Administrative, territorial, and municipal division of the Altai Republic is regulated by the Law #12-15 of the Altai Republic, passed by the State Assembly—El Kurultai on June 2, 1999, with subsequent amendments. The Law established the following classification:
administrative units (административно-территориальные единицы)
district (район)—an administrative unit under jurisdiction of the Republic, governing a certain territory. Districts are governed from an administrative center.
selsovet (сельсовет)—a municipal unit under jurisdiction of a district comprising one or several settlements.
dyuchina (дючина)—national administrative unit for local self-governing of the native peoples. Dyuchinas would have the same administrative status as selsovets, but they have not been implemented in practice.
closed settlement (закрытое административно-территориальное образование)—territories under the federal government management with travel and residency restrictions; usually military objects. Closed settlements have not been implemented in practice.
Changes in the overall administrative and territorial structure of the Republic are authorized by the State Assembly—El Kurultai. All changes must later be registered in the Russian Classification of Objects of Administrative Division on the federal level.
