Local government in the Russian Federation: centralization or decentralization?

One of the priorities of the state power at the present stage is the improvement of policy in the field of local government development (LSG). LSG, as the most close to the population level of political power, is closely interrelated with the state level of power. The general trend towards strengthening institutional centralization persists and carries with it serious risks of local social, infrastructural destabilization. Perspectives of political management of the Russian Federation are connected with the development of a network, horizontal municipal-civil partnership. The article examines and analyzes the features of the political process associated with the strengthening of centralization and the vertical line of power in the Russian Federation at the present stage in the light of the tasks set by the central government to improve policy in the development of local self-government. The inclusion of an active civil society community in decision-making at the federal and regional levels should ensure the effectiveness and sustainability of public authorities in the country, and become a guarantor of the dynamic development of urban and rural areas.