NSTITUTIONALIZATION OF THE LEGISLATIVE FRAMEWORK FOR PUBLIC SERVICE IN UKRAINE

Abstract

The article explores the process of institutionalizing the legislative framework for public service in Ukraine. It is substantiated that the process of its establishment as an institution and a system is rather complex, lengthy, and debatable. The contribution of domestic scholars to the development of research on the classification of public service and its varieties is reviewed. The formation of the public service institution is primarily examined from the perspective of the development of the two most numerous services: the state service and the service in local self-government bodies. Emphasis is placed on the origins of the legislative support for public service development, associated with the adoption of the Law of Ukraine «On State Service» (1993), which at that time regulated the functioning of service in both state authorities and local self-government bodies. The adoption of the Constitution of Ukraine (1996) consolidated two types of public power and two types of public service, which necessitated the development and adoption of relevant laws. With the enactment of the Law of Ukraine «On Local Self-Government in Ukraine» (1997), the specific features of the service of key officials in local self-government bodies began to crystallize. A significant milestone in the legal dimension of executive power organization and its adaptation to the needs of social transformations was the adoption of the Concept of Administrative Reform in Ukraine (1998). Its conceptual provisions defined the foundations of administrative reform, state service organization, territorial structure, and the system of local self-government. The article highlights controversial provisions of the laws and the Concept, as well as their correlation with the realities of public power organization and public service functioning. Attention is drawn to the classification of positions and the identification of characteristics of political and patronage services as prerequisites for the formation of new types of public service. A landmark event was the adoption of the Law of Ukraine «On Service in Local Self-Government Bodies» (2001), the implementation of which led to the delimitation of two independent service institutions regulated by separate laws. Further transformation of the Law of Ukraine «On State Service» (2011, 2015) and the study of their provisions demonstrated the formation of four interconnected yet distinct socio-legal institutions of public service as a system: state service, service in local self-government bodies (municipal service), political service, and patronage service. The adoption of the new version of the Law of Ukraine «On Service in Local Self-Government Bodies» (2023), scheduled to enter into force six months after the termination of martial law, marked another step toward strengthening the institution of municipal service amidst martial law and contemporary challenges. In substantiating the conclusions, a classification of service and its varieties is presented, taking into account current legislation and providing relevant provisions and definitions for services that are currently absent from the effective legal framework.