PROBLEMATIC ASPECTS OF THE REGULATORY AND LEGAL FRAMEWORK FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF LOCAL TARGET PROGRAMS

Abstract

The article investigates problematic aspects of the regulatory and legal framework for the development and implementation of local target programs (LTP), which are aimed at developing key aspects of community life. An analysis of the normative legal acts of Ukraine has been conducted, which regulate the mechanisms for developing programs for the socio-economic and cultural development of respective administrative-territorial units, as well as target programs on other issues of local self-government. It has been found that normative legal acts regulate the peculiarities of drawing up exclusively state target programs. At the same time, the peculiarities of drawing up LTP are not defined by any normative legal act. Additionally, the current legislation does not provide a definition of the term "local target program." It has been noted that, for general understanding of this concept in the scientific and expert community, the term defined in the Law of Ukraine "On State Target Programs" is used by analogy. It has been determined that LTP, like state programs, also combine tasks and measures aimed at solving the most important problems at the local level or in specific industries and spheres, the implementation of which is carried out at the expense of the local budget and other sources not prohibited by law. It has been found that communities are forced to use the normative legal framework provided for state target programs when developing LTP. The methodologies for developing local target programs (LTP), developed by individual experts of grant projects, are not approved by the normative legal acts of Ukraine, thus they only have an informative and recommendatory nature and are not mandatory for implementation by other territorial communities. It is emphasized that the imperfection of the legislation creates conditions for poor forecasting and planning, ineffective monitoring, and control over the implementation of LTP. The following shortcomings in the planning of LTP in communities have been identified: lack of connection with strategic documents of community development; uncoordinated goals, tasks, and measures of programs; absence of expected performance indicators of programs, as well as resource provision for their implementation; program projects (changes to programs) are not discussed with the public; interim and final reports on the progress of program implementation are not timely published on the official website of the local authority. Considering the existing shortcomings in the planning of LTP, it is proposed to adopt and approve at the state level measures to improve the mechanism for forming and implementing local target programs, namely: 1) develop a draft law and adopt the Law of Ukraine "On Local Target Programs"; 2) approve Methodological Recommendations on the procedure for developing, approving, implementing, monitoring, and evaluating the implementation of local (target) programs; 3) organize educational programs for local self-government bodies on the practical application of the methodology for developing local target programs. The author of the study emphasized that the implementation of these measures will contribute to improving the efficiency of local target programs, their compliance with the needs of community development, reducing the risks of non-fulfillment of local budgets, and enhancing the quality of local resource management. At the same time, involving the public in the process of developing and implementing target programs will increase the transparency and accountability of local self-government bodies. The article concludes that an urgent need for communities and a task for the relevant Ministry of Community and Territorial Development of Ukraine is the creation of a comprehensive regulatory legal act that would regulate and standardize the development, implementation, and monitoring of all planning documents of the triad "community strategy – socio-economic development program – local target programs," define their hierarchical interrelations, and be specialized for territorial communities.