Novosibirsk and the Budgetary Problems of a Large City

ABSTRACT The article discusses the factors and conditions determining the population concentration and economic activity of the largest cities and agglomerations in the Russian Federation. It is shown that in addition to market volumes, labor quality, scaling effects, and higher innovative activity resulting from competition, budgetary structure and budgetary policy play an important role in the advanced development of large Russian cities. Using Novosibirsk as an example, the article analyzes the expenditures of the Russian budgetary system in a Russian city and shows that the expenditures of the city budget are less than one-third of the total expenditures of the budgetary system inside the city’s territory. The Novosibirsk budget reveals the main trends in the dynamics of its budget indicators. The structure of the city’s budget is evaluated in terms of both the revenue gathered directly on its territory and its dependence on funds transferred from the regional budget. By analyzing budgetary resources, the article identifies the main areas of spending inside the territory of Novosibirsk.