The land of unafraid directors – Kommersant Perm

The discussion between the prosecutor’s office and the government of the Perm region regarding the transfer of powers to appoint school principals to the regional level will continue in court. The supervisory authority is challenging the government bill, approved by the Legislative Assembly, which gives the regional Ministry of Education the right to appoint and dismiss heads of educational institutions. The prosecutor’s office notes that the founder of the schools is still the city department of education, so it is impossible to transfer powers to the regional level. The government claims that it has prepared the project within the framework of current legislation. The expert finds it difficult to assess the prospects of the claim.

The Prosecutor’s Office of the Perm Territory filed an administrative claim against the regional legislative assembly in the regional court. The supervisory authority is challenging the adoption by the regional parliament of the bill “On the redistribution of certain powers between local government bodies of the Perm city district and state authorities of the Perm region.”

As indicated on the website of the Perm Regional Court, the administrative claim was registered on November 16. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for December 18. The administration of Perm, as well as the governor and government of the Perm region are listed as interested parties in the case.

According to sources close to the regional authorities, the prosecutor’s office disputes the transfer of powers to appoint, dismiss and certify school principals to the regional level. An interlocutor at the Prosecutor’s Office of the Perm Territory confirms this information.

The bill “On the redistribution of certain powers between local government bodies of the Perm City District and state authorities of the Perm Territory” was introduced by the governor of the Perm Territory and adopted by the regional legislative assembly in September of this year.

The law gives the regional Ministry of Education the right, among other things, to appoint and dismiss principals of Perm schools from January 1, 2024.

Now the Department of Education of the Perm Administration has the corresponding powers.

Earlier, the Minister of Education of the Perm Territory, Raisa Kassina, stated that the transfer of powers would allow the regional ministry to more effectively control the work of educational institutions and “implement a unified federal strategy in the field of education.”

When discussing the project in the Legislative Assembly, the prosecutor’s office repeatedly drew attention to the fact that these powers cannot be transferred separately without separation from other powers provided for by the federal law “On Education”. Thus, only their founder, the municipality, can dismiss and appoint school directors. And in the event of a partial transfer of powers, the regional ministry becomes a “co-founder” of city schools, which is contrary to current legislation. However, deputies and regional authorities did not begin to adjust the controversial norm.

An interlocutor close to the Legislative Assembly of the Perm Territory said that the position on the claim of the prosecutor’s office “will be formed after reviewing the relevant documents from the courts.” The press service of the Legislative Assembly does not comment on the situation.

The government of the Perm region believes that the adopted law does not contradict current standards. The government press service reported that when developing the project, the regional authorities were guided by the federal law “On Local Self-Government,” which provides the opportunity to redistribute powers between the local level and the subject level.

“In addition, the Law “On Education” directly provides for the possibility of transferring powers in the educational sphere to the regional level, including the powers of the founders of institutions. Labor legislation, on the norms of which the prosecutor’s office bases its position, is not applied when distributing powers, since legislation on local self-government takes precedence,” according to the regional government.

The government explains the need to transfer the right to appoint school principals by the formation at the federal level of “a single educational space with common textbooks, educational programs, events and other aspects.”

The press service of the Ministry of Education of the Kama region called the expansion of the powers of regional authorities in the field of education “a federal trend that will allow the successful implementation of a unified educational policy.”

Managing partner of the Genesis law firm, Artem Denisov, notes that when going to court, the prosecutor’s office of the Perm region acts in accordance with federal law. The expert found it difficult to assess the prospects for considering an administrative claim: “Judging by the number of persons involved in the case (the administration of Perm, the governor, the legislative assembly and the government of the Perm Territory), the court will have to study many local acts of local government in terms of their powers and compare them with the powers of state bodies power of the subject.”

Konstantin Kadochnikov