Challenges of Defining Public Services as the Object of State Administration Activity

Abstract

One of the main goals of the existence of the state, and especially its operative arm, the public administration, is the provision of public services. Through them, it is intended to fulfill the basic needs of people, which are vital for their existence and well-being. Public services are essential for the sustainable economic development of any country and at the same time ensure social cohesion. From the point of view of the law, they are considered an essential mechanism that serves to implement the principles of the rule of law, especially the social state and basic human rights. Their ever-increasing role and dimension have made every jurisdiction pay great attention to the way they are provided to effectively serve the specific rights they aim to fulfill. In Albania, there is a legal framework for over 10 years, which regulates in detail the typology, principles, way of internal organization, nature of the activity, and delegation of functions of state administration. The law defines that the main object of its activity is the provision of public services, without giving us a definition of it. Precisely, this paper gives answers to questions such as how public services should be understood, as an object of the activity of the state administration, and what are the types, ways, and principles of their provision. The paper supports the hypothesis that there is no exhaustive legal definition of the notion of services public, as an object of activity of the state administration, due to the broad, complex, and dynamic nature of the public interest embodied in the notion of public services. Community law has encouraged member states to consider public services between competition mechanisms and the legal reserve of the state. The paper assesses the great impact of community law on domestic law in terms of the categorization of services of general economic interest, the determination of the principles of their exercise, and the inclusion of market mechanisms in the provision of these services. To prove the above hypothesis, the following research questions are raised in the paper: What attitude have other jurisdictions taken about this important legal concept? Given the fact that public services of special jurisdictions can have implications for the common market, what contribution has community law made in terms of defining public services and their categorization? The study uses the desk research method, i.e. theoretical consultation with a series of legal documents of domestic, international, and special jurisdictions, articles, and scientific works that deal with issues and aspects related to public services. Also, in this paper, historical and comparative methods were used to highlight the features, differences, and impact that the law of special jurisdictions or that of the EU has had in shaping a legal framework for public services in Albania. This paper is of interest to researchers, lecturers, and students, as well as to the community of legal professionals.

Received: 05 May 2022 / Accepted: 16 May 2023 / Published: 20 May 2023