Territorial Self-government Research Articles

How much is too much: A case study of local self-government units in Slovakia using absolute variability to determine the importance of financial criteria in MCDM analysis.

The performance evaluation of local self-government entities is very difficult, as their primary goal is not to make a profit, but to provide services to their residents that will contribute to an increase in their quality of life. In this context, it is necessary to evaluate their activity from the point of view of several available criteria, for which it is possible to find relevant and recognized sources. The presented research works with five criteria, identified by the Institute for Economic and Social Reforms, and aims to quantify the agreement of the results of the assessment of the financial health of territorial self-government entities in 2020 using the TOPSIS technique with a gradually decreasing number of criteria. For this purpose, a total of 26 combinations of criteria are created, with the number of 5, 4, 3 and 2 used criteria, the importance of which is determined based on their absolute variability using the standard deviation method. The results obtained in this way are interpreted using a wide range of mathematical and statistical methods including the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, Levene test, Jaccard index and others. As a result, the multi-criteria evaluation of territorial self-government subjects (in our case, district cities) proved to be highly applicable. However, the result itself is largely determined by the structure and number of entry criteria. Based on the performed analyses, we can see that significant differences result from their reduction. Each such reduction has an impact on the overall results, but it is possible to find combinations that defy this conclusion.

Structural and Functional Consolidation Processes of Local Government Units in Norway and Croatia. A Comparative Study

The aim of the article is to synthesise the process of the introduction of the reform of the basic territorial division of the state in Norway between 2016 and 2020, creating a new structure of municipal and regional self-government with a simultaneous change in some of the tasks carried out at both levels of municipal and provincial (regional) self-government. We comparatively analyse the process of development of territorial selfgovernment in Croatia, with a particular focus on changes in the attitude of academia and politics towards the consolidation of local self-government units. The analysis is based on the assumptions and categories of neo-institutional methodology. The main thesis of the paper emphasises the importance of the process of structural and functional consolidation of local government units carried out in order to optimise the delivery of public services, enhance the well-being of local communities and exploit economies of scale. The essence and evolution of local self-government institutions in Norway and Croatia and their political and theoretical conditions will also be the subject of synthesis in the paper.

DID THE CONFERENCE ON THE FUTURE OF EUROPE GO LOCAL? EVIDENCE FROM POLAND

The aim of the paper is to analyse the involvement of the local and regional authorities within the Conference on the Future of Europe. The former, being closer to the citizens, could play important role in reaching “every corner of the European Union” and helping the citizens to articulate their ideas about the European integration. Therefore, the activity of the subnational level could contribute to the final success of the Conference (or failure – in case of lack of any actions). The analysis is based on the author’s own empirical study conducted among the Polish territorial self-government units after the closure of the Conference. The local and regional authorities were asked if they informed the citizens about the Conference, organised events regarding this enterprise or took part in the events organised by other entities. The results show very low level of the activity, even among the territorial self-government units that are present at the European level. The conclusions regard both to the Polish circumstances as well as to the general performance of the Conference. In the first case, they unveil the unwritten practice among the Polish territorial self-government units on their involvement in the European affairs. Regarding the second point, the results indicate that the Conference din not manage to exceed the “European bubble”

Application of GIS in land management on the example of Ukraine

Motives: Full-scale hostilities that occurred in Ukraine in 2022 have led to significant losses in agriculture and rural areas. These losses pose a serious threat to the country’s food security and may lead to crises on international food markets. Also, to justify information needs and requirements in accordance with legal regulations relating to land use, food security in Ukraine should be considered through continuous monitoring and analysis of the available land resources, and the existing and projected structure of cultivated areas.Aim: The aim of the study is to provide a theoretical and methodological basis for formulating practical recommendations regarding information and analytical support for the management of land resources through the use of GIS, in particular Earth remote sensing systems, in land management.Results: To improve the institutional environment for regulating land relations in Ukraine under new conditions of management, the following stakeholders should be considered in the process of managing land resources: 1) government, 2) local authorities, 3) agricultural enterprises, and 4) land owners. The study revealed problems with access to information and analytical support for managing land resources at the level of the central government, territorial self-governments, and agricultural enterprises. Digital transformation has a significant impact on agribusiness because it enables agricultural producers to interact with other stakeholders, compare their performance with competitors, and optimize production processes.

The impact of the closure of mining plants on the local environment in the perspective of demographic change and public health

Purpose: in the cognitive space of the article, an important and significant challenge arises, which is - in the perspective of the megatrends indicated in the article, demographic change and public health - the need to prepare a package of socio-economic activities dedicated primarily to the inhabitants of the areas where the process of closing down mining plants will take place. In this context, the issues of demographic change and health should be given priority in these areas in activities promoting social and economic activity in the transformation process. Methodology: the theses presented in the article were verified using the following methods: literature review, critical analysis of literature, analysis and comparison of documents and an example of good practices. Resultat: in the perspective of the next decades, numerous social and economic challenges and effects related to the transformation of mining plants in the space of local communities (commune, district) can be pointed out. While maintaining the hierarchy of objectives described in the European Green Deal Plan and clearly related to the plan for the transformation of mining plants, lasting cooperation of the three key stakeholders in this process, i.e., local communities (representation of local and territorial self-government), employers and representation of state policies, should be expected in their environment. Originality: the conclusions and recommendations from the article may be important for researchers and practitioners involved in the implementation of activities aimed at limiting the marginalization, differentiation and social and economic exclusion of residents of areas where the process of closing mining plants will take place. Keywords: mining, demographic change, public health.

Исторические этапы и модели общественного управления граждан по месту жительства в России (1914–1937 гг.)

The article examines the historical types of public self-government of citizens at the place of residence, which developed in the first half of the XX century in our country. In the process of development of territorial self-government, two periods are distinguished: from 1914 to 1921 and from 1921 to 1937. The first of them is characterized by a model of self-organization of residents, which was implemented in house committees and new social movements of workers. The created structures did not deal with policy issues, they were responsible for the problems of regulating the relationship between the owner and the tenant, exploiting tenants’ joint prop-erty, assistance to city self-government in the implementation of municipal tasks and, in some periods, the dis-tribution of ration cards among members. The model of residents’ self-governance emphasized in the second phase was represented by housing associations and various public committees. They remained in charge of the maintenance and operation of houses with maximum involvement of citizens in the process of control and management of the housing.

Public procurement of territorial self-government in Slovakia as a postulate for the security management of municipalities and regions

Purpose: The article deals with the issue of important elements creating a healthy competitive environment in the public sector with the formulation of the same principles and conditions for all participants, such as the transparency of the public procurement process, non-discrimination, and ensuring equal conditions for applicants for public contracts, as well as efficiency and security in the payment of public financial operations.
 Method: empirical method, abstraction, analysis of statistical data, descriptive analysis.
 Findings: the proposed principle of four eyes, guarantees the principle of economy, efficiency, effectiveness, and expediency through the execution of financial control by more than one person.
 Paper type: theoretical.

Asymetria jako czynnik osłabiający odporność i integrację w zrównoważonym rozwoju polsko-czeskiego pogranicza w kontekście sporu o kopalnię Turów

By analysing asymmetry in socioeconomic and environmental development in the Polish-Czech borderland, we contribute to the discussion on its impacts as a factor weakening resilience and integration for the purposes of sustainable development in the region. In the article, we use the results of the studies under the Project The crisis at the Turów Mine and its impact on Czech-Polish cross-border cooperation: An evaluation, conclusions and recommendations, funded by the Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange in 2022. The main aim of our research is to draw conclusions for territorial self-governments as to how they should strengthen sustainable development based on integration with foreign partners, thus enhancing resilience. We draw conclusions based on qualitative research, statistical analyses and literature studies. One of the key conclusions which can be drawn from the present study is that the asymmetry visible in many socioeconomic areas weakens the resilience of institutional structures to crises, resulting in barely discernible cooperation between these regions.

Urban Prototyping as a Tool to Enhance Public Participation in Territorial Self-Government

The main purpose of the article is to discuss the potential and justification of the crucial role that urban prototyping may play in participatory processes. Satisfaction of the needs of residents who create a self-governing community should be the primary axiological milestone and a goal to be pursued by local governments. Thus, effective and modern management tools should be identified and put in place. The idea that guides one of them, i.e. urban prototyping, is to offer residents an opportunity to resort to various variants of change of the public space before they are ultimately applied in the investment process. Dialogue with residents supported by research, analysis, and tests can help stakeholders realise the consequences of spatial changes around them and then, based on the feedback from residents, design guidelines should be created that best reflect their needs. Thus, residents, through real and multifaceted participatory process, should gain a real, decisive influence over transformation of public spaces.

Extraterritorial effects of territorial self-government decisions

As a result of expanding globalisation, states in various cases, in order to protect different interests and by reference to different principles, increasingly abandon rigid adherence to the principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of other States in the area of prescriptive jurisdiction and reciprocally accept the extension of the effects of individual legal acts issued by another State on their territory. In the conditions of the European Union, this acceptance concerns civil, criminal and administrative matters. It is individual administrative acts that are of particular interest from the point of view of the possibility of acquiring extraterritorial effects, because for several of tchem no specific recognition procedure is required. The aim of this paper is to characterize administrative acts with extraterritorial effects. Then to define the basic regimes for recognition and enforcement of administrative acts and to present examples of their application in the conditions of the Slovak Republic. Lastly to identify examples of administrative acts of local self-government authorities with extraterritorial effects and, following the examples thus identified, to present the regimes of their recognition and enforcement.

KWESTIA SŁUŻBY CYWILNEJ W ADMINISTRACJI SAMORZĄDOWEJ – PORAŻKI I ZANIECHANIA OKRESU III RP

The subject of the analysis is the issue of the legitimacy of introducing the civil service model in Polish local government administration. Local self-government authorities have been functioning in Poland since the Second Polish Republic (baseding in this respect on various regulations of the partitioning states and France from the period of the Duchy of Warsaw and the validity of the Napoleonic Code). In the too “pink” and overly optimistic perception of the model of Polish local government, attention should be paid to the areas of omissions and visible failures. For such a failure in the light of the functioning of the territorial self-governments of the Second Polish Republic was the failure to establish voivodeship selfgovernments (apart from two units from the former Prussian and German partitions) and the failure to extend the state civil service (according to the model from February 1922) from state administration to self-government administration. Especially after 1994 (the second self-government election), we had to deal with a kind of appropriation of self-government administration structures by strengthening political parties and local coterie centered around village heads or mayors.

KWESTIA SŁUŻBY CYWILNEJ W ADMINISTRACJI SAMORZĄDOWEJ – PORAŻKI I ZANIECHANIA OKRESU III RP

The subject of the analysis is the issue of the legitimacy of introducing the civil service model in Polish local government administration. Local self-government authorities have been functioning in Poland since the Second Polish Republic (baseding in this respect on various regulations of the partitioning states and France from the period of the Duchy of Warsaw and the validity of the Napoleonic Code). In the too “pink” and overly optimistic perception of the model of Polish local government, attention should be paid to the areas of omissions and visible failures. For such a failure in the light of the functioning of the territorial self-governments of the Second Polish Republic was the failure to establish voivodeship selfgovernments (apart from two units from the former Prussian and German partitions) and the failure to extend the state civil service (according to the model from February 1922) from state administration to self-government administration. Especially after 1994 (the second self-government election), we had to deal with a kind of appropriation of self-government administration structures by strengthening political parties and local coterie centered around village heads or mayors.

The Conflict in Eastern Ukraine and International Support for the Decentralization Reform (2014–2022): Theory-Guided Observations

This article explores Western donors’ support for the decentralization reform in post-Euromaidan Ukraine prior to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, with a focus on the relationship between decentralization and conflict management. It demonstrates that, despite the protracted conflict in eastern Ukraine, bilateral donors have preferred to address Ukraine’s decentralization from the governance reform perspective, rather than as a form of territorial self-governance (TSG) arrangement, linked to conflict resolution. They have also tended to “outsource” conflict-related support to multilateral organizations. This article explains the Russian Federation’s use of the so-called Donetsk and Luhansk “People’s Republics” as proxies in an international conflict and the contested nature of the role played by the Minsk Protocol in determining the form of support provided for reform. It concludes with insights into the implications of donor support for the decentralization reform in Ukraine for research on decentralization and other TSG solutions in conflict-affected contexts.

Territorial self-government in Russia as a national model of public participation in the exercise of public authority

Territorial self-government (TSG) is one of those institutions of Russian law that emerged in the process of transformation of socialist state law into contemporary constitutional and municipal law. However, it was not accepted by the national laws of a significant part of the former USSR states-republics, which used other forms of institutionalization of local communities. The legal nature of TSG is still a subject of controversy in Russian legal science. This article proposes a new approach to the description of legally significant properties of TSG in Russia through their comparison with similar or related institutions of other national legal systems: territorial self-government, public councils in municipalities, other national models of TSG (Republic of Belarus). This helped to distinguish between generic and specific characteristics of TSG and to draw a reasonable conclusion about the national (specific) features of TSG in Russia. The author pays special attention to differentiating the properties of public and citizens’ power, forms of direct democracy and forms of public participation. The author suggests possible ways of TSG development in Russia and the corresponding directions for improving legislation that correlate with the legal nature of TSG and its features, in particular, determining the procedure for TSG participation in the development and implementation of municipal strategic planning documents.

Individuální a kolektivní ochrana

The current international military-political situation in the world, when the war in Ukraine has been going on for almost a year, shows the urgency of the issue of protecting the population. Moreover, one of the main measures to protect the population is individual and collective protection. This book takes the reader on a short historical tour of the genesis of individual and collective protection, introduces the currently established means of protection of the respiratory tract and body (skin), their development, testing, storage and treatment. In the professional publication, the authors also describe the basic means of decontamination and the medical equipment of the individual. A comprehensive part of the book is devoted to the issue of biological agents and medical and veterinary measures in emergency and crisis situations. Finally, yet importantly, the issue of sheltering the population in shelters, principles of construction of improvised shelters and activities in them is widely described in the publication. The authors also describe in detail the individual civil protection facilities and the main principles of operation of the staff of these facilities in crises. Emphasis is placed on activities in staff protective equipment dispensaries. This professional book is intended for the lay and professional public. This publication can be utilized as a source of information in the framework of the preparation of the population for the defense of the state, units of the Territorial Defense troops (Active Reserve Force), the state administration and territorial self-government, the components of the integrated rescue system and the professional staff of the civil protection facilities in crises.

Public Investment at the Local Level under Changing Conditions of Budgetary Economy in Poland

Purpose – The aim of the article is to identify the scope and directions of changes in the situation of local government budgets and their links with macroeconomic factors, the occurrence of which is associated with the consequences caused by crisis phenomena, as well as to determine the disparity of investment expenditures in local systems in the context of the investment capacity of local government units. Research method – The study applied the method of critical analysis of the literature on the subject, as well as the method of comparative analysis using measures of statistical description in the scope of empirical data collected and own calculations. Results – The consequences of the pandemic crisis phenomena and adverse trends in macroeconomic factors affect the stability of the budgetary economy. It was observed that until 2021, the level of investment expenditures did not decrease, however, negative changes in the structure of expenditure are noticeable in many local government units. Originality /value /implications /recommendations – The analysis of the economic environment indicate the risk of intensification of factors destabilising economic processes. It is necessary to undertake regular analyses with a view to counteracting the further negative changes, in particular in the field of the revenue stability of territorial self-government units, as well as the elimination of excessive spatial diversification of investment capacities on the scale of Poland.

Revitalization microprojects: how the civic budget supports regeneration activities in cities: the Łódź city case study

Motivation: One of the distinguishing features of revitalization processes is social activation of the local community. It results directly from the very definition of revitalization, which is understood as the process of social and investment character carried out in degraded urban space which is implemented concertedly by the territorial self-government, the local community and other participants. The residents of the run-down quarters are the main beneficiaries of revitalization policy. Undertaken regeneration efforts are, first and foremost, aimed at improving their life situation. Not only grand projects are important in order to revive degraded space. It is those projects which are conducted on a microscale, which do not require substantial financial outlays and on which the inhabitants of degraded areas subjected to regeneration exert an impact that are equally significant. Undoubtedly, the civic budget and the projects submitted within its framework which supplement revitalization undertakings pose an opportunity to regenerate run-down areas on such a microscale. Aim: The purpose of the study is to evaluate the role and significance of the microprojects financed from the civic budget which fit into the revitalization process. A research hypothesis was advanced for the purpose of the article which states that the revitalization microactivities which constitute a part of the civic budget are a tool for supporting revitalization process. Results: Revitalization focuses not only on the technical aspect consisting in regeneration activities performed within the buildings themselves, but it also effectively engages local communities with the use of disposable financial means. In Łódź a systematic increase in the activation of the community dwelling in degraded area is observed. Social participation enables dialogue and cooperation among all the stakeholders, which may in turn lead to consensus and to working out the solutions satisfactory for all the parties concerned, starting from the territorial self-government which initiated the process to the inhabitants of degraded areas. One of the tools which enables local community to actively participate in the decision-making process is the civic budget. It results from the fact that the civic budget and the projects submitted within its framework are convergent with the undertaken revitalization activities. Year by year the interest in the civic budget increases and almost 50% of the projects submitted for implementation in Łódź within the analysed period of time and the spatial framework being the subject of analysis concern the activities aimed at regeneration of public space. The projects regarding public transport infrastructure, improvement of the condition of roads and pavements in revitalized areas or concerning green and recreational areas gain considerable popularity.

Le diable est dans les détails – czyli kilka refleksji na temat kontrolno-nadzorczych dylematów dotyczących regulaminów organizacyjnych urzędów gmin

The paper is based on an analysis of the provisions pertaining to the adoption of the house rules of municipality offices and the regulations specifying the rules and the procedure of exercising supervision over these acts of executive bodies, as well as of subjecting them to the direct control of administrative courts. This analysis has revealed that the approach to the form in which the above issues are regulated should be revised towards such regulations and practice of applying law that would facilitate having more regard for the attributes of the independence of self-governmental administration in this field. The treatment that these features have received (especially in the practice of supervisory organs and judicature’s output) has so far not explored or respected this potential. Taking also into account the experience (both doctrinal and related to administrative practice) gathered in the period of over 32 years since the reestablishment of territorial self-government in Poland, the paper thus argues that, at least in certain areas, the process of overcoming the limitations linked to the rationing – so to speak – of the attributes of decentralization (especially: of independence as one of its components) should be initiated. Therefore, the paper postulates in this context that invalidity sanction be substituted by the derogation in the form of revocation (that is: an ex tunc effect should be substituted by an ex nunc effect). The paper also signals that, when dealing with these forms of self-governmental activities, it may be possible to depart from the automatic application of the temporary protection related to the delivery of a supervisory adjudication (i.e. from the mechanism that presumes automatic sui generis acceleration of the enforceability of a supervisory adjudication). This stance has been additionally supported by the discussion of the specificity of organizational administrative law (in particular – with regard to the acts of non-municipal law, while allowing for the complex character of the house rules of municipality offices) which takes into account the conception of institutional choice.

Problems and Challenges Involved in Using Integrated Urban Development Planning Tools. Example of a Development Strategy and Revitalisation Programmes

Polish cities are changing constantly and, in the age of intense socio-economic, environmental and political transformation, they have to cope with many problems and challenges. In order to successfully solve the problems and challenges facing cities, local government units should apply integrated strategic management tools. Development processes (including revitalisation) can be directed using a range of tools. Local authorities responsible for the monitoring of development in territorial self-government units, such as cities, have at their disposal a wide range of development policy instruments and can actively shape development processes. Urban development strategies and revitalisation programmes are among the key tools of integrated management and planning used in Polish cities. They are integrated development programmes covering all aspects of city operations (social, economic, spatial-environmental, and technical). However, putting them in place faces a number of problems and challenges when they are drafted and implemented. Problems and challenges can be divided into three key groups of barriers: systemic barriers, social capital barriers, and information and communication barriers. The purpose of this article is to identify and characterize two key instruments of integrated urban development planning and management (namely, the city development strategy and revitalization program). This paper also attempts to identify the key issues and challenges involved in using tools such as the integrated development strategy and revitalisation programme in urban development management by local authorities.

Problems of Territorial Self-Governance: International Experience and Prospects for Ukraine

Problems of Territorial Self-Governance: International Experience and Prospects for Ukraine