Territorial self-government reform in Ukraine (2014–2018)

Territorial self-government as the basic form of organization of society at the local level is one of the oldest forms of decentralization of power. During the time of the Ukrainian territory within the USSR, its development was stopped or even destroyed by ubiquitous centralization (“all power in the hands of the Soviets”) and “partyism.” The system imposed at that time limited the rights and subjectivity of Ukrainian society by introducing a totalitarian system of government. Since the nineties of the twentieth century (that is, since Ukraine regained its independence) the pace of development of self-government has increased significantly, although the remains of the communist regime are still visible. Along with the restoration of statehood, the problem of the location of territorial self-government appeared in the context of the division of powers and the delimitation of competences with the executive. The issues discussed also appeared in the judgments of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine. The list of tasks entrusted to the local government is constantly increasing, and the responsibility towards citizens is also growing. The main problem of the work is the role of self-government in Ukraine, decentralization of power, financing and settlement of property problems. The aim of the work is to show the general direction of local government development and contemporary trends, taking into account the fact that in Ukraine there is a war with the Russian Federation.