b"\n_START_ARTICLE_\nMga Subdibisyon ng Rusya\n_START_SECTION_\nFederal subjects\n_START_PARAGRAPH_\nRussia is a federation which since March 1, 2008 consists of 83\xc2\xa0federal subjects (members of the Federation).  These federal subjects are of equal federal rights in the sense that they have equal representation\xe2\x80\x94two delegates each\xe2\x80\x94in the Federation Council (upper house of the Federal Assembly).  They do, however, differ in the degree of autonomy they enjoy._NEWLINE_Six types of federal subjects are distinguished\xe2\x80\x9421\xc2\xa0republics, 9\xc2\xa0krais, 46\xc2\xa0oblasts, 2\xc2\xa0federal cities, 1\xc2\xa0autonomous oblast, and 4\xc2\xa0autonomous okrugs._NEWLINE_Autonomous okrugs are the only ones that have a peculiar status of being federal subjects in their own right, yet at the same time they are considered to be administrative divisions of other federal subjects (with Chukotka Autonomous Okrug being the only exception).\n_START_SECTION_\nFederal districts\n_START_PARAGRAPH_\nAll of the federal subjects are grouped into eight federal districts, each administered by an envoy appointed by the President of Russia.  Federal districts' envoys serve as liaisons between the federal subjects and the federal government and are primarily responsible for overseeing the compliance of the federal subjects with the federal laws.\n_START_SECTION_\nEconomic regions\n_START_PARAGRAPH_\nFor economic and statistical purposes the federal subjects are grouped into twelve economic regions.  Economic regions and their parts sharing common economic trends are in turn grouped into economic zones and macrozones."