Subject The article considers the level of citizen participation in public finance management. At present, Russia follows the best international practices of open government, however, the tools used by the open government do not enable proper implementation of the principle of transparency and civil participation in the public sector. Objectives The purpose of the study is to examine the open government tools aimed at enhancing the level of transparency in the public sector, to assess the level of citizens' awareness of public finance and their involvement in the management of public financial flows. Methods The study rests on the group survey method with the use of the Google Docs toolkit. About 1,580 citizens from 13 regions of the Russian Federation participated in the survey. The respondents had to answer twelve simple questions about public finance. Results The survey showed that despite the formation of extensive legal and regulatory framework aimed at the budget transparency of the Russian budget system and the development of tools designed to ensure the availability of budget information for all stakeholders, the awareness of citizens of public finance and their involvement in the process of managing the public financial flows remain low. Conclusions To raise the awareness of citizens and their involvement in public finance management, it is necessary to expand the list of participants in the budget process by inclusion of civil society representatives, and develop the tools for public finance management.
Keywords: public management, public financial flows, budget for citizens, civil participation
References:
Drucker P.F. Postkapitalisticheskoe obshchestvo. V kn.: Novaya postindustrial'naya volna na Zapade [Post-Capitalist Society. In: A new post-industrial wave in the West]. Moscow, Academia Publ., 1999, 631 p.
Fadeykina N.V., Mikhailov V.V., Tsygankov K.Yu., Clushakova O.V. About Opportunities Forming the Effective Public Management System in Russia of Sustainable Social and Economic Development of the Territories. International Journal of Humanities and Cultural Studies, 2016, vol. 3, no. 2, pp. 535–556. URL: Link
Gray J. Open Budget Data: Mapping the Landscape. URL: Link
Tandberg E. Treasury System Design: A Value Chain Approach. IMF Working Paper, 2005, no. 05/153, pp. 1–28. URL: Link
Potter B.H., Diamond J. Building Treasury Systems. Finance and Development, 2000, vol. 37, no. 3, pp. 36–39. URL: Link
Hashim A., Moon A. Treasury Diagnostic Toolkit. World Bank Working Paper, 2004, no. 19. URL: Link
Sinkina A.A., Fadeikina N.V. Byudzhet dlya grazhdan [Budget for citizens]. Novosibirsk, SAFBD Publ., 2015, 388 p.
Sinkina A.A., Fadeikina N.V. O byudzhete dlya grazhdan i modernizatsii byudzhetnogo protsessa na osnove printsipov prozrachnosti i otkrytosti [On the budget for citizens and modernization of the budget process based on the principles of transparency and openness]. Novosibirsk, SAFB Publ., 2016, 443 p.
Garrett E., Vermeule A. Transparency in the Budget Process. URL: Link
Bhanu V. Making the Indian Budget: How Open and Participatory? URL: Link
You J.-S. Budget Transparency and Participation in South Korea. Chapter in Open Budgets: The Political Economy of Transparency, Participation, and Accountability. Sanjeev Khagram, Archon Fung, Paolo de Renzio (eds). Brookings Institution Press, 2013. URL: Link
Paolo de Renzio, Gomez P., Sheppard J. Budget Transparency and Development in Resource-Dependent Countries. URL: Link
Paolo de Renzio, Angemi D. Comrades or Culprits? Donor Engagement and Budget Transparency in Aid Dependent Countries. IBEI Working Paper, 2011, no. 33. URL: Link
Ling C., Roberts D.K. Evidence of Development Impact from Institutional Change: A Review of the Evidence on Open Budgeting. World Bank Policy Research Working Paper, 2014, no. 6968. URL: Link
Glenn E.H. Playing Games with the Budget: Ideas for Emphasizing the Legislative Elements of Budget-Making Through an Online Multiplayer Toy. URL: Link
Bizhan N. Budget Transparency in Afghanistan: A Pathway to Building Public Trust in the State. International Budget Partnership Impact Case Study, 2013. URL: Link
Khachatryan G., Shul'na I., Gridin S., Sukhov A. Operatsionnoe rukovodstvo praktiki initsiativnogo byudzhetirovaniya: primer programmy podderzhki mestnykh initsiativ [Operational Guidelines for Initiative Budgeting Practice: An Example of the Program for Supporting Local Initiatives]. Moscow, Aleks Publ., 2016, 88 p.
Glushakova O.V. Publichnoe upravlenie protsessami obespecheniya kachestva zhizni v sotsial'no-ekonomicheskikh sistemakh [Public management of processes for ensuring the quality of life in socio-economic systems]. Novosibirsk, SAFB Publ., 2012, 454 p.