Verkhovna Rada Committee on Corruption Prevention and Counteraction eyes draft law on amendments to some Laws of Ukraine touching requirements of financial control to prevent corruption

At the meeting on January 27, the Committee members declared the draft law No. 3787 being in line with the requirements of the anticorruption legislation and recommended that the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopt this draft law as a basis after its consideration in first reading.

The draft law offers to amend the Law of Ukraine "On preventing corruption," as well as the Law of Ukraine "On state service" of December 10, 2015.

In particular, the Law of Ukraine "On preventing corruption" offers:

1. To authorize the National Anticorruption Agency to provide explanations, methodological and consultative assistance in application of legislative acts on financial control.

2. To give declarants, who stopped their activity related to fulfillment of state functions or functions of local self-government, 15 days after termination of their activity to provide declaration for the period not mentioned in previous declarations.

3. To specify the provision on possibility to submit corrected declarations by declarants. It is offered to authorize declarants to submit a corrected declaration only once under his/her own initiative during seven days after the submission of the declaration.

4. To additionally oblige state bodies and other organizations to control submission of declarations by candidates and declarants, who had earlier worked for the said state bodies and other organizations and who stopped fulfilling state functions or functions of local self-government.

Besides, it is offered to oblige (temporarily for the period of 2016-2017) the said bodies and organizations to verify the fact of submission of annual declarations under the new form by declarants working for the said bodies and organizations.

This will allow ensuring effective control over timely submission of declarations.

5. To amend the provision on verification of declarations, in particular:

1) to expand the list of possible types of declarations verification, having envisioned holding of partial verification on the basis of information obtained from individuals and legal entities, from mass media outlets and other open sources about possible declaring of unfair data;

2) to change the terms of whole verification, which is offered to last 90 days from the day of declaration verification start (instead of the moment from declaration submission) with an opportunity to prolong the verification by not more than 60 days under respective founded decision;

3) to allow the National Anticorruption Agency to determine additional categories of declarations subjected to compulsory comprehensive verification;

4) to urge the National Anticorruption Agency to set the schedule for compulsory comprehensive verification of declarations to allow the Agency to use its resources more effectively;

5) to narrow the circle of declarants, whose declarations are subjected to compulsory comprehensive verification. It is offered to exclude (from such circle) investigators, public servants and officials/representatives of local self-government, who occupy the positions classified in the third category of positions (category B in compliance with the Law of Ukraine "On state service" dated December 10, 2015).

6. To allow the National Anticorruption Agency to set the start of its operation. Respective decision shall be posted on the official website of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine.

7. To rule that declarants submit declarations on property, incomes, expenditures and financial liabilities in compliance with the order envisioned by the Law of Ukraine "On principles of preventing and combating corruption" before the system of submission and promulgation of declarations of persons is launched in compliance with the Law of Ukraine "On preventing corruption."

Besides, it is offered to authorize the National Anticorruption Agency to:

1) launch the system of submission and promulgation (in compliance with the Law of Ukraine) of declarations of persons authorized to fulfill state functions and functions of local self-government, for different categories of declarants;

2) start comprehensive or partial verification (in compliance with the Law of Ukraine) of declarations of persons authorized to fulfill state functions and functions of local self-government, as well as special verification of such declarations.

8. To prolong the term for submission of annual declarations in 2016 in compliance with the new Law of Ukraine. Instead of the deadline set for April 1, it is offered to rule that declarants have to submit their declarations under the new form during 90 days from the start of operations of the submission and promulgation system. This will allow bigger number of declarants to submit their declarations under the new form.

9. To supplement the Law of Ukraine "On preventing corruption" with a provision added to the Law of Ukraine "On principles of preventing and combating corruption" in July 2015 (by the Law of Ukraine No. 610-VIII), which touches the peculiarities of submission of declarations by conscripts. It is offered to allow all the conscripted declarants to submit their declarations for 2015 during 30 days from the day of termination of their military service.

The draft law also offered to amend the Law of Ukraine "On state service" dated December 10, 2015 (takes effect on May 1, 2016) to reflect the amendments to effective wording of the remark to Article 50 of the Law of Ukraine "On preventing corruption" (the Law of Ukraine "On state service" envisions amendments to this remark).

The Committee has considered 255 draft legislative acts. As a result, the Committee passed its conclusions on five draft laws registered under Nos. 3237, 3297, 3305, 3378, 3423 with remarks; 19 were declared having corruptogenic factors and not meeting the requirements of the anticorruption legislation.