Земські податки й повинності як складова фінансової самостійності земського самоврядування
Zemstvo Taxes and Duties as a Component of Zemstvo Selfgovernment Financial Independence

Summary/Abstract: The article is aimed to analyze zemstvo legislation of theRussian Empire in the second half of the ХІХ century and practical activities ofzemstvo self-government bodies to establish and collect zemstvo taxes and performduties.Recent research and publications analysis. In the post-Soviet period, theproblem of financial activities of zemstvo self-government has been studied by suchdomestic scientists as O.M. Holovko, V.D. Honcharenko, I.V. Ivanov, S.A. Kaluhiv,M. Lavriv.Paper objective. Zemstvo financing had to be carried out by local zemstvoassemblies and partly from the state budget, which provided financial independenceof zemstvo self-government. Zemstvo taxes collection and duties performing wereregulated by "Regulations on Provincial and District Zemstvo Bodies of 1864,""Regulations on Provincial and District Zemstvo Bodies of 1890" and "TemporaryRegulations for Zemstvo Bodies in Cases Involving Zemstvo Duties, Public Healthand Social Care of 1864". The main disadvantage of zemstvo tax legislation was thefact that it did not provide distinction of zemstvo and state income sources. The lackof such distinction became the cause of conflicts between zemstvos and localauthorities. District zemstvos sought to increase a share of zemstvo budget content bycities that were situated in the district. This resulted in conflicts between zemstvo andcity self-government.Paper main body. Disadvantages of zemstvo activities in the field of taxationincluded the fact that they did not create a perfect inventory of taxation objects; due2to imperfect estimation, cost of land was underestimated; zemstvos differentlydefined relationship between price and yield of commercial and industrialestablishments. Due to the lack of taxation objects’ accounting and evaluation in 80sof the XIX century, zemstvos organized conducting of statistical studies which wasaimed at census of peasants’ and landlords’ estates.The main natural duties imposed on peasants and townspeople included: 1) adray (horse-drawn) duty - providing carts for transportation of government officialsand zemstvo employees; 2) a road duty - involving peasants and townspeople to buildroads. Enforcement of zemstvo duties had a number of shortcomings: abuse of powerby police officials, unfair distribution of duties, distraction of farmers from economicactivity, lack of incentives to perform duties.Conclusions of the research. Thus, zemstvo taxation, which was a system ofindependent direct taxes, shows financial independence of zemstvo self-government.Statistical studies contributed by zemstvo in the 80s of the XIX century contributed tothe improvement of land taxation. Zemstvo assemblies and councils prepared aregulatory framework and gained experience on establishment and collection ofzemstvo taxes and performing duties. Regulations of the 1890 provided forpreservation of zemstvo’s financial independence but they limited the powers ofzemstvo self-government on use of own funds and strengthened state control overfinancial activities of zemstvo self-government

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