SUCHEK S. Transformation of environmental taxation in Ukraine in the context of European integration

The thesis explores the conceptual fundamentals of environmental taxation transformation as an important component of the budget process in the conditions of European integration of Ukraine, it examines theoretical and methodological as well as institutional and organizational bases of formation and functioning of environmental taxation in the world, European and domestic taxation system, the role of environmental taxation in replenishing both State and local budgets for further financing of expenditures on environmental protection. There has been deepened the interpretation of the essence of environmental taxation which in Ukrainian practice denotes pollution tax that has been extended into the "environmental taxation system", which, unlike existing approaches, includes the actual environmental tax in the current sense, energy and transport taxes, resource payments. It will allow increasing the amount of budget funds potentially available for financing the measures aimed at environmental protection at different levels of the budget system of Ukraine. There had been expanded the list of functions of environmental taxation by including the following items: 1) innovation function which ensures promotion of the introduction of new technologies, the renewal of production capacity which stimulates scientific and technological progress and increases the efficiency of environmental taxation; 2) investment function which consists in reinvesting funds accumulated by the tate through environmental taxation by means of the mechanism of "green" loans and "green" bonds to have the funds raised by economic entities with the purpose of financing scientific research and implementing innovations in the environmental protection; 3) institutional function which consists in creating the organizational and legal environment that ensures the functioning of environmental taxation, since for environmental taxation to perform its functions there is a need for specialized institutions that will serve each component of the budgetary mechanism of its functioning, particularly in terms of formation of legal framework which regulates the collection of environmental tax, distribution among the budgets and funds of different levels and the subsequent use of accumulated funds for their intended purpose (expenditures on environmental protection typical of domestic practice and the use of tools which are new for the domestic economy - "green" loans and "green" bonds) . There has been improved the concept of the budgetary mechanism of environmental taxation functioning, where the mechanism of collecting environmental tax, the mechanism of distribution of environmental tax between budgets among different budgets and the mechanism of financing nature protection measures have been singled out. It will allow increasing the effectivity of use of environmental financial finds in Ukraine at different budget levels, primarily at the level of the budgets of territorial communities since their inhabitants will be far more efficient at controlling their formation and use than state environmental bodies whose activity in Ukraine is subject to criticism and complaint. There has been carried out the analysis of the budgetary mechanism of environmental taxation in Ukraine aimed at identifying problems and threats that reduce its effectiveness taking into account the legal regulatory framework governing the functioning of each of the components. There has been highlighted the necessity for taking into account new environmental threats for Ukrainian enterprises importing their produce to the EU within the framework of European Green Course which may affect their profitability and consequently payment of taxes into the budgets of different levels. It primarily concerns metal and steel companies, companies that produce aluminum and concrete etc. New environmental restrictions of the EU are said to be soon imposed on producers of many types of agricultural produce which is exported to the members of the European Union, and they are far from being ready for that. Meanwhile, Ukraine does not force them to carry out environmental reorganization of their production processes which is sure to lead to cessation of export to the EU and cause significant losses for the budget. The lag behind the improvement of environmental taxation not only creates problems in terms of replenishing the budgets of different levels in our country, but also questions Ukraine's future accession to the European Union, thus the acquisition of environmental taxation peculiarities pertinent to EU member states is a conditioned necessity for both solving environmental and economic problems within the country and for Ukraine’s being recognized on the international stage as a country that fulfills the demands of Paris Agreement