE ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION: THE EUROPEAN EXPERIENCE

The article analyzes the environmental competence of local governments of leading European countries.It is noted which powers of the municipal government in the field of environmental protection were transferredto the local level due to decentralization. Positive aspects are highlighted, which can be further used by nationallocal governments.In view of the above, it is obvious that in Ukraine, in order to increase the efficiency of local selfgovernmentbodies in the environmental sphere, it is necessary to more clearly define the functions and powersand their responsibility for decision-making. It should also be noted that there is a lack of harmonization ofregulations in this area at the local, regional and state levels. The result is duplication of functions and disputesbeyond authority. European experience shows the expediency of expanding the competence of local selfgovernmentin the field of environmental protection and a clear definition of the powers of municipal authorities.The effectiveness and efficiency of the implementation of the activities of municipal bodies in the field ofenvironmental protection in order to ensure sustainable use of nature and environmental protection depends ona clear demarcation of functions and powers of local self-government bodies and legislative regulation of theresponsibility of local authorities for their decisions. It is obvious that research and use of the experience ofEuropean countries in the research area will contribute to this.
 Key words: competence, ecological powers, decentralization, European experience.

Can gender quotas break the glass ceiling? Evidence from Italian municipal elections

Do gender quotas promote the election of female mayors? I exploit the roll-out of three gender quota policies governing Italian municipal elections to answer this question. The quotas institute minimum legal levels of female representation in the lists of councilor candidates and in the municipal governments' executive bodies, but do not directly target mayoral positions. Therefore, their ability to promote female political leadership entirely depends on whether they induce a broader increase in female representation in municipal governments beyond that mechanically required by the law. Using event-study and regression discontinuity methods, I decompose the aggregate effects of the quotas into mechanical effects, driven by compliance with the law, and additional impacts, or “acceleration effects.” The reforms have increased the share of female politicians in the less senior government positions beyond the minimum legal level, but there is no evidence of effects on the mayoral position. I also find no evidence of effects on female mayoral candidacies or on electoral support for female mayoral candidates. I conclude that the acceleration effects produced by the quotas have been too weak to advance female political leadership in municipal governments.

Police governance in Canada: Variations and disparities among police services boards

AbstractPolice governance is a contentious issue and one that is both complex and varied throughout Canada. Police services boards (PSBs) are municipal bodies that are responsible for the adequacy and effectiveness of local police agencies. These boards are widespread throughout Canada, but little academic research has covered PSBs. We examined police legislation in each province/territory in Canada and conducted a policy review of each jurisdiction’s PSBs to understand more about these entities and to identify issues, disparities, and variations concerning civilian governance of police in the country. We identified three components associated with PSBs found in the police legislation to illustrate similarities and differences of local police governing authorities throughout the country. Our research found that civilian governance of police within and throughout the provinces/territories varies considerably. We discuss the implications of this research and offer suggestions for future inquiry on the topic.

Refusal to grant a vote of confidence to the municipal executive body - a procedural aspect

Przedmiotem publikacji jest działalność uchwałodwacza organów wykonawczych. Od 2018 r. wprowadzono do systemu prawnego nową procedurę dotyczącą uchwał organów stanowiących jednostek samorządu terytorialnego, tj. pojawienie się uchwał z mocy prawa jako fikcja prawna i konsekwencja innego działania. Istotny jest zarówno nowy tryb powstania uchwał, jak i forma prawna nieudzielenia wotum zaufania organowi wykonawczemu gminy. Formą prawną wyrażenia woli odmowy udzielenia wotum zaufania przez organ stanowiący jest uchwała. Uchwała ta jest podejmowana w trybie szczególnym – bez głosowania – i ma szczególny charakter, dla jej ważności niezbędne jest uzasadnienie stanowiące część formalną uchwały. Dlatego też poglądy prawne prezentowane przez organy nadzorcze nad samorządem, kształtujące praktykę administracyjną organów samorządu, nie znajdują uzasadnienia prawnego zarówno w ustawie o samorządzie gminnym, jak iw praktyce orzeczniczej.

Эффективность деятельности органов местного самоуправления муниципальных районов Кемеровской области – Кузбасса

The author reviewed domestic and foreign publications that feature various methods of assessing the performance of municipal authorities, which is the most important criterion for determining the well-being of population. The article introduces an authentic method that relies on the analysis of performance indicators based on the predominance of the achieved values over the average converted values. The method makes it possible to quantify and interpret the level of the so-called "administrative rationality" of municipal self-government bodies. It converts the values of indicators into coefficients (dominance and achievement), elements, and integral values of efficiency. The transformed values are then systematized in the context of economy (assets, budget, wages, etc.) and social components (transport accessibility, land, population, housing, communal services, etc.). A comparative analysis determined the following effective municipal districts of the Kemerovo region: Prokopyevsk, Kemerovo, Novokuznetsk, Yaya, Leninsk-Kuznetsky, and Izhmorka. The new method provides a transparent and objective assessment of municipal management.

Суб’єкти муніципально-правової політики як різновиду правової політики держави

The article is devoted to the study of the issue of subjects of municipal legal policy. The author made a thorough analysis of approaches to the definition of legal policy, municipal legal policy and gives his own vision on this issue, based on scientific literature and the provisions of Ukrainian and foreign legislation. The article considers two approaches (activity and institutional) to the understanding of the concept of «legal policy» in the scientific literature and analyzes the approaches to the definition of «legal policy». Thus, the paper presents the scientific developments of the representatives of the activity approach, in which the main subject of legal policy is the state bodies, it is concluded that such an approach narrows the understanding of the subjects of legal policy. The opinions of the representatives of the institutional approach are studied and it is noted that their understanding of legal policy without the allocation of subjects is quite controversial. The paper singles out the scientific approach, according to which the subjects are understood as state and municipal bodies, it is said that such an approach also narrows the understanding of the subjects. The author concludes that the subjects of legal policy can include government agencies and non-governmental organizations (political parties, NGOs, citizens, the scientific community). Regarding the definition of subjects of municipal legal policy, the author analyzes the approach to which the subjects are public authorities, local governments and the local community. It is noted that this definition of subjects in terms of separate allocation of the local community is fully consistent with the provisions of Art. 140 of the Constitution of Ukraine. The approach to the selection of subjects of municipal legal policy, according to which the subject is local government, is studied. The author believes that this position should be criticized because the municipal legal policy is formed and implemented not only at the local but also at the national level. The results of the study conclude that the allocation of state and non-state structures as subjects is the most balanced position in the scientific literature. The author concludes that the subjects of municipal legal policy should be understood as state and non-state (political parties, public organizations, etc.) structures, as well as individual citizens, scientists. The separation of state and non-state structures as groups of subjects of municipal legal policy is substantiated, as well as their division into a number of smaller subgroups.

Роль прокуратуры в защите трудовых прав наемных работников

Protecting the labor rights and interests of citizens is one of the important tasks of the Russian prosecutor’s office. The subject of prosecutorial supervision over compliance with labor legislation and labor protection is implemented in three main areas, in particular, compliance with and implementation of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, federal laws and laws of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation in the field of labor, by-laws adopted by federal executive authorities and executive authorities subjects of the Russian Federation, acts of local self-government bodies, acts of regulatory bodies and their officials, as well as local regulatory legal acts adopted in commercial and non-commercial organizations, from employers - individuals who are individual entrepreneurs. Wherein the prosecutor is obliged to monitor the observance of labor rights and interests of employees by employers, established not only by regulatory legal acts adopted by state and municipal bodies, but also by acts of social partnership. The main areas of interaction between the federal labor inspectorate and the prosecutor’s office of the Russian Federation are, in particular, the fact that employees of the prosecutor’s office and state labor inspectors regularly share important information about the established violations of labor legislation, including about representatives of the employer brought to legal responsibility under Art. ... Art. 5.27 and 5.27.1 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation and the fact that prosecutors are usually employed as specialists of state labor inspectors in order to closely monitor compliance with labor legislation. Prosecutors must protect not only the right of workers to timely and full payment of wages, but also other labor rights and interests of citizens.

MEASURES OF ADMINISTRATIVE COERCION TO ENSURE THE ENFORCEMENT OF PRESCRIBED LEGAL REQUIREMENTS OF THE POLICE IN THE ESTABLISHED AREAS OF CONTROL AND SUPERVISORY ACTIVITIES

Abstract: the article raises the question that authorized officials of the internal affairs bodies (police) in the established areas of control and supervisory activities are entitled to make legitimate demands on individuals and organizations through the adoption of law enforcement administrative legal acts (regulations, representations, etc.). By virtue of Part 4 of Article 13 of the Federal Law “On Police”, representations and prescriptions are recognized as mandatory for execution by all state and municipal bodies, organizations, officials and other persons within the time limits specified in the request, but no later than one month from the date of its delivery. In case of their non-fulfillment or improper execution, as a general rule, administrative liability is provided for in the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation. However, with the adoption in 2020 of Federal Law No. 248 “On State Control (Supervision) and Municipal Control…”, the police, in the implementation of federal state control (supervision) in the field of road safety, the police (traffic police units), in case of non-compliance with the instructions on the elimination of violations of mandatory requirements within the prescribed period, had the right to apply measures administrative enforcement of previously prescribed legal requirements by means of newly issued prescriptions, up to applying to the court in order to ensure their execution (Article 90). In other established areas of control and supervisory activities of the police, the norms of Federal Law No. 294 “On the Protection of the Rights of Legal Entities and Individual Entrepreneurs…” are applied, which do not provide for measures of administrative coercion to enforce police orders. Based on the analysis of the norms of the Federal Law “On the Police”, other federal laws, Resolutions of the Government of the Russian Federation and Orders of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia, the question of the need for a system of administrative coercion measures used in police activities to determine a special type of administrative coercion measures aimed at ensuring compliance with legal requirements prescribed by the law enforcement administrative legal act of the police.

ПОЛИТИЧЕСКАЯ ДЕПОПУЛЯЦИЯ МУНИЦИПАЛЬНОЙ ПЕРИФЕРИИ: ПОЛИТИЧЕСКИЕ И ЭЛЕКТОРАЛЬНЫЕ ПОСЛЕДСТВИЯ ОБЪЕДИНЕНИЯ МУНИЦИПАЛИТЕТОВ НА ПРИМЕРЕ ПЕРМСКОГО КРАЯ

Introduction: the process of municipalities’ unification in the Perm region is nearly completed, resulting in establishing one-level system of urban and municipal districts to replace the two-level local government system that included both urban and rural settlements. The abolition of settlements is accompanied by reducing the number of local deputies and reconfiguration of local political space. Regardless of fairly large amounts of statistical data we know very little about any concrete political and electoral consequences of municipalities unification for political actors in ex-settlements. Objectives: to find answers to the following research questions: did the layer of municipal politicians acting at ex- settlements level remain after the reform? To what extent have they been able to integrate into the representative bodies of the unified municipalities? Methods: analysis of quantitative data contained in elections statistics covering 43 unification voting campaigns in the Perm region between 2012 and 2021. Results: the research concludes that, of several thousands of local politicians previously active in the Perm region, the vast majority chose exit strategy and quit politics. Local residents of the unified settlements representing political periphery make up only a small proportion of the new deputies. Residents of most urbanized and centralized peripheral settlements were least active and least successful. It is very rarely that local politicians resisted the unifications and liquidations. After the territories unification, the competition at municipal elections in the Perm region showed a certain reduction rather than expected growth. Conclusions: the unification of rural and urban settlements in the Perm region has led not only to the formal liquidation of municipalities and their local governments, but also to the actual dilution of municipal political class on a rural level. What happened, in fact, was the political depopulation of rural peripheries in the newly formed municipal districts. Following the liquidation of the local governments, politics quit the ex-regions and politicians followed the suit. Of all deputes elected as ex-settlements residents to the representative organs of the newly formed urban and rural municipal districts, only few still participate in politics, but mostly only on administrative center issues. Centralization of local politics, limiting local political space to administrative centers and actual abolition of political subjects at its periphery are some of the most significant consequences resulting from local government optimization in the Perm region.

КАДРОВОЕ ОБЕСПЕЧЕНИЕ ОРГАНОВ МУНИЦИПАЛЬНОГО УПРАВЛЕНИЯ В СОВРЕМЕННЫХ РОССИЙСКИХ УСЛОВИЯХ

The article analyzes the factors of formation and development in Russia of the system of personnel support of municipal government bodies, the features of the institutional development of this system are considered. The analysis of dysfunctions, factors of its deprofessionalization is presented. A set of measures has been defined to level out the key problems of the formation and development of professional competencies among municipal employees.

Development of the Agricultural Sector as a Factor of Ensuring Food Security of Kazakhstan in the Context of the EAEU

In the framework of the integration associations, each state must ensure, first of all, its food security with the economically feasible development of the agricultural sector of the national economy. This study examined the food security of the Republic of Kazakhstan in the context of the integration of the Eurasian Economic Union members. The study proposes a method for calculating an integral indicator of food security in Kazakhstan, based on determining the weighted average value, taking into account the significance of each group of indicators. The final assessment is given according to the created scale of integrated assessment of food security. Three groups of indicators are used: food availability, availability and sufficiency of food consumption, quality and safety. The research results showed that the state of food security of the Republic of Kazakhstan during the examined period is assessed as insufficient, mainly due to a decrease in the availability of food and insufficient use of the resource potential of the agricultural sector. The study concluded that when solving practical problems, the methods for assessing food security do not allow researchers consider important characteristics of each country and use them for decision-making. It is necessary to further develop the methodological foundations for creating tools for measuring, evaluating and regulating the processes of interaction between the EAEU member states. The material is addressed to employees of state and municipal government bodies, economic educational institutions and the scientific community.