Federalism and Local Politics in Russia

236 Hellmut Wollmann and Elena Gritsenkocaution and not without controversy, 49 can be regarded as local variants ofthe concept of the ‘division of powers’ and ‘checks and balances’, the localelected council is seen as the supreme local representative organ that essentiallyacts as a deliberative, rule-setting and scrutinizing body, while theadministrative function is assigned to a local administration directed by the‘head of administration’ (glava administratsii) acting as a ‘chief executive’with a monocratic (edinonachalie) role. 50While, as a general principle, all LSG councils are elected directly by thelocal citizens, an exception has been introduced by the 2003 legislation(Article 35.4(1)) for the councils of municipal districts. Instead of beingdirectly elected the municipal district councils may be indirectly elected(depending on approval by a local referendum) from the deputies and headsof the member settlements. This modality of composing municipal districtcouncils by way of delegation has been criticized in a legal debate as violatingthe constitutional guarantees of LSG (and also the pertinent Article 3European Charter). Currently the composition of 220 district councils(which make up 14 per cent of the 1,801 district councils) has been formedthrough this indirect delegation method. 51(b) Powers and responsibilities of the local councilsAccording to Article 35.10 of the 2003 Law the elected councils possessremarkably broad powers. Among these looms large the adoption of thelocal charter (‘ustav’) (see Article 35.10(1), and Article. 44), in which thelocal council can determine a broad spectrum of questions – in an array ofmatters which, nota bene, are wider than in most (West) European countries.Thus, for example, within the limit of legal thresholds, they have the powerto determine the number of council members and the duration of the electivemandate of the council. Interestingly the ‘norm-setting’ power of the localcouncils pertains even, under certain conditions, to ‘delegated’ matters (seeArticle 7.2) – which is different, for instance, from the German practice ofthe ‘dual function’ model on which the elected council does not have anyinfluence.In addition to these decision-making powers the local council is assignedthe pivotal function to exercise ‘control over the discharge, by organs of localself-government and its position-holders, of their local level responsibilities’(Article 35.10(9)). 52 But when it comes to delegated functions administeredby the municipal and city districts, in comparison with the German practiceof the ‘dual function’ model, the Russian councils have to function undermuch tighter control from the State.5.3 Head of municipality and head of administrationAs was already pointed out, in an all but paradigmatic rupture and shiftfrom the previous Soviet State model, and in a move premised on a local