ORGANIZATION OF THE CITY ADMINISTRATION IN EKATERINBURG — SVERDLOVSK (NOVEMBER 1923 — OCTOBER 1930)

Abstract

The paper examines the activities of the Sverdlovsk City Soviet (Council) in the period from the formation of the Ural oblast to the liquidation of district system of administration. It is possible to distinguish several stages of the functioning of the City Soviet, which were determined by legislative steps of the central government in relation to local administration, including the publication of regulations on City Soviets. The paper proves that an independent City Executive Committee was not created in the structure of the City Soviet, and the activities of the City Soviet were serviced by the apparatus of the Gubernatorial Executive Committee, and later the District Executive Committee and its respective departments. The City Soviet in its activities was largely accountable to the district authorities. The paper examines the evolution of administrative apparatus of the City Soviet, its main divisions (Presidium, Departments, Sections) and their subordination, as well as the working order of its structural parts. It analyzes the degree of involvement of deputies in the work of the City Soviet. The paper also shows the role and place of Party and Soviet authorities on the regional and district levels in the management of the city, their relationship with the Sverdlovsk City Soviet and the division of powers between them in solving issues of daily functioning of the city and key directions of its development. The author found that the tendency to expand the rights of City Soviets in the administrative, financial and economic spheres gradually took shape, and they received additional powers to address city issues. The result of this trend was the transformation of Sverdlovsk in 1929 from a regional center into an independent administrative-territorial unit with its subordination to the regional authorities.