Abstract: The subject of the research is the theory and practice of one of the forms of direct democracy вЂ“ public (public) discussion of draft laws of the subjects of the Russian Federation. The object of the study was public relations related to the regulation of the institute of public discussions of draft laws in Russian regions, as well as the participation of citizens in discussions. The general, dialectical, logical, formal-legal and sociological methods of scientific cognition are chosen for the research. The author examines in detail such aspects of the topic as the adoption by Russian regions of laws and other regulations on public discussion, the shortcomings of federal regulation of the issue, provides an overview of the practice of public discussions in a number of Russian regions, analyzes the reasons for the low efficiency of the institute. Special attention is paid to the results of the sociological survey conducted on the issue under study. The main conclusions of the study are: to identify the shortcomings of the current regulation of the democratic institution of public discussions of draft laws, to determine the reasons for the passivity of Russian citizens in relation to public discussions of normative legal acts. A special contribution of the author to the study of the topic can be considered the analysis of the practice of public discussions in the regions of the country, in addition, the author attempted to assess the prospects for the development of the legal institution in question in the Russian regions. The scientific novelty of the study lies in the identified problems of regulation and practice that currently arise in the subjects of the Russian Federation during public discussions of draft laws, as well as in the specific measures proposed by the author to eliminate the identified problems.