Abolishment of the administration of the county governor: dimension of public participation

Praėjus daugiau nei penkeriems metams tikslinga apžvelgti ir įvertinti, kuriuos apskričių valdymo reformos tikslus pavyko pasiekti ir kas pasikeitė. Straipsnyje apskričių valdymo reforma analizuojama pirmiausia akcentuojant įvykdytų pertvarkymų pasekmes ir poveikį piliečių dalyvavimo, bendradarbiavimo su vietos ir valstybės valdžios institucijomis, kurios perrėmė funkcijas iš apskričių viršininkų administracijų, galimybėms. Keliamas probleminis klausimas, kas ir kaip pasikeitė piliečiams, kaip viešųjų ir administracinių paslaugų gavėjams, kurie tiesiogiai patiria funkcijų perskirstymo pasekmes, įgyvendinus administracines pertvarkas.In this paper we analyze reform of county administration and emphasize dimension of public participation. The county administration reform (or abolishment of the administration of the county governor) was intended to bring public service closer to the citizens. Nevertheless, during the reform most functions of the administration of county governor have been appointed to the state administration bodies. Despite the fact that the original idea has not been realized, abolishment of the administration of county governor has slightly increased possibilities of public participation. Stronger interaction between citizens and institution is possible only in municipalities. In the case of state administration bodies we have two possible options: just inform citizens about activity of institutions or implement feedback generating process. We have assessed four institutions and two of them have introduced additional elements of public participation and two have not