Participatory Budgeting: Current State and the Ways of Development (Ukrainian and Foreign Experience)

Abstract

Problem statement. From 2015 onwards, taking into account European integration processes and based on the experience of European states, participatory budgeting (public or participative budget) as a process of interaction between relevant local governments and the public, aimed at involving citizens – members of a territorial community in participation in the budget process through projects submission, voting for them, monitoring their implementation within the boundaries of the city budget, determined by the relevant city council. Thus, the participatory budgeting is a way of direct democracy, by which citizens actually take part in making decisions on the allocation of a share of funds of the corresponding local budget. Significantly, despite the importance of the participatory budgeting for the territorial communities, the mechanism of its application, in particular, the definition of the basic principles and stages of the implementation of public budgeting, are currently stay out of the attention of scientists. With this in mind, the aim of the paper is overlook of the modern approach to the legal regulation and features of the implementation of public budgeting. Presenting main material. The author considers the features and procedure for the establishment of the participatory budgeting in Ukraine and some foreign countries (in particular, such as Australia, Canada, Poland, Portugal). The principles procedure of public budgeting should be based are determined. It is proved that the definition of «essential conditions» of participatory budgeting, which are fixed at the level of the relevant position of the city council, should be agreed and unified. The necessity of harmonization of normative legal acts regulating relations concerning public budgeting in Ukraine with the provisions of the national budget legislation was emphasized as well. Conclusions and prospects for development. The European experience of public budgeting imposition is positive for Ukraine in the context of the ongoing process of decentralization, including budget, which is impossible without the right of territorial communities to participate in solving financial, economic, cultural, educational and other issues. At the same time, we will emphasize once again the need for harmonization of normative legal acts regulating the relations of public budgeting in Ukraine with the provisions of the national budget legislation. This is due to the fact that according to the results of the budget the participation is allocated a certain amount of money from the corresponding local budget. In fact, in this case we are talking about the implementation of local budgets by expenditures, which is an integral part of the budget process in Ukraine.