Conceptual approaches of soviet scientists to the problem of reorganizing the system of planning and management of the national economy in the early 1970s (based on declassified documents)

The purpose of the publication is to examine, on the basis of currently declassified archival documents, the problem of finding optimal approaches to creating an effective system of economic planning and management in the USSR in the early 1970s. A study of documents from the fund of the Central Committee of the CPSU suggests that in messages sent to the central party bodies, a number of leading experts insisted on the conclusion that it was necessary to introduce the most effective methods of economic planning and management in the USSR in the early 1970s. They raised questions about the optimal balance of centralization and decentralization in management, and about creating the best conditions for the rational use of labor, fixed assets, raw materials, and capital investments. A comparative analysis of the reports sent by the leadership of the USA Institute of the USSR Academy of Sciences and the Central Economic and Mathematical Institute of the USSR Academy of Sciences proves that along with the general statement of the unfavorable situation in the Soviet economy, the presence of proposals on the need to restructure the management and planning system, arguments with references to the US experience, there were also differences in approaches. In particular, it concerned the assessment of the prospects of economic and mathematical modeling. In the early 1970s, discussions and developments resulted in the use of system analysis, a program-oriented approach to planning. However, there was no effective national development strategy at the state level, the projects of automated control systems (ACS) and the Nationwide Automated Information Accounting and Processing System (OGAS) failed, and the departmental approach prevailed. The country's development was carried out according to an inertial scenario. The Soviet leadership's misunderstanding of the significance of the projects proposed by leading scientists and the need to overcome the information barrier became a major factor in slowing down modernization processes.