Some history of the Chamber

History of the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow

Regulation “On the forecast of social and economic development and budgetary structure of Moscow city for 1994. On the budgetary structure of Moscow city for the 1st quarter of 1994” had become the first step towards formation of the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow, in accordance with which the Budgetary financial commission of Moscow City Duma committed the deputy Shokhin S.O. a task to start preparation for creating a supervising body of Moscow City Duma such as the Chamber of Control and Accounts to exercise control over municipal budget implementation and work out a legislative act of Moscow city regulating its activity.

Law of Moscow city № 8-39 “On the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow City Duma” was adopted by Moscow City Duma on May 18, 1994. It was determined by the law that the Chamber of Control and Accounts consists of the Chairman, Deputy Chairman, Experts of the Chamber of Control and Accounts and its administrative staff. In the meantime Shokhin Sergey Olegovich was elected as the Chairman of the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow City Duma. Due to his efforts by the beginning of October, 1994 the regulatory and material and financial basis for functioning of the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow City Duma had been prepared.

By the regulatory documents produced in accordance with international practice and guiding principles of financial control defined by Lima Declaration the Chamber of Control and Accounts was set the tasks on exercising of preliminary, current and follow-up financial control. For this purpose in the composition of the Chamber the departments headed by experts were formed. Each expert got the whip-hand of the sector which included a group of controllers on corresponding directions.

At the end of 1994 there were 18 officers in the Chamber, who seated in three rooms on the 17th storey at 11 Noviy Arbat street.

Specificity of functions, tasks and powers of the Chamber of Control and Accounts and absence of analogous structures for the time being (the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow was formed almost a year earlier than in other subjects of the Russian Federation) demanded not only the usage of other Accounting bodies’ practice available, but also the elaboration of personal procedure for control activities.

When indicating specific guidelines and objects of control activities the Chamber of Control and Accounts primarily accomplished Moscow City Duma’s commissions, generally by implementing audits of financial and operational activities of the bodies of municipal government and state funded organisations.

On January 11, 1995 on the basis of Inspection and Review Committee of Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation the Accounts Chamber of the Russian Federation was formed. In this respect Budget and Finance Commission of Moscow City Duma took a decision on reorganization of the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow City Duma, change of its status and powers by analogy with the status and powers of the Accounts Chamber of the Russian Federation.

On November 01, 1995 by the Law of Moscow city the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow City Duma was modified into the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow. As distinct from other bodies which exercise state financial control in the city and examine the rightness and legitimacy of budgetary funds’ spending by particular state funded organizations, the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow had to exercise control over the municipal budget at all stages of budgetary process.

Along with initiating of new broaden powers of the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow the composition, status of positions and staff numbers of the Chamber had being changed. By the same Law instead of expert the position of auditor was inducted, its number was determined as eight persons. Inspections became the main subdivisions of the Chamber the membership of which included senior and chief inspectors.

On February 13, 1996 Moscow City Duma appointed the first auditors: Bobrova Nadezhda Feodorovna, Demianets Natalia Anikeevna, Lialin Dmitriy Evdokimovich, Rozhkova Marianna Vasilievna, Semeonova Olga Petrovna, Silantieva Olga Mikhailovna, Tsepelev Viktor Georgievich, Morozov Sergey Andreevich.

At the meeting of Moscow City Duma on April 29, 1996 there were the Deputy Chairmen appointed — Malinin Vladimir Mikhailovich and Pavlenko Nikolai Anatolievich.

The number of officers in 1997 reached 120 people. Through that period the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow was located at two addresses: at 11 Noviy Arbat street and at 7/8 building 1 Bolshoi Cherkasskiy lane, which complicated the interaction of the Chamber’s subdivisions. At the end of 1998 all subdivisions of the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow concentrated in the premises at the address: 11 Noviy Arbat street on the 4th, 17th and 23rd storey.

The Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow formation took course in the period of unpredictable inflation of high rates which did not permit to develop annual budget statements in time. Adequate appraisal of financial and material city resources was complicated by functioning during that period of numerous extra-budgetary funds a sufficient part of which Moscow City Duma did not examine and approve.

In connection with election on December 19, 1999 the Chairman of the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow Shokhin S.O. as a deputy of State Duma of the Russian Federation, on February 16, 2000 Moscow City Duma appointed a new Chairman, whom the deputy of Moscow City Duma Dvurechenskikh Victor Alexandrovich became.

The same year on April 14 and June 28 Moscow City Duma approved the second auditors’ team: Egorova Nadezhda Feodorovna, Korniukhin Sergey Valerievich, Lialin Dmitriy Evdokimovich, Titov Aleksey Nikolaevich, Feodorov Aleksey Evgenievich, Chistiakova Svetlana Vladimirovna, Ushina Tatiana Vasilievna, Shutenko Vladimir Victorovich.

The following changes in auditors’ team took place after the retirement of Lialin Dmitriy Evdokimovich. Instead of him Sirotkin Evgeniy Vladimirovich who previously worked as a chief of inspection № 6 was appointed by the regulation of Moscow City Duma on February 14, 2001.

In 2001 the number of officers of the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow increased up to 170 people; the same year the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow was given the premises of larger areas in the building of Moscow City Executive Board at address: 36/9 Noviy Arbat street.

In 2000-2001 practical realization of the Budgetary Code regulations, transition to Treasury-based budget execution significantly improved the financial discipline and increased the possibilities of other internal control bodies of Moscow to inspect abidance to budget settings by state funded organizations. It allowed the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow to draw attention to projects analysis of municipal budget and municipal programs, control over budgets execution generally, which is a unique prerogative of the Chamber’s activity. In connection with this for the purpose of strengthening of subdivisions of analytical direction some changes were brought in the Chamber’s composition.

In 2001 the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow moved to the international level becoming a full member of the European Organization of Regional External Public Finance Audit Institutions (EURORAI) and came in activities of the association right away.

Developing international bonds, the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow constantly works to strengthen the interaction with legislative and executive bodies, other institutions of the country. Thus, there were concluded the bargains on the procedure of communication with the Territorial Body of Federal State Statistics Service of Moscow, Procuracy of Moscow city, Central Internal Affairs Directorate of Moscow city, Federal Security Service Directorate of Moscow city and Moscow region, Federal Antimonopoly Service Directorate of Moscow city and Moscow region, there were elaborated the proposals on creating an informational background of Control and Accounts bodies of Central Federal District.

In 2002 there was a renewal of the Deputy Chairmen of the Chamber of Control and Accounts membership – on March 6, 2002 the Duma appointed to these posts Iyashvili Valeriy Borisovich and Orlov Andrey Borisovich. From one year to the next the Chamber’s forms and methods of working became more various. Its officers took an active part in control activities together with the Accounts Chamber of the Russian Federation, in facilitated workshops and research-to-practice conferences being held within the frame of Association of Control and Accounts Bodies of the Russian Federation, lent methodical assistance during reception of supervising bodies’ delegations from other regions.

Wealth of material was published in collected volumes of methodical recommendations, separate thematic issues on problem themes. That way the foundation of the library of the Camber of Control and Accounts formation was laid.

By active work of the Editorial Methodical Board the Chamber annually issues 4 Information bulletins.

Anniversary year, 2004 began for the Chamber with election on February 18 of the Chairman of the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow Dvurechenskikh Victor Alexandrovich for a repeat term, and on April 7 Moscow City Duma approved the third auditors’ team. It included: Egorova Nadezhda Feodorovna, Korniukhin Sergey Valerievich, Titov Aleksey Nikolaevich, Chistyakova Svetlana Vladimirovna, Ushina Tatiana Vasilievna, Shutenko Vladimir Victorovich.

On May 18-21, 2004 the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow celebrated its decade. In the framework of anniversary activities there was a solemn meeting with the participation of Chief Magistrate of Moscow Luzhkov Y.M., Chairman of the Accounts Chamber of the Russian Federation Stepashin S.V., Chairman of Moscow City Duma Platonov V.M. There was held the biggest international research-to-practice conference «Methodology of public financial funds”. Representatives of control and accounts bodies of 69 subjects of the Russian Federation, 9 foreign organizations, including the countries of EURORAI headed by the president G. Leikauff, and also the Chairman of Commission of the Council of the Russian Federation on cooperation with the Accounts Chamber of the Russian Federation Agaptsov S.A., deputies of the State Duma, representatives of executive body, director of Institute of Economics RAN Abalkin L.I., and other worthy Russian scientists took part in its work.

It was mentioned by the participants of anniversary activities that during a ten-year period of activity the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow turned into a universal institution of city authorities, without which it is already hard to elaborate and realize managerial decisions at all stages of budgetary process.

Formation of Expert Board in 2004 designed to produce proposals and opinions on problematic issues of the Chamber’s activity became an important milestone in the history of the Chamber. The membership of Expert Board included scientists, budget specialists, lawyers, economists, officers of legislative, executive and judicial bodies, representatives of other state and non-state structures, the most qualified and authoritative officers of the Chamber.

The members of Expert Board at their meetings adopt the plans of research scientific works of the Chamber; discuss most important methodical problems, including those on elaboration of Strategy of Moscow city development, and also performance criteria and indicators which are fundamental for control activities being conducted in the form of performance audit.

Implementation of control activities on performance audit demanded additional training of the Chamber’s officers in spite of the fact that nearly all the specialists of the Chamber had a higher education, and eight of them were masters of sciences (five of them got this degree while working in the Chamber).

On March 01, 2006 Moscow City Duma confirmed in office the seventh auditor of the Chamber – Fabisovich Victor Daniilovich who previously worked as a chief of inspection № 6, and on April 5, 2006 appointed Iyashvili Valeriy Borisovich to the post of the Deputy Chairman of the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow.

For the purpose of adaptation to new tasks some changes in the organizational structure of the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow had taken place, the Chamber proceeded with forming of applicable agreements with local government bodies for the purpose of conducting an external annual report on the implementation of intracity municipalities’ budgets.

In 2007 the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow for the first time conducted the work on collecting and analyzing of budgetary reporting with the use of software and hardware system.

With account of extended scope of tasks on local budgets control the staff numbers of the Chamber’s officers was increased up to 190 units by the regulation of Moscow City Duma of 21.11.2007; among them there were 20 masters of sciences, 4 officers had the titles of honor.

On February 27, 2008 by the regulation of Moscow City Duma Dvurechenskikh V.A. was approved for the position of the Chairman of the Chamber for a new term, and on April 9 of the same year Moscow City Duma approved the fourth auditors’ team. It included: Kiseleov Boris Valentinovich, Korniukhin Sergey Valerievich, Kyrdenkov Anatoliy Alekseevich, Litvintsev Vyacheslav Vladimirovich, Shutenko Vladimir Victorovich, Yushina Tatiana Vasilievna (Fabisovich Victor Daniilovich was approved for the position of auditor on March 01, 2006).

At the present time the Chamber is a dynamically developing body of state financial control which plays one of the key roles in the budgetary process and affects formation of the budgetary policy in Moscow.

In November 2010 upon the recommendation of the Chairman of the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow Dvurechenskikh V.A. Moscow City Duma adopted the decision on phased reduction of the number of Auditors from seven to five and of the personnel of the administration of the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow for nine officers. Those decisions were connected with adoption of the new Law of Moscow city of 30.06.2010 № 30 “On the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow” and practical application of public audit standards, international quality management standards ISO 9001: 2008, usage of information technologies when conducting control activities, outsourcing of ICT-infrastructure of the Chamber. Nowadays the Collegium of the Chamber of Control and Accounts of Moscow consists of the following members Chairman Dvurechenskikh V.A., Deputy Chairman Litvintsev V.V., Auditors  Kiselev B.V., Kuznetsov A.S., Protopopov I.S., Fabisovich V.D., Chegrinets E.A.