Reformation of local self-government in the light of its integration into the system of public authority of the Russian Federation

Abstract

Introduction. Interest in the constitutional reform of 2020 does not wane, despite the rather long period since its completion. This is due to multiple changes in the constitutional text, including those related to the introduction of a new category of "unified system of public authority" and the legal consequences of legitimizing this idea and ensuring the corresponding principle at the level of current legislation. In this regard, an attempt to integrate local self-government into the public authority system seems especially relevant in a situation where Article 12 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation guarantees that local self-government is independent within its powers, and local selfgovernment bodies are not part of the system of state authorities. In this regard, the analysis of the municipal reform (which took a long period of time) seems particularly indicative, which, according to its authors (in the context of the new law on local self-government), one of its main goals was to implement the idea of a unified system of public authority in the legal space of modern Russia.Purpose. The analysis of the reforms of the foundations of local self-government presented in this article over several decades is intended to show how the attitude of the domestic legislator to the understanding of the place and role of local self-government and its bodies changed at certain stages of the development of Russian society and the state. In particular, the goal was to determine how the understanding of public authority as a whole influenced the understanding of the place and role of local self-government in the context of its relationship with state authority.Methods. When writing the article, general scientific, specific scientific and special research methods in jurisprudence were used. Particular attention was paid to cultural, sociological, historical and legal, comparative legal and formal and legal research methods.Results. Based on the results of the study, provisions were formulated concerning the close relationship between the constitutional novella on a unified system of public authority and subsequent changes in legislation, as well as the long and politically determined history of the municipal reform.Conclusions. The article proves that the general content and direction of the municipal reform were determined by the special approach of the political elite to the implementation of the course on the establishment of a unified system of public authority, formed over the decades of the existence of local self-government in Russia, since the beginning of systemic transformations within the framework of the organization of local self-government began long before the adoption of the relevant constitutional amendments and the subsequent changes in legislation. In addition, it is shown that it was not possible to completely abolish the two-tier system of local self-government due to the existing opposition from the subjects of the Russian Federation.