Ph D in Law Steshenko T.V., Salivon G.

The National Law Academy of Ukraine named after Yaroslav the Wise

Common-Social Bases of Organization and Activity of Local Self-Government as Necessary and Obligatory Preconditions of Its Existence and Activity

Since Ukraine had become independent, local self-government got more importance for Ukrainian society. Nowadays, the problems of local self-government call attention not only of scientists in the sphere of state, but also the representatives of power. The system of bases of organization and activity of local self-government is the obligatory condition for its successful functioning. The totality of them forms that base, on which the whole system of local self-government is grounded.

The bases of organization and activity of local self-government represent a legislatively stated system of objectively stipulated, formed under the influence of external factors, necessary and sufficient conditions, which have constitutive, complex, systematic and dynamic disposition and have the manifestation in the social life in the form of resource potential of local self-government and provide its normal existence and effective functioning.

They have some important indications. These are:

- objective conditionality (accordance with the character and existent state of development of social relations and also with economic, social and other processes in society);

- constitutive character (directing of bases for the creating of conditions for the functioning and development of all local self-government institutes);

- complex and systematic character, that means the intercommunication of separate bases between each other;

- dynamics (the inclination of bases for the transformation because of different reasons-quantitative composition of local soviets, the borders of delegated powers, the specificity of territorial activity, internal formation, the intensity of law-creation and so on);

- the necessity (the formation of such a resource base, that is necessary for the creation, effective functioning and development of local self-government);

- the sufficiency (such a quantity and volume of necessary conditions, that could allow the local self-government to fulfill its tasks really).

The totality of these indications allows to make a conclusion, that the bases of organization and activity of local self-government serve as a criterion of its provision and effective execution of its tasks.

It should be mentioned, that the bases of organization and activity of local self-government have to be set by the legislation to provide its normal existence and effective functioning. First, they would have a form of legal regulation, that is compulsory for everyone. Second, it would give the opportunity to carry them out with the help of state coercion.

There is a classification of bases of organization and activity of local self-government into common-social (attributive) and fundamental (constitutive) in the state-building science.

The local self-government together with other democratic social institutes rest on the common-social bases. They can’t be used as the normative indicators of the level of resource provision of local self-government. They are that necessary, essential, inalienable characteristics of social order, which serve as obligatory preconditions of local self-government existence as an independent part of public authority. From this point of view, they can be called “attributive”. They create appropriate conditions, serve as “the common background” for existence and development of local self-government, all its forms and subjects.

Some parts of these bases can be fixed in the sources of law only in the form of common, declarative norms and need obligatory concrete definition. Historical, theoretical, political, ideological, social, humanistic, informative, demographic bases of organization and activity of local self-government can be related to this group. The list of them is not exhaustive, because the elements of common-social bases system are always in the development and in the dynamics.

Those bases that can execute the role of normative indicator of the level of resource providing of local self-government are fundamental. They give way to the legal concrete definition and can be formatted as the regulative norms. These bases objectively indicate the essence of local self-government; they are the basic conditions of its existence. The local self-government loses the sense without them, because it can’t function and execute its social role. Therefore this group of bases can be called “constitutive”. Legal, organizing, territorial and economical bases can be related to this group.

It must be noted, that the common-social bases of organization and activity of local self-government have also social importance and humanism, except the mentioned indications. Common-social bases are closely connected with the fundamental ones and can as stimulate their development, as hamper them. Common-social bases reflect deep, essential indications of society, and that’s why they are less disposed to the changes than fundamental ones. They don’t almost give way to the legal regulation, even more, they influence greatly on its matter and purposefulness.

The historical base is the totality of historical reductions about foundation and development of local self-government as an independent part of public authority, that form the conditions and opportunities for the analysis of its activity in the time context.

The theoretical base is the totality of views and positions of the specialists in the sphere of state as to such legal institute as local self-government, especially as to its conceptions, the system of elements, the order of formation, structure, forms and methods of activity, etc.

The political base represents the legally states conditions and opportunities of inculcation of local self-government as a separate kind of public authority, its support and development by the state, the providing of political and ideological variety in the local communities, the fulfillment and protection of political human and citizen rights and freedoms on the local level.

The information base is formed by legally stated conditions and opportunities of local self-government provision with various kinds of information as to the subjects of their competence, the established order of information exchange between the council and the population with the purpose of questions of local importance effective solution.

The demographic base represents the conditions and opportunities of capable persons’ influence on the activity of local self-government, provoked with the abilities and interests in the realization of human rights for the local self-government and directed to the participation in the decision of local problems.

The social base consists of the legally regulated conditions and opportunities of the execution of the right for the local self-government by the inhabitants of territorial community and the realization of social functions on the providing of needs of people living on the corresponding territory by the bodies of local self-government.

The humanistic base represents the legally stated conditions and opportunities of fulfillment and providing the human and citizen rights and freedoms by the local self-government.

The presence of sufficient conditions and opportunities of effective functioning of local self-government is the indicator of the level of the legal, democratic and social state development. The building of the legal state depends on the existence of regulated system of public authority bodies, especially on the local level in the state. In the most number of cases the existent legislation doesn’t inherit the old organization and the content of the economics management and the system of administrative bodies connected with it. The development of local self-government in Ukraine needs the bringing of system and content of legislation in the accordance with the new constitutional concepts and principals.