The course of land reform in Crimea

In January-March, 2006 in Autonomous Republic of Crimea (ARC) 16393 land titles have been issued, or 3 times more than in the similar period of the last year. The Deputy Head of Republican Committee on Land Resources (RCLR) of ARC Vladimir Dmitrusenko has informed that at the board of the RCLR on April, 20th.
"The plan for January-March is practically fulfiled, it is necessary to issue about one thousand land titles  in Belogorskiy district ", - has noted Mr. Dmitrusenko.
Mr. Dmitrusenko also has informed that till the beginning of April 170.9 thousand citizens received land titles on land shares. Therefore the level of exchange of certificates into land titiles reached 78.7 %. The total number of entitled to receive land titles amounts to 217.4 thousand krymchan.
Mr. Dmitrusenko has informed that in the current year the authorities of ARC plan to spend about UAH 5 million out of the republican and local budgets in order to carry out land reform.
 In the budget of ARC for current year it is stipulated more than UAH 2 million for land reform, including UAH 1.5 million on protection of lands and UAH 525 thousand on conducting monetary appraisal of the land. In total the State budget-2006 provides UAH 56.5 million on financing the land reform in Ukraine.
"For the first time after a 4-years break in the budget of ARC the funds for carrying out the land reform are stipulated, - Mr. Dmitrusenko noted. On his information, local budgets of ARC have stipulated about UAH 3 million on carrying out of land reform, including almost UAH 1,5 million on delimitation of lands of state and municipal property, UAH 770 thousand on the establishment of settlement boundaries, about UAH 560 thousand on realization of the monetary appraisal of lands and UAH 112 thousand on land inventory.
Mr. Dmitrusenko has informed that the RCLR of ARC has prepared the project of the decision of the Ministerial council of ARC on the approval of the list of settlements where the monetary appraisal of lands will be held. On his information, 54 settlements are included in the list, basically - on the Southern coast of Crimea. "First of all there are those settlements lands of which are still underestimated, - has noted Mr. Dmitrusenko. - The land appraisal subsequently will make a serious contribution into the budget".
The holding of the land auctions in Crimea did not become the widespread practice yet, as in many other regions of Ukraine. In January-March of the current year there was 1 land auction held on which 1 plot was sold. The auction was held in Sudak city, the land plot with the total area of 0.07 ha was sold for UAH 320 thousand, that is 40 % above its starting price. The site is intended for house-building. We believe that 40% growth of the price shall be a very serious incentive for local authorities to make auctions into regular practice. They must have sound reasons not to apply the auction procedure.
"The holding of land auctions was hindered by the fact that for a long time we could not adopt the order of holding of such measures at the Ministerial council of Crimea, - Mr. Dmitrusenko has noted. - At the Ministerial council last session this order has finally been adopted ". Mr. Dmitrusenko also has informed that for today the RCLR has prepared the materials for holding land auctions in Saki city and in Chernomorskyy District.
In 2005 in ARC at the auctions 2 land plots (in Sudak and Saki cities) of recreational and health improving function with the total area of 2.264 hectares were sold. The aggregate price of those plots was UAH 3.2 million.
In February, 2006 the Ministerial council of ARC adopted the list of the land plots which are subject to sale at the auction in 2006 to business entities for building-up. According to the document, this year 6 land plots in Crimea located beyond settlement borders should be bidden at auctions: 2 - in Belogorskyy District and others in Dzhankoyskyy, Sakskyy, Chernomorskyy Districts and in Sudak city.
According to the information of the State land inspection of ARC, for today the total area of illegally captured land plots in Crimea amounts to about 28 thousand ha. The Chief of State land inspection of ARC Mikhail Shevelev has informed about that on the board of RCLR on April, 20th. "It is a huge figure for Crimea", - Mr. Shevelev emphasized. At the same time he has noted that the Crimean land inspections and other bodies working in the sphere of land tenure, use their powers in dealing with self-captures insufficiently. "We constantly demand the reinforcement of the responsibility for violation of the land legislation, but at the same time those rights which we are entitled to, we do not use in full range", - the chief of State land inspection of ARC has recognized. According to his information, in many Crimean regions the total sum of fines applied for illegal occupation of lands has made UAH 50-60 for 4 months of the current year. "This sum is simply ridiculous when it goes about self-captures of land", - Mr. Shevelev thinks.
Recently there were changes in regulation of the state land surveying expertise. According to ICTV channel, the State Committee on land resources of Ukraine has taken over the function of carrying out the state land surveying expertise which earlier was carried out by the Republican Committee on land resources of Crimea, in order to bring about a state policy in the sphere of land resources management in Crimea. The appropriate order has not been registered yet by the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine, however the RCLR of ARC put to a halt the conducting of expertise, and drawing up of documents on land plots is suspended. If the order becomes effective, the land surveying expertise in respect of Crimean lands will be held in Kyiv by the State Committee on land resources.