LAW-MAKING ACTIVENESS of the VRU in April 2013

Civil Network OPORA continues to watch and analyze law-making activities of MPs of Ukraine of VII convocation. In this review for April, the organization has covered the scope of law-making activities in the Parliament, as well as activeness of MPs with consideration of involved factions and concerned issues. Besides that, OPORA has changed the approach to determining the "law-maker of the month" activeness rating, which reflects efficiency of MPs. Evaluation system now includes "IMPORTANCE" of a draft law or resolution, which is assessed in points that are later added up to determine individual coefficient of deputies' activeness. OPORA is planning to conduct an inquiry among all the MPs regarding the system for evaluation of their parliamentary efficiency. Substantive analysis of legislative activities of MPs will be made according to criteria determined on the basis of inquiry results.

On this stage, the importance of legislative initiatives and their activeness is assessed by the following scale:

1) maximum number of points for initiative, divided into the number of authors; 2) maximal importance of a bill = 1 law-maker, and a resolution = 0.5; 3) bill, which introduces new regulations = 1 point, improves or adjusts existing ones = 0.75, abolishes a regulation - 0.5; 4) meaningful resolution = 0.5, formal and organizational = 0.25.

INTRODUCTION

During April 2013, MPs of Ukraine have drafted 405 bills and resolutions. UDAR party has the best activeness coefficient, 78.57% members of which participated in the law-making process. Representatives of the Batkivshchyna faction, which have 77.89% coefficient, are almost as active as their colleagues in the opposition. The Communists (68.75%) and Svodoba members (66.67%) have taken the second place with a little margin. At the same time, only half of members of the PRU
(51.21%) participated in drafting and registration of legislative initiatives in April. Non-faction MPs are on the last place (40.63%). OPORA took into consideration the size of factions and law-making activeness of MPs in previous month.

The organization has also created the "law-maker of the month" activeness rating, including importance of a draft law or resolution. Formalistic draft laws received the lowest points, and those establishing new regulation or improving old one – the highest number of points. Therefore, OPORA maximally ignored documents, which don't have any influence on the effective legislation. Besides that, when all faction members were indicated as authors of a bill, similarly to previous months, the organization divided the importance coefficient into the number of such "authors" in order to create accurate rating. Thus, the final list of MPs, which submitted draft initiatives, is the following: 1) Andrii Kozhemiakin, AUU Batkivshchyna (7.945 points); 2) Oleh Liashko, non-faction (5.25); Vitalii Khomutynnik, the PRU (4.875); Volodymyr Yavorivskyi, AUU Batkivshchyna (4.5); Tetiana Sliuz, AUU Batkivshchyna (4.31).

Topical legislative issues for MPs were: economic and financial (107 initiatives, or 26.42% of all); law-enforcement system, justice and fighting against corruption (86 initiatives or 21.23%); social issues and standards (60 initiatives, or 14.81%). Security, defense, and foreign affairs concerned MPs for less than 1% in April.

AUU BATKIVSHCHYNA

MPs of the largest opposition faction AUU Batkivshchyna have registered 131 legislative initiatives in April. Thus, they have restored leadership among the most active law-makers, which was taken by the Party of Regions for the last two months. MPs were independently working, without inter-faction collaboration, on the following issues: economics, finances, and administration (37 initiatives) as well as law-enforcement system, justice, and fighting against corruption (35). Social standards (17), politics and state administration (14), and humanitarian issues (12) were of the second topicality for MPs of the Batkivshchyna. Local self-government (7), introduction of holidays and memorable dates (6), health care and medicine (3) – are on the third place. None of draft laws or resolutions concerned security and defense, as well as foreign policy and environment issues.

Initiatives regarding procedure for voluntary waiver of parliamentary immunity submitted by Yurii Odarchenko, and regarding criminalization of illegal visual observation of a person, including those during investigation, submitted by Hennadii Moskal and Vitalii Yarema, are potentially resonant draft laws. The latter was sharply criticized by some human rights activists, as long as such wording may be used against civil citizens, which may record facts and incidents in public places. Ruslan Kniazevych, Oleksandr Chornovolenko, Yurii Odarchenko, and Volodymyr Yavorivskyi belong to active law-makers, which submitted electoral initiatives for consideration of the VRU. MP Kniazevych proposed 262 amendments to the effective Law of Ukraine on Elections of People's Deputies of Ukraine and almost as much to the Law on Local Elections. Still, initiatives submitted by Yavorivskyi and deputy group Chornovol and Odarchenko, which have simultaneously submitted different draft resolutions on appointment of Kyiv Mayoral and City Council elections, are quite strange. Although leader of the faction Arsenii Yatseniuk stated that MPs will submit resolutions till the elections are appointed, activities of MPs are quite illogical.

Economics, finances, and administration

38 draft laws and resolutions submitted by the biggest opposition faction concerned financial and economic issues. They specifically concerned a wide range of problems in taxation, property rights and procedures, land-use system, division of state subventions for procurement, economic companies and agricultural enterprises, procedure for mass media privatization etc.

MP Ihor Vasiunyk proposed to improve realization of housing rights of residents of hostels (# 2682), which belonged to statutory capital of communities, and are transferred to the ownership of their legal persons after privatization, or are alienated in favor of third parties. The MP also wants to establish regulation which allows returning such premises into ownership of the community through court, in order to protect its residents. Leonid Serhiienko has registered a bill (#2691) on establishing to zero import duties on certain goods used to produce wallpaper in Ukraine. In such a way, the MP wants to assist implementation of the Economic reform program for 2010-2014. In a separate bill (#2755), Mykola Kucheruk aims to establish equal and comprehensive conditions for administrative activities in land use employment by clarifying the circle of performers and establishing requirements for technical and technological maintenance.

Mykola Kniazhytskyi proposed in his bill (# 2600-1) to implement a large-scale mass media reform, introduced by state authorities and local self-governments, till December 31, 2016. It provides transferring ownership to third parties, privatizing editorial offices and reorganizing them into companies, determining the procedure for such media reforms. Besides that, mass media founded by central executive bodies, National Council of Ukraine on Television and Radio Broadcasting, or State Property Fund, should get the status of official printed editions.

MP Tetiana Sliuz has registered a number of independent initiatives in administration, taxation, and public procurement. She proposed (bill #2781) to amend the Budget Code and adopt a regulation which secures consideration of distribution and redistribution of budget allocations, subsidies and grants by the whole deputy corps, but not by the corresponding committee and the Cabinet of Ministers only. MP has also proposed (bill #2801) to delete some regulations of the effective Law on Public Procurement, in order to maximally broaden the list of cases when goods and services must be procured in accordance with the tendering procedure. Besides that, the author proposed (bill #2939) to delete a regulation of the Budget Code, which provides that directions of budget policy are determined by the "annual message of the President of Ukraine to the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine". Tetiana Sliuz has noticed non-conformity between deadlines for the President's message (until March 31) and for submission of the abovementioned directions to the Cabinet of Ministers (until March 20), therefore, she proposed to settle this divergence in such a way. The MP has proposed similarly radical way to fight for reduction of the cost of bank loans (#2949) by reducing the amount of compensation from insurance funds from 200,000 UAH to 12 minimal wages.

The issues of communal and state property were also topical for parliamentary members from the Batkivshchyna. In bill #2761, Konstiantyn Bondariev proposed to establish competitive conditions for tenants and prevent abuse by lessors. According to the author, the effective regulation which provides automatic prolongation of agreement for lease in case any of parties are unwilling to terminate the obligation, prevents the other potential tenants from making new financial propositions. Therefore, the market becomes uncompetitive and the budget is underfinanced. MP Vasyl Pazyniak has registered a separate draft law (#2824) prohibiting the liquidation, conversion, and lease of state or communal recreation centers, for non-recreation or health-improving activities. Volodymyr Yavorivskyi in draft resolution #2831 proposed to fight against conversion of Hostynnyi Dvir in historical Kyiv, and recommended Kyiv City Council and KCSA to cancel resolution on transference of the corresponding land plot on Kontraktova Square into private ownership; and the Cabinet of Ministers to transfer the building to the management of the Kiev Mohyla Academy NU on a grant basis.

MPs Serhii Pashynskyi and Mykhailo Apostol worked at liberalization of tax legislation. The first has registered draft law (#2758) proposing to lift a tax on coal bed methane extraction. In explanatory note, the MP states that saved money may be used for production modernization, which will save lives of miners. However, the bill doesn't provide reallocation of these costs for safety means, and, therefore, is not binding on owners and management of mines. Mykhailo Apostol proposed to grant the status of fixed agrarian tax payer to enterprises which produce more than 15 percent of livestock in manufacturing share.

Social issues and standards

17 registered initiatives concerned social policy and state guarantees issues. MPs where concerned about benefits to persons with disabilities, payments to mothers looking after children, salaries of teachers, prestige of miners' work and needs of people living in mountain areas.

Oleksandr Dubovyi and Andrii Pavlovskyi have registered bill (#2796) which provides bringing compensations on repairs and servicing of cars in correspondence with the current tariffs and prices. In the explanatory note, authors explain that the compensation in amount of 192 UAH a month is insufficient. Larysa Denisova, Andrii Pavlovskyi and Mykhailo Khmil deem it necessary (#2813) to consider employers of persons, which are on pregnancy and maternity leave, as payers of a single insurance fee for such persons; to charge employers with the corresponding fee; to include such period to the insurance record.

A group of MPs (Liliia Hrynevych, Andrii Pyshnyi, Andrii Parubii, Pavlo Petrenko and Leonid Yemets) have proposed (#2861) to reestablish state guarantees on labor rate for teachers not lower than average rates in the industry; labor rates for university lecturers not lower than two average wages of industrial workers; to establish additional payment for specialists working in education system on the level of average wages in national economy; establish quarterly indexation of wages and its revision twice a year.

Dmytro Shlemko, Vasyl Hladii and Olha Sikora have registered draft law (#2891) which expands the legal framework for increasing state guarantees in socio-economic development of mountain settlements with the appropriate status. It was proposed to secure state support for such settlements in social sphere and in infrastructure development, to establish lower taxation rates for some groups of entrepreneurs or provide compensations for unprofitable location of enterprises, to rise social allowances to citizens etc. Roman Illiuk proposed (#2905) to widen the range of application of the Law on Rising the Prestige of Miners' Work to miners which work in economic sectors and don't belong to coal industry enterprises.

Law-enforcement system, justice, and fighting against corruption

Traditionally, law-enforcement system and justice issues are topical for the Batkivshchyna faction members. In April, MPs have registered 35 initiatives, including establishment of time constraints for legal investigation by the Constitutional Court of Ukraine, creation of the temporary investigation commission, responsibility for the unlawful video surveillance, humanization of criminal legislation, election of judges, rehabilitation of political prisoners and others.

Tetiana Sliuz has registered draft law (#2753) in order to precisely determine a term "special technical means (STM) for obtaining information". According to the author, the Security Service of Ukraine considers some domestic goods as STM, what blocks the development of science and entrepreneurship. Moreover, civil citizens may be groundlessly brought to criminal account, in accordance with the Article 359 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. In her another bill (#2677), the MP proposed to substitute the certain imprisonment punishments with fines. The MP has counted, that 900 million UAH will be saved by decreasing expenses on the maintenance of institutions executing the sentence, and additional 1,400 million UAH income will be secured by fines.

Quite active in this sector MP Serhii Sas have simultaneously registered some initiative. The MP proposed to secure right of citizens on filing cassation appeal against court decision by deleting subparagraph 5 in fourth paragraph of the Article 328 of the Civil Procedure Code of Ukraine (CPC) and subparagraph 5 in the fifth paragraph of the Article 214 of the Code of Administrative Court Procedure (CACP), according to which a Judge Rapporteur refuses to initiate cassation proceedings if the cassation complaint is unfounded and stated therein arguments does not cause the need to check case papers. Serhii Sas and Andrii Kozhemiakin proposed to secure qualified judicial manpower (#2711) and elect judges of the Court of Appeals on open-ended position, judges of the Supreme Special Court – also on open-ended position with not less than seven years working experience as a judge, and judges of the Supreme Court with not less than seven years working experience as a judge, including 5 years as a judge of the Supreme Special Court. Another law (#2708) drafted by these MPs concern exact establishment of time constraints for receiving a full copy of court decision, which allows citizens not to miss deadline for appealing.

Yurii Vozniuk has registered a bill (#2728), proposing to consider the Supreme Court of Ukraine as a one body authorized to take a final decision on rehabilitation of persons who are political prisoners, but according to the conclusions of the prosecutor, are not subject to rehabilitation. MP Konstiantyn Bondariev proposed (#2761) to fight against corruption or abuses at communal enterprises by prohibiting employment of persons that are to be subordinate to their close or legal relatives. According to the author, it would prevent groundless payment of salaries and qualitative working process.

Yurii Odarchenko proposed (resolution #2870) to create a Temporary investigation commission of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine to investigate violation of the Constitution of Ukraine, Ukrainian legislation, as well as corrupt practices during competition for an agreement on the distribution of hydrocarbons within the Yuzivska field, procurement for the Naftohas of Ukraine NJC made at the cost of state budget, and the reconstruction of the Boryspil Airport. According to the MP, such violations took place; therefore, the Temporary investigation commission should be created.

The bill (#2940) regarding establishing criminal liability for illegal installation of video surveillance, submitted by Hennadii Moskal and Oleksadr Yarema, turned out to be resonant. The main dispute between authors of the bill and human rights activist, which became public, was caused by comment "including those during investigation activities". Thus, civic activists are afraid that criminal prosecution will be conducted for any video or photo recording made with hidden camera (home equipment) by private persons, but not for unlawful surveillance over civil or political activists.

Politics and state administration

MPs from the Batkivshchyna Party have submitted 14 various initiatives pertaining to politics and state administration issues. In particular, they proposed to regulate voluntary waiver of parliamentary immunity, to reverse the decision taken by the parliamentary majority during off-site meeting of the Parliament on April 4, to amend Rules of Parliamentary Procedure, and the Law of Ukraine on Elections of People's Deputies of Ukraine etc.

Civil Network OPORA had analyzed decisions taken during off-site sitting of the parliamentary majority on April 4 (  http://oporaua.org/articles/3763-bezporadna-rada) and emphasized that taken decisions should be legally reconsidered (  http://oporaua.org/news/3750-rishennja-lalternatyvnogor-parlamentu-neobhidno-povtorno-rozgljanuty-ta-progolosuvaty-v-legitymnyj-sposib-opora). However, Volodymyr Yavorivskyi has registered a number of resolutions (#2747, 2910, 2911, 2912, 2928), proposing to repeal the corresponding laws.

MP Andrii Parubii wants to introduce (#2687) additional conditions for acquisition of the citizenship of Ukraine, particularly successful passing oral and written tests on the Constitution and with a sufficient knowledge of the state language to communicate. The MP proposed to establish property qualification for persons which want to get Ukrainian citizenship, which provide that legal means of subsistence shall be not less than the subsistence minimum.

Yurii Odarchenko has registered a bill (#2739) which provides establishment of a quite exotic regulation on voluntary waiver of parliamentary immunity. Thus, according to the consideration in the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, an MP may use the right on voluntary waiver of parliamentary immunity, or restore it if he wants. Moreover, immunity may be restored before opening criminal proceedings against him, or before he is detained and brought to justice.

MP Ruslan Kniazevych proposed three separate initiatives: on the procedure for discussing parliamentary inquiries (#2718); establishment of time constraints for legal investigation by the Constitutional Court (#2724), and amendments to the Law on Elections of People's Deputies of Ukraine (#2908). The MP proposed 262 amendments to the Law of Ukraine on Elections of People's Deputies of Ukraine. In explanatory note, the author refers to recommendations of international missions and observers, which are implemented by his amendments. The MP secures citizen right to participate in election campaign; broadens the status of party representatives in the CEC, authorized persons and proxies; changes the procedure of forming DECs and PECs; specifies vote counting procedure and determining the election results, as well as registration of electoral documentation.

In the other bill, Ruslan Kniazevych states that the importance of parliamentary inquiry is diminished because of formal replies, which MPs receive during the period for preparing answers. Therefore, Mr. Kniazevych has proposed to increase the time for announcement, and secure consideration of inquiries and answers during plenary sitting of the Verkhovna Rada with the officials to whom inquiries were addressed present. Besides that, the MP proposed to give parliamentary committees the right to initiate consideration of inquiries.

Besides abovementioned initiatives, Ruslan Kniazevych has registered amendments to the Law of Ukraine on the Constitutional Court of Ukraine, which provide that the Court is obliged to check all the possible grounds for recognition the corresponding act or regulation as unconstitutional when considering cases on constitutionality of laws or other acts of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. Furthermore, these amendments establish qualitative requirements to the content of decisions and time constraints for their implementation.

Denys Dzenderskyi and Andrii Pyshnyi have proposed (#2817) to introduce amendments to the Rules of Procedure of the VRU and establish procedure for appointment and discharge of Chairman of the National Bank of Ukraine. MPs deem it necessary to secure in legislation a reporting on the results or areas of Chairman's activity or candidate for the position as well as an opportunity for factions and deputies to put questions. We should remind that the ex-Chairman of the NBU Serhii Arbuzov wasn't reporting when he was being discharged, what rouse indignation among representatives of the opposition ( http://oporaua.org/news/3610-rozgljad-zakonoproektiv-ta-parlamentski-debaty).

Humanitarian policy

AUU Batkivshchyna faction has registered 12 various initiatives pertaining to humanitarian policy issues: from conducting jubilee anniversary of the Publishers' Forum in Lviv to a moratorium on the closure of out-of-school education establishments.

Liliia Hrynevych and Valerii Sushkevych have registered a bill (#2878) on the organization of inclusive education. MPs proposed to amend the corresponding legislation and provide educational establishments of all types, which realize the rights of children on education, to take into account interests of pupils, including those with special needs, introduce principles of inclusive education, and provide allowance for children, which need social assistance, and provide them hot food for educational period. Liliia Hrynevych and Viacheslav Kyrylenko proposed to moratorium on the closure of out-of-school education establishments, including those belong to the culture sector, which are owned by the state of a community, till the end of 2015.

Yaroslav Fedoruk has proposed a large-scale plan for library modernization and development (#2849). The bill amends 5 corresponding laws which have direct influence on reform in the sector. In particular, it regulates replenishment of library funds with modern literature, takes into consideration the needs of disabled visitors by equipping buildings with ramps, language laboratories, and relief-dot printed books for the blind financed from the State Budget. Besides that, the MP also took into consideration the needs of national minorities and proposed to provide literature on their languages, modernize technical base and include the corresponding financing to the 2014-2020 State Budget.

Local self-governments

Members of the opposition faction AUU Batkivshchyna have registered 7 initiatives which concern local self-government issues in April.

Rusla Kniazavych proposed to improve technical and legal aspects of amendments (#2664) to the Law of Ukraine on the Elections of Deputies to the Verkhovna Rada of Autonomous Republic of Crimea, Deputies of Local Councils, Village, Town and City Heads. The MP secures the right of citizens on campaigning, broadens the status of official observers, amends the procedure for creating territorial election commissions and appointing on management positions, gives details on vote counting process and determination of voting results, increases time constraints for appealing against decisions, actions or inaction of commissions up to 5 days. MPs Yurii Odarchenko and Oleksandr Chornovolenko want to synchronize local elections (bill #2892). According to the bill, in case 5-year term of office of deputies in local councils, as well as village, town, or city mayors, comes to an end before general election in Ukraine starts, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine shall appoint special elections to the corresponding local self-government body. These two MPs have also registered a resolution (#2848) on appointment of Kyiv Mayoral and City Council elections to June 23, 2013. It's also interesting that another MP of the AUU Batkivshchyna Volodymyr Yavorivskyi has submitted two separate resolutions on the appointment of Kyiv Mayoral (#2832) and City Council (#2831) elections, and their conduction during 60 days after the corresponding decision is taken by the Parliament. In contrast to Chornovolenko and Odarchenko, Yavorivskyi didn't provide the specific date of elections; however, simultaneous submission of such resolutions from the same faction seems to be not quite reasonable.

PARTY OF REGIONS of Ukraine

In April, MPs from the Party of Regions have registered 120 draft laws and resolutions. Third part of these documents is draft resolutions, which initiate supporting, modifying, or repelling some draft laws submitted earlier. Above all, law-makers want to repeal draft laws which provide benefits for different sections of the population or are directed on social improvements (Yevhen Hellier and Yaroslav Sukhyi are authors of resolutions). 24 draft laws (33%) of 84 concern amendments to different codes: 12 draft amendments to the Tax Code, 5 to the Criminal Code, 4 to the Budget Code, and 7 to the other codes.

In April, Members of Parliament were concentrated on economy and administration issues – 36%, 20% concerned social issues, 18% – politics and state administration, 14% – law-enforcement system and justice, and 12% of bills concerned all the other spheres. None of registered documents concerned foreign affairs, defense, or environment. Among all the initiatives, it's worth to emphasize those introducing new laws, but not amendments to the existing legislation: draft Labor Code of Ukraine (#2902), submitted by Oleksandr Stoyan and Yarosav Sukhyi; draft Law on Education of Individuals with Health Disabilities (#2885), authored by Oleksandr Volkov, Oleksandr Feldman (members of the VRU Committee on Budget), and Ihor Sharov (member of the VRU Committee on Entrepreneurship and Regulatory Policy); draft Law on General Mandatory State Medical Insurance (#2597-1), registered by Volodumyr Dudko, Tetiana Bakhteieva, Andrii Shypko, Anton Kisse, Svitlana Fabrykant, and Oleh Bilovol.

Economics, finances, and administration

In general, 33 bills were submitted.

MPs have proposed to amend a number of laws and codes, which regulate taxes and customs. Authors have proposed not to inspect business with stable income and disregard anonymous messages (#2679, Hryhorii Smitiukh); to include fixed agrarian tax to local taxes and renew its rates (#2683, Viktor Zherebniuk); to remove duty tax on locomotives, trams, and equipment (#2773, Anatolii Kinakh); to allow the Cabinet of Ministers to determine the list of enterprises, which will receive 70% of their environmental tax for ecology improvement measures (#2807, Sehii Matviienkov and Volodymyr Boiko); remove the tax on methane extraction in coal mines (#2811, Oleksandr Koval); to exempt forgiven by creditors penalties, fees or interest from taxation (#2865, Oleh Tsariov); to transfer 25% of payments for clay and kaolin mining to oblast budgets, instead of 50% for mining all the other mineral resources.

There also were some bills registered which regulate circulation of financial exchequer bills. Valerii Omelchenko, head of the VRU Committee on Informatization, was particularly focused on this theme, and submitted three legislative initiatives #2845, 2846, and 2847. He proposed to establish three types of bills of exchange, give the Cabinet of Ministers the right to restructure budget debts through bills of exchange and establish the procedure for using these bills.

The other legislative initiatives concern different administrative issues. Some documents concern agriculture issues: establishing electricity tariffs for agricultural manufacturers (#2673, Viktor Bondar), obliging budgetary institutions to buy products from manufacturers-physical persons (#2786, Vladyslav Atroshenko) expand the list of conditions which allow the slaughter of livestock and poultry not in the slaughterhouse (#2818, Serhii Moshak and Ivan Myrnyi) and change the status of the Agrarian Fund from the state agency to a public joint stock company (#2916, Oleh Tsariov). Serhii Hrynevetskyi proposed to include the rescue of people in the sea to commercial activities and introduce the additional duty in ports (#2827).

Social issues and standards

12 draft laws were submitted in the sector, one of which by 6 MPs simultaneously. Volodymyr Dudka, Tetiana Bakhteieva, Andriiei Shypko, Anton Kisse, Svitlana Fabrykant, and Oleksandr Bilovol have registered draft Law on General Mandatory State Medical Insurance (#2597-1). This legislative initiative is alternative to the bill, registered by Yaroslav Sukhyi on March 21. Law-makers have proposed January 1, 2016 as a date for entering the law into operation. MPs Oleksandr Feldman, Oleksandr Volkov, and Ihor Sharov have drafted a Law on Education of Individuals with Health Disabilities (#2885), which specifies the list of corresponding persons, a network of special educational establishments, rights of persons with health-related disabilities for education and conditions for realization of such rights.

The other draft laws regulate the following issues: introduction of taxes, fees, and duties; extension benefits or payments. MP Volodymyr Zubryk has proposed to introduce a fee on mandatory state pension insurance when making cashless currency transfers (#2934-1). In the same bill, he proposed to lower the retirement age for state servants, judges, and MPs. Sehii Kivalov was proposed to widen benefits and rise in wages for apparatus staff of the Supreme Court (#2741). Serhii Hlazunov and Dmytro Shpenov have drafted amendments to the Law on Charitable Activities (#2881) and proposed to exclude private law entities from those can be benefactors. It is explained by the fact that a lot of profitable state and communal enterprises will become beneficiaries after the changes are introduced. MPs Serhii Tihipko and Svitlana Fabrykantahve also decided (#2815) allocation of costs on school nutrition in towns affected by radioactive contamination should be managed by the corresponding central executive body.

Humanitarian policy

In April MPs have registered only three bills. Vitalii Zhuravskyi, a secretary of the VRU Committee on Legislative Support of Law Enforcement, proposed (#2768) to form classes in villages of three children instead of five. Volodymyr Bandurov, member of the VRU Committee on Fuel and Energy Complex, have proposed to introduce a new procedure for reorganization or liquidation of schools of communal ownership (#2867), and insure making such changes only after receiving approval of the corresponding central authority.

Politics and state administration

Almost a half of 14 bills in this sector concern creation of the Ministry of Revenue and Taxation, and changes resulting from it. Their authors, Vitalii Khomutynnik and Serhii Kliuiev, proposed to amend the Tax Code and other codes due to creation of the Ministry and broadening of functions and rights of controlling bodies (#2797); to include the unified social contribution to taxes list and change its designation in social insurance (#2799); to include the unified social contribution to taxes, which are governed by the Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters (#2835) – what will allow Ukraine to provide information about this tax to the other countries.

Oleksandr Stoian and Yaroslav Sukhyiahve registered a draft Labor Code (#2909) to substitute USSR Labor Code as of 1971.

The other changes introduce keeping the Single State Demographic Register in regional languages and registration of documents in these languages (#2762); non-payment to MPs which were blocking the rostrum in the Verkhovna Rada and penalizing them for losses connected to delay of the plenary session (#2789); cancellation of the Statement of the Presidium of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Concerning Synod of Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) in Kharkiv (#2774), according to which decisions on the Synod cannot be approved because the Statute was violated during its conduction. MPs Oleksandr Kuzmuk and Hryrohii Kaletnik have submitted a draft Law on the Succession of Property belonging to the Military Hunting Society of USSR Armed Forces, but the text of the bill and accompanying documents are absent on the site of the Verkhovna Rada.

Law-enforcement system, justice, and fighting against corruption

Most of 13 initiatives concern fighting against throwing away rubbish and strengthening liability for some crimes.

Some bills, submitted by different MPs, concern keeping clean, and punishments for throwing rubbish in improper places; as well as obligation of the police to watch observance of keeping clean not only in the cities, but also in all the other settlements #2667, 2736, 2820-1.

In amendments to the Law on Television Communication (#2913), Vitalii Zhuravskyi proposed to oblige mobile services providers to give information about a phone to law enforcement bodies on the basis of court decision (resolution), submission of a public prosecutor or petition of an investigator, approved by a public prosecutor. Besides that, to turn off phones and control their use and location.

Introduction of holidays and memorable dates

Two of four submitted draft laws concern celebration of events which took place during the Second World War (#2920, 2805). The first provides celebration of the 100th birthday anniversary of soviet hero of Stakhaniv movement (#2775), and the second – celebration of 300th birthday anniversary of religious figure (#2748) Ihnatii Mariupolskyi.

Local self-governments

Almost the half of bills in local self-government sector pertain to taxation. MPs Yurii Samoilenko and Volodymyr Hrushevskyi proposed to determine that income tax of an enterprise should be alloted to local budgets (#2918), and that taxes should be paid according to the location of manufacturing or services providers (#2919).

Yevhen Morozenko proposed to amend the USSR Housing Code, and oblige LSGBs to create Corporate depreciation deposit accounts for residential buildings, and use funds from these accounts only for major or ordinary repairs of a house (#2948). It was also proposed to allow local self-government bodies provide notary services if there are no notaries public in a settlement (#2866) and deprivation local self-government bodies of taking measures for the prevention of non-industrial injuries and assigning this matter to the jurisdiction of local state administrations (#2904).

UDAR PARTY

In general, the UDAR faction has drafted 24 legislative initiatives, including 14 draft laws and 10 draft resolutions. It is their best efficiency coefficient since the beginning of cadence in the Verkhovna Rada. Compared to the previous month, members of the UDAR have registered 7 documents more in April (17 documents were registered in March). Most of proposed projects (12 documents) concern issues of law-enforcement system, justice, and fighting against corruption. Initiatives concerning economic (3 documents) and public administration are on the second place. Humanitarian issues, similarly to previous months, were of minor importance for members of the UDAR faction Viktor Chumak, who has registered 5 documents, and Valerii Patskan, who has registered 4 documents (including 1 collective), are the leaders according to the number of registered draft initiatives. Both MPs are heads of VR committees: Organized Crime Control and Anti-Corruption Committee (V. Chumak) and Committee on Human Rights, National Minorities and International Relations (V. Patskan).

Law-enforcement system, justice, and fighting against corruption

The UDAR remains among the most active parties in justice and fighting against corruption issues. Most of legislative initiatives in this sector submitted by members of the UDAR (mainly by Viktor Chumak i Valerii Patskan) were quite formal and concerned some bills defeated or adopted as a basis, which were filed to the corresponding ministries for consideration. However, some other their draft legislative initiatives turned out to be more meaningful. Thus, five members of the UDAR – Vitalii Klychko Vitalii Kovalchuk, Valerii Karpuntsov, Roman Romaniuk, Nataliia Ahafonova – have registered a bill (#2680) on Making Amendments to Some Laws of Ukraine on Public Procurement. According to MPs, the document is developed to remove from Ukrainian legislation the possibility of abuse by officials of budgetary institutions during public procurement, strengthening the state and civic observation over public procurement, and adapt public procurement procedures to EU standards. Besides that, in order to apply procedures provided by the Laws of Ukraine on Public Procurement and on Peculiarities of Procurement in Certain Spheres of Economic Activity, the authors have proposed to halve the minimal procurement expenses for goods and services – to 50 thousand UAH (in construction – to 150 thousand UAH), and works – to 500 thousand UAH. However, as the Central scientific expert office has correctly emphasized in its resolution, similar initiatives have already been implemented, but failed to meet anticipations. Therefore, negative practices in public procurement should be eliminated through radical reforming of public procurement procedures, but not through making selective amendments to the corresponding legislation.

MP Oleksandr Mochkov has proposed to increase the penalty for using communication facilities that are not technically equipped to conduct hands-free negotiations by drivers of regular buses and those making intertown or international transportation. The bill (#2923) provides increasing the penalty from fifty to seventy untaxed minimums of a person’s income (from 850 to 1,275 UAH) and deprivation of the right to drive a motor vehicle for a period from one to three years for a repeated violation within one calendar year.

Economics, finances, and administration

MP Ruslan Solvar has proposed to introduce amendments to the Tax Code and allow citizens to allow citizens to abandon the registration number of the taxpayer registration card not only because of their religious beliefs but also because of other beliefs. The bill (#2909) provides introduction of an alternative form of registration for such individuals, i.e. in an alphabetic list of taxpayers of the State Tax Service (not in the State Register).

In order to improve the unsatisfactory economic condition of dairy industry in Ukraine, the member of the UDAR faction and the Head of Sub-committee on food industry and agro commodities trading Fedir Nehoi proposed to establish an automatic reimbursement of VAT for milk processing enterprises. According to the MP (#2853), such measures will raise efficiency of milk processing enterprises, and allow milk processing enterprises to use reimbursed funds for timely payments to agricultural producers and.

Politics and state administration

The UDAR faction and Valentyn Nalyvaichenko in particular are concerned with nontransparency of activities in the corresponding VRU Committees. In order to solve this problem, the MP proposed (#2816) to oblige the Committees to provide live broadcasts of their sittings on their official pages in Internet. Another member of the UDAR, Roman Cherneha, deems it necessary to secure in legislation the mandatory heightening of qualification for village, town, and city heads which are elected for their first term (#2705).

The draft Law on Making Amendments to the Law of Ukraine on Advertisement should be especially mentioned (regarding the prohibition to use pictures of state or local officials in social advertising). Author of the bill (#2721) Oleksandr Mochkov states that such practice of social advertising on behalf of state or local officials with their pictures was typical for the election campaigning. Such advertising didn't belong to political and was groundlessly financed from the state or local budgets, what means that some provisions pertaining to advertising should be regulated in detail.

The draft Law on Making Amendments to the Law of Ukraine on State Awards of Ukraine (#2819) is somewhat similar in part concerning State Awards to MPs of Ukraine, and members of the executive branch, which was prepared by a group of authors, namely Viktor Pynzenyk, Yaroslav Dubnevych, Vakerii Patskan, and Andrii Putilov. MPs have proposed to remove legislative collision which allows rewarding members of legislative and executive branch with the highest awards during their term of service. Political activity, and work in government bodies are direct responsibilities of parliamentarians or government officials and, therefore, cannot be placed on the same footing as prominent services for Ukraine, – law-makers state.

COMMUNIST PARTY OF UKRAINE

In April, MPs of the Communist Party of Ukraine have registered 14 legislative initiatives in the Parliament, including only one draft Law on Concessions, and the rest – draft resolutions. For today, only one draft law was submitted for consideration of the Parliament during the whole month, what is the lowest recorded efficiency coefficient of the CPU faction members during the whole period of their work in the VR of VII convocation. Most of documents initiated by the communists concerned administrative and economic issues (6 draft legislative acts), and social issues (also 6 documents), which were elaborated by Petro Tsybenko, as Head of the Committee on Social Policy and Labor, and Spiridon Kilinkarov, as Head of Committee on construction, city planning, and housing service. Draft resolutions, initiated by these MPs, were formalistic and concerned the certain draft laws adopted as a basis, defeated, or sent for further elaboration, which were filed to the corresponding VRU Committees for consideration. In April 2013, the Communists haven't submitted any bills concerning state administration, humanitarian issues, justice and fighting against the corruption, foreign affairs, as well as security and defense issues. In general, 14 of 32 members of the CPU faction participated in the elaboration of normative acts. Spiridon Kilinkarov, who participated in preparation of 6 draft legislative initiatives, became a leader in law-making process.

In their single draft law registered in April (#2745), five MPs from the Communist Party (Petro Symonenko, Olha Boryta, Serhii Hordiienko, Spiridon Kilinkarov i Yevhen Marmazov) proposed to adopt the Law on Concessions in new wording. According to authors of the document, the effective wording of the Law of Ukraine on Concessions as of April 12, 2013 allows evading the open contest used during privatization of the state and communal property, i.e. it's a hidden privatization mechanism. Thus, the major aim of the bill is creation of distinct, transparent, and favorable conditions for preparation of the object in state/communal ownership to concession, concession contest, registration of property, and implementation of direct concession activities. The authors are convinced that realization of this draft law will allow using concessions as more efficient mechanism (profitable for both investor and the state) of exploitation and modernization of the state and communal actives in different branches of economy, their preservation, increasing budget revenues and more transparent mechanisms for possible further privatization of the property.

Besides this draft law, members of the CPU have registered two draft resolutions, focused on regulation of the certain problems in budget financing of social and environmental programs.

In particular, Serhii Hordiienko, Oksana Kaletnyk and Serhii Honcharov have proposed in a resolution #2744 of 4/5/2013, that the Cabinet of Ministers would secure additional expenses on loans under the budget program titled State preferential loans for individual rural construction (reconstruction) and purchase of houses, is the sum of UAH 68.8 million UAH from the general fund of the State Budget of Ukraine.

Besides that, MPs from the Communist party (Viktoriia Babych, Serhii Topalov, Omelian Parubok and Larysa Baidiuk) have drawn attention to preservation of the Bakalska Kosa regional landscape park in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, which suffers from sand extraction in Bakalska Banka next to the park. In a separate draft resolution (#2764), MPs proposed the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine to take measures to suspense special permissions on sand extraction in Bakalska Banka, and the Verkhovna Rada to elaborate and approve a special program for preservation of the Bakalska Kosa regional landscape park.

AUU SVOBODA

In April, MPs of the Svoboda faction have registered 21 draft regulatory acts, particularly 14 draft laws and 7 draft resolutions. Third part of their legislative initiatives concerned financial, economic, and administrative issues. Social policy, environment issues, and introduction of holidays and memorable dates received little attention of the All-Ukrainian Union Svoboda faction members, which drafted 3 documents in each sector. During the last three months, members of the Svoboda faction were not interested in foreign affairs, as well as security and defense issues, at all. Oleksandr Myrnyi, who is a former deputy of Khmelnytsk Oblast Council, and current Deputy Head of the Committee on Fuel and Energy Complex, Nuclear Policy and Nuclear Safety, has become a leader in law-making activities this month. He was preparing 5 draft regulations, submitted to the Parliament in April.

Economics, finances, and administration

Oleksandr Sych from the Svoboda faction has registered draft Law on Making Amendments to Article 2 of the Law of Ukraine on Public Procurement (#2668), which provides that procurement of goods and services for securing nourishment in state and communal secondary schools doesn't fall under this law. In fact, according to the bill, all secondary schools are not obliged to conduct competitive bids and are able to independently organize procurement and supply of food for pupils and teachers. This initiative is explained by the fact that in case supplier refuses to fulfill his duties, or unilateral dissolution of an agreement, an educational establishment will be left without food for the period of 1.5-2 months, till new competitive bids are held. Besides that, we should remember about the necessity of competitive environment in public procurement sector, and preventing corruption in case the bill will be supported.

MP Mykhailo Blavatskyi has registered a bill (#2702) regarding TV program interruptions for commercials and protecting interests of TV audience. Although the bill doesn't prevent violation of the Law of Ukraine on Advertisement regarding advertisement of alcohol drinks on radio and television from 6am to 11pm, as well as interruption of the integrity and content of programs, it offers mandatory providing of information about the time remaining till the end of commercial break.

Three members of the Svoboda Party Yurii Mykhalchyshyn, Mykhailo Holovko, and Ruslan Koshulynskyi have registered the bill (#2854) which prohibits placement of tobacco product samples on open show-window outside trading facilities. The MPs are convinced that such regulation will decrease tobacco propaganda and, correspondingly, its harmful influence on the health of population.

Another two Svododa members, Oleksandr Myrnyi and Ihor Miroshnychenko, have registered three draft laws. First of them (#2692) provides amending the Law of Ukraine on Rates of the Export Duties on Certain Types of Oilseeds, and canceling export duty on sunflower seed. Two other draft laws (#2693 and #2694) are aimed at assistance to the production of alternative fuels, and particularly natural gas (methane) in coal deposits. It was proposed to classify coalbed methane as an alternative energy source and classify economic activities like degassing and use of gas (methane) from coal deposits, for example, as marketable products for selling. Besides that, these draft laws provide that economic activities like degassing of coal deposits or/and the use of coalbed methane should be exempt from profits tax before January 1, 2013.

Health care and medicine

Draft law #2646-1, submitted by a group of MPs from the Svoboda faction, Oleksandr Sych, Ruslan Zelyk and Ruslan Martsinkiv, concerning prohibition on artificial termination of pregnancy, is fairly the most controversial registered bill. In the explanation note, MPs refer to "information provided by representatives of the United Nations Population Fund", according to which the number of abortions in Ukraine is much bigger than in any EU Member State. Besides that, death rates are almost three times bigger than birth rates in most of Ukrainian oblasts. According to the MPs, such negative demographic dynamics may result in mass immigration of Asian citizens to Ukraine. Taking into consideration that Ukraine will celebrate 1025th anniversary of Epiphany of Rus on July 28, 2013 members of the Svoboda proposed the bill prohibiting artificial termination of pregnancy, with exclusion of: 1) instances when pregnancy threatens the life of woman; 2) medically proved pathology of fetus, incompatible with life of a child after the birth; 3) legally proved facts that the child was conceived through rape. In all the other instances, persons involved in operations on artificial termination of pregnancy may be sentenced to imprisonment from three to seven years.

Law-enforcement system, justice, and fighting against corruption

In order to prevent corruption starting from law-making process, a group of MPs from All-Ukrainian Union Svoboda (Andrii Mishchenko, Oleksandr Myrnyi, and Ihor Myroshnychenko) have proposed that ani-corruption expertise of draft legislation should be conducted not only by the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine, but also by the corresponding VRU Committee. Draft Law #2675 on Making Amendments to some Legislative Acts of Ukraine (concerning ani-corruption expertise of draft legislation) provides amending the Law of Ukraine on Preventing and Combating Corruption, Law of Ukraine on Committees of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, and Law of Ukraine on Rules of Procedure of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, which secure ani-corruption expertise of draft legislation conducted by the VRU Committee responsible for fighting corruption. In particular, the Committee will analyze registered draft legislative acts in order to secure the absence of regulations which may assist corruption. In case draft legislation includes regulation which may assist corruption, the Committee shall pass the corresponding decision and the bill shall be returned to the subject having the right of legislative initiative, without being included to the agenda and considered during the plenary sitting.

In order to secure cleanness and good order in settlements, Svoboda Party member Andrii Mishchenko has proposed (#2820) to amend the Code of Administrative Offenses of Ukraine, and impose the fine in amount from 850 to 1,700 UAH for deliberate throwing of rubbish. The MP refers to the fine for throwing rubbish and cigar ends on London streets in amount of 160 dollars and 650 dollars in USA. Cases which fall under the Article 152-1 of the Code of Administrative Offences of Ukraine, Deliberate throwing of domestic waste and rubbish in unauthorized places, were proposed to fall under the competency of internal affairs bodies (police).

Social issues and standards

In order to raise receipts to the Pension Fund of Ukraine, MP Yurii Mykhalchyshyn has registered a bill (#2868), which secures 20% additional tax for state pension insurance of physical persons-residents (which have income both in Ukraine and foreign), whose income for the last reported year is more than 1 million UAH.

INTER-FACTION BILLS

In April 2013, representatives of different factions have jointly registered 69 draft laws and resolutions. A number of inter-faction bills has considerably raised during this period, what is the result of joint activities in Committees of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. While bills of three opposition factions were the most resonant during previous months, today members of pro-power and opposition factions are jointly preparing important bills. This tendency is especially vivid when it comes to projects regarding fulfillment of engagements with European institutions.

Most of inter-faction bills concerned law-enforcement system, justice, and fighting against corruption (20 drafts). In particular, MPs of the Party of Regions, AUU Batkivshchyna, UDAR, and All-Ukrainian Union Svoboda, are promoting implementation of the EU-Ukraine Action Plan on visa liberalization, and especially bringing national anti-corruption and criminal legislation in accordance with international standards. At the same time, specialists of the Central Scientific Experts Office of the Verkhovna Rada advance serious remarks about these documents.

Humanitarian issues (16 documents) are on the second place by the number of inter-faction bills. MPs of different factions jointly work on language and education policy issues. Initiation of regulations which concern different aspects of religious organizations was prevailing this month. 8 draft laws concerned social issues and guaranties, 7 – economic issues, 6 – politics and state administration, 12 – other.

Economics, finances, and administration

Non-faction Oleh Kanivets and UDAR faction member Yaroslav Dubnevych have proposed to redistribute the state subvention in amount of 440 million UAH for major repairs of water supply and sewerage systems, planned for local budgets of Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhya, Luhansk, Mykolaiv, and Kherson oblasts in 2013. MPs are convinced that the subvention is unfairly distributed among these oblasts, and propose alternative distribution: to give 30% of the planned sum to abovementioned oblasts, and 70% to all the other oblasts.

Serhii Hlazunov (the Party of Regions) and Serhii Faiermak (AUU Batkivshchyna) have initiated the creation of the Consolidated Group of Taxpayers in Ukrainian tax system. Consolodated group can be created by taxpayers if one member of the group directly or indirectly participates in the share capital of other group members and the share of such participation is not less than 50 percent.

Representatives of the AUU Batkivshchyna (Oleksandra Kuzhel, Mykola Kucheruk) and the Party of Regions (Vladyslav Lukianov, Oleksandr Koval) have initiated the conduction of parliamentary hearings on June 19, 2013 on the topic "State regulation of natural monopolies – ensuring balanced pricing and tariff policy."

Social issues and standards

Member of the UDAR Serhii Kunitsyn and representative of the AUU Batkivshchyna Valerii Sushkevych have proposed to provide monthly additional payment to family members of perished combatants. According to the bill, the average amount of pension including additional payment should be from 5 to 10 thousand UAH. The Central scientific expert office of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine didn't support this bill, emphasizing that it requires amendment of some other Laws of Ukraine.

Representatives of the Party of Regions (Yurii Miroshnychenko, Hanna Herman and others), and AUU Batkivshchyna (Valerii Dubil) want to make provision for voluntary participation of clergymen, priests, and elected officials in religions organizations, in the obligatory state social insurance system.

Members of the Party of Regions Serhii Dunaiev, Oleksandr Nechaiev, and Anatolii Hirshfeld, as well as non-faction MP Vitalii Nemilostivyi have prepared a draft law concerning enhancement of the role of the state in securing rights of persons with disabilities to work. This initiative is primarily targeted at securing equal job placement for disabled persons in all enterprises irrespective of the form of ownership. Yurii Shapovalov (the Party of Regions) and Oleh Makhnitskyi (All-Ukrainian Union Svoboda) have registered the bill which secures additional guarantees for youth employment.

Humanitarian issues

In April, representatives of opposition factions have registered a number of resonant bills in humanitarian sphere. First of all, members of the AUU Batkivshchyna faction (Andrii Parubii, Ivan Vasiunyk, Lidiia Koteliak, Stepan Kubiv, and Vasyl Pazyniak), and UDAR (Yaroslav Dubnevych, Yaroslav Hinka), together with non-faction MP Oleh Kanivets, have initiated granting former UPA and OUN members the status of combatants.

For their part, Viacheslav Kyrylenko (AUU Batkivshchyna) and Andrii Mishchenko (AUU Svoboda) have proposed to add a new article to the Criminal Code of Ukraine regarding responsibility for public denial or justification of Nazism and Stalinism crimes. As a responsibility for such actions, the bill provides fines in amount from two to five hundred untaxed minimums of a person’s income, or imprisonment for up to two years. It should be mentioned, that the Central scientific expert office has proposed Deputy Corps to reject this bill. In another draft law, Kyrylenko and Mishchenko esteblish criminal liability for desecration of a grave of Ukrainian freedom fighter, and burial place of repression and genocide victims. The effective wording of the Criminal Code provide only liability for desecration of common grave, and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Members of the Party of Regions Kostiantyn Pavlov, Dmytro Shpenov and a representative of the AUU Batkivshchyna Serhii Faiermark have prepared a draft Law on Searching and Arranging Burials of the Remains of Victims of War and Political Repression and Perpetuating Their Memory. According to MPs, there are no regulations pertaining to the search of burials and not buried remains of victims of wars and political repressions in Ukraine.

Language and education issues remain topical for representatives of different factions. Liliia Hrynevych (AUU Batkivshchyna) and Oleksandr Sych (AUU Svoboda) have proposed to conduct parliamentary hearings on July 10, 2013 on the topic "Securing constitutional guaranties for equal access to qualitative higher education in Ukraine." Non-faction Serhii Labaziuk, Bohdan Beniuk (AUU Svoboda), and Volodymyr Shulha (AUU Batkivshchyna) hav initiated a moratorium on the closure of the state and communal secondary education establishments. At the same time, a group of MPs from different factions has introduced draft Resolution on the conduction of parliamentary hearings on securing the status of Ukrainian language as national on July 10, 2013.

In April, MPs of the Party of Regions (Yurii Miroshnychenko, Hanna Herman), AUU Batkivshchyna (Valerii Dubil), and the CPU (Oksana Kaletnyk) have submitted a number of draft laws which improve functioning of religious organizations in Ukraine. For example, it was proposed to exempt religious organizations from real property tax.

Politics and state administration

Members of the AUU Batkivshchyna Volodymyr Bondarenko, Oleksandr Bryhynets, Andrii Pavlovskyi, Volodymyr Ariev, Yurii Stets and non-faction deputy Oles Donii have proposed to make simultaneous conduction of Presidential election, election of MPs of Ukraine, Deputies to the Verkhovna Rada of Autonomous Republic of Crimea, Deputies of Local Councils, Village, Town and City Heads, legally impossible. This initiative is explained by the situation of postponing election in Kyiv.

Oleh Makhnitskyi (AUU Svoboda), Serhii Kivalov (the Party of Regions), Pavlo Petrenko (AUU Batkivshchyna), and Roman Romaniuk (UDAR) have submitted a bill which provides open voting of MPs for the appointment of Authorised Human Rights Representative of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, Head of the Accounting Chamber, and judges of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine. For today, they are conducted secretly by submitting ballots.

Law-enforcement system, justice, and fighting against corruption

The most resonant draft laws in this sector concerned bringing legislation in accordance with international standards and Ukraine's commitments to EU. In particular, draft law submitted by Serhii Tihipko (the Party of Regions), Andrii Kozhemiakin, Hryhorii Nemyria, Pavlo Petrenko (AUU Batkivshchyna), Viktor Chumak (UDAR), and Oleh Makhnitskyi (AUU Svoboda) concerns bringing national legislation in accordance with the Criminal Law Convention on Corruption. Newly-drafted law provides substitution of the term "bribe" with a term "illegitimate benefits", and establishes more strict responsibility for corrupt activities in public sector. Besides that, it provides criminal liability not only for giving or receiving illegitimate benefits, but also for a proposition or promise of such benefits.

In order to fulfill engagements with the Council of Europe, MPs Tihipko, Kozhemiakin, Nemyria, Petrenko, Chumak, and Makhnitskyi have submitted a draft law on realization of the state anti-corruption policy. The bill provides introduction of the mechanism for financial control through verification of declarations on assets, income, expenses, and financial obligations. The abovementioned MPs have also introduced a draft laws on making amendments to Criminal and Criminal Procedure Codes, what is determined by implementation of the EU-Ukraine Action Plan on visa liberalization. The bill introduces a term "special confiscation" and determines when it's used. It should be mentioned, that the Central scientific expert office expressed serious remarks about all of these three draft laws.

Health care and medicine

Members of the Party of Regions (Tetiana Bakhteieva, Andrii Shypko, Yurii Miroshnychenko), AUU Batkivshchyna (Andrii Pyshnyi, Valerii Dubil, Olesia Orobets, Roman Ilyk), AUU Svoboda (Mykhailo Holovko), and UDAR (Mariia Matios, Andrii Putilov) have proposed to direct revenues from increased excise tax on beer for the construction of modern medical diagnostic complex of theOkhmatdyt National Children's Specialized Hospital. Therefore, a number of amendments to the Law of Ukraine on the State budget of Ukraine for 2013 were prepared.

DRAFT LAWS SUBMITTED BY NON-FACTION MPS

In April 2013, non-faction MPs have independently registered 27 draft laws and resolutions (10 draft resolutions, 17 bills). MPs concentrated on political issues and state management (8 drafts), as well as social standards and guarantees (6 drafts).

When analyzing draft laws and resolutions registered by non-faction MPs, certain isolation from activities in Parliamentary Committees is vividly seen. Most of these bills are individual initiatives of non-faction MPs, and are not based on wide discussion between representatives of different political forces. Similarly to previous months, non-faction MPs were actively reacting to resonant social and political events by their draft laws. A major part of documents have poorly reasoned regulation, unsystematic introduction of changes, and unrealistic scheme of their implementation. Drawbacks are especially seen when it comes to political and social sector.

Economics, finances, and administration

Non-faction MPs proposed some ways to increase efficiency of budget funds. In particular, Viktor Baloha has submitted a bill imposing a moratorium on capital repairs of office buildings and purchase of vehicles by state authorities. Instead, Anzhelika Labunska has initiated creation of the Temporary Investigation Commission of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine concerning deficit financing on the construction and repairs of roads. Labunska states, that condition of road facilities in Ukraine can testify systematic violations of legislation in this sector.

Lev Myrymskyi has proposed in his bill to postpone provisions of the effective legislation concerning the acquiring of ownership rights on land plots of the state and municipal property only after their registration, till January 1, 2014.

Social issues and standards

Traditionally, non-faction deputies are focused on social issues and standards. In this sector, MPs are especially interested in different aspects of social issues.

For example, Oleh Liashko has initiated a number of draft laws directed on social problems in April. In particular, the MP proposed to take into consideration the current subsistence minimum when calculating family allowances. According to Mr. Liashko, time-phased payments based on subsistence minimum that was effective as of birth date of a child, is not correspondent to real inflation processes. This very MP has submitted a separate bill concerning additional guarantees for youth employment. The key provision of this document secured compensation of unified social contribution paid to employees for young specialists during three years. Similar regulation provides the draft law submitted by Serhii Mishchenko, which provides new requirements for securing the youth with first working place.

At the same time, Yurii Derevianenko proposed to establish a precise legislative prohibition on exclusion of living spaces from the list of social service spaces. The MP emphasized, that privatization of social service spaces becomes widely practiced as a result of reduction in its construction volumes

Humanitarian issues

Similarly to previous months, MPs were showing intention to improve the Law of Ukraine on Principles of State Language Policy. Yurii Derevianenko has proposed to amend the law on languages concerning mandatory film dubbing in national language. The draft provides possible dubbing of films in regional languages and in languages of national minorities.

For a few months in a row, Viktor Baloha has been registering, draft laws pertaining to educational sector. In April, he registered a draft law which provides deletion of a regulation on mandatory works by university leavers from the Law of Ukraine on Education.

Politics and state administration

In April, non-faction MPs paid a special attention to political issues, and different regulations concerning state authorities and their official.

Yurii Derevianko has initiated amendments to the Law of Ukraine on the Status of National Deputies, which provide that newly-elected MPs shall yearly (till April 1) publish his autobiography, declaration on assets, income, expenses and financial obligations for the last year, the use of funds received to carry out parliamentary duties, the use of parliamentary benefits, information on business trips, personal reception of citizens, information about his assistants, on official site of the Parliament.

Oleh Liashko has proposed a number of draft laws regulating political sector and state administration issues. However, these draft laws seem to be unrealistic because of their innovative character. In particular, Liashko has proposed to adopt a Resolution of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine on dissolution of the Party of Regions and the CPU in connection to the conduction of an "unconstitutional" plenary sitting on April 4, 2013. Continuing this initiative, he prepared amendments to the Law of Ukraine on the Rules of Procedure of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. The MP has also proposed the Parliament to approve Resolution on Prohibition of the Communist Party of Ukraine. Besides that, Liashko has initiated an age qualification for candidates for MPs of Ukraine on the level of sixty-five years.

Law-enforcement system, justice, and fighting against corruption

In April, non-faction MPs have proposed only some bills which concerned legislative practice in Ukraine. Vitalii Nemilostivyi has proposed to apply compulsory labor for persons which don't work and have alimony debt. Oleh Kanivets has registered a draft law securing professional rights of lawyers, especially concerning access to information.

We would like to remind, that these MPs have recently became non-faction by leaving the AUU Batkivshchyna faction.

Environment and natural resource management

Lev Myrymskyi has prepared a draft law on peculiarities of traffic in health and recreation resorts in AR Crimes. This project provides limitation for the use of harmful to ecology transport in recreation resorts, and securing safe transport like trolleybus, trams, and electric cars.

Health care and medicine

Non-faction MPs have introduced some similar draft laws which prohibit liquidation and reorganization of existing health care institutions. Yurii Derevianenko has proposed to amend the Law of Ukraine on Healthcare System Reform in Vinnytsia, Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk oblasts and the city of Kyiv, and secure prohibition on reorganization of health care institutions. The MP is planning that liquidated institutions should be restored during two months after amendments are adopted. Derevianenko has introduced a draft law on prohibition to shorten the network of health care institutions in rural area.

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