Monitoring of the Federal Legislation dated 28.01.2002

Federal Law No. 178-FZ of December 21, 2001 On the Privatization of State and Municipal Property

Institutes a legal framework to regulate relationships arising in the privatization of state and municipal property and related relationships of administering that property.
To determine a method of privatization, two categories of property are introduced. The first category includes property complexes of unitary enterprises and shares of open joint stock companies whose book value of the fixed assets as on the last accounting date exceeds 5(five) million times the minimal wages and also those complexes which meet other criteria established by the Government of the Russian Federation. The other property is ascribed to the second category.
The privatization of property of the first category shall be carried out exclusively by transforming a unitary enterprise into an open joint stock company at an auction, a specialized auction, by selling shares of open joint stock companies held in state ownership, outside the Russian Federation or by investing the federal property as a contribution to the authorized capital of a strategic joint stock company.
The property which falls under the second category may, apart from the above mentioned methods, be privatized at a contest, through the sale at a stock exchange, by a public offer, by selling the property based on the results of the entrusted administration and by using other methods. The said methods may be used only in case auctions (specialized auctions) are declared to be a failure.
The Law enables private persons, citizens lacking large "start-up capital", representatives of small and medium-size business to participate in the process of privatization.
It is allowed to privatize at the same time land parcels granted to state and municipal unitary enterprises as part of their property complexes.
Considering the presence in the Russian legislation of many outdated acts regulating issues of privatization and administration of state property which acts are in many respects incomplete and contradictory to one another, the law offers detailed transitory provisions.
The Federal Law shall take effect upon the expiration of three months as from its official release in the press. The text of the Federal Law is published in Rossiyskaya Gazetta newspaper No.16 of January 26, 2002.

Letter of the Ministry of Taxes and Fees of the Russian Federation No. VB-6-21/1003 of December 28, 2001 On the Confiscation of Land Parcels

Establishes control over the confiscation of land parcels granted to non-profit organizations under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Taxes and Fees of the Russian Federation and over the redistribution of those parcels as ownership of the subjects of the Russian Federation and municipal formations, pending the delimitation of state ownership of land.

Letter of the Ministry of Taxes and Fees of the Russian Federation No. ShS-6-14/998 of December 27, 2001 On the Ruling of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation No. 225-O of November 13, 2001

This serves to inform taxation bodies of the Ruling of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation under which the procedure for assessment and payment of the profit tax, established by the Law of the Russian Federation On the Profit Tax Of Enterprises and Organizations, is not arbitrary nor does it prevent the exercise by citizens and their associations of their constitutional rights.
Since the Ruling refused to accept complaints for consideration, it is reported that judicial acts adopted on the given issue not in favor of the taxation bodies may be appealed in the established manner.