Monitoring of the Federal Legislation dated 12.05.2004

Federal Law No. 38-FZ of May 10, 2004 on the Amendment to Article 38 of the Federal Law on the Fire Safety

Eliminates the ambiguity pertaining to the budget level to be used to enter 50% of the resources from application of fines in the fire safety sphere earlier allocated to the fire safety funds. The mentioned amounts shall be entered on the local budgets at the place of location of the body having decided to impose the fine.

Federal Law No. 37-FZ of May 9, 2004 on the Amendment to Article 18.8 of the Code of Administrative Violations of the Russian Federation

Enhances the responsibility for the violation of the regime of stay in the Russian Federation by a foreign citizen or stateless person. The failure to observe the specified procedure of registration or travel or procedure of choosing of the place of residence, failure to exit the Russian Federation upon expiry of the certain term of stay, as well as the failure to observe the rules of transit travel implies an administrative fine in the amount of 10 to 15 minimum amounts of labour remuneration (earlier, from 5 to 10 minimum amounts of labour remuneration).

Federal Law No. 36-FZ of May 9, 2004 on the Amendment to Article 2 of the Federal Law on the Veterans

Citizens awarded with the medal for the defence of Leningrad, as well as the invalids from childhood through injury, contusion or mutilation because of the military actions during the Great Patriotic War of 1941-45 shall enjoy the status of the participant of the Great Patriotic War.

The previous wording included in the participants of the Great Patriotic War the persons having worked at the enterprises, in the institutions and organisations of Leningrad during the blockade from September 8, 1941 to January 27, 1944 and those awarded with the medal for the defence of Leningrad.

The Federal Law is entered into force from the day of its official publication.

Federal Law No. 35-FZ of May 8, 2004 on the Execution of the Federal Budget for the Year 2002

Endorses the report of execution of the federal budget for the year 2002 with incomes amounting to Rbl 2,204,728,270.2 thousand and expenses amounting to Rbl 2,054,193,993.0 thousand, incomes exceeding expenses (federal budget surplus) by Rbl 150,534,277.2 thousand.

The Federal Law is entered into force from the day of its official publication.

Federal Law No. 34-FZ of May 8, 2004 on the Amendments to Articles 14, 21 and 25 of the Federal Law on the State Pension Support in the Russian Federation

Specifies the rules of calculation of the amount of the length-of-service pension taking into account the appropriate regional coefficient to federal state servants for the period of residence in the localities where regional coefficients to earnings apply. Increases the limiting amount of the average monthly earnings used to calculate the length-of-service pension to the federal state servant - from 1.8 to 2.3 of the salary for the occupied position.

Also refines the provision of Article 25 of the Federal Law pertaining to the indexing of the length-of-service pension inasmuch as it pertains to the determination of the procedure of such indexing by the Government of the Russian Federation. The earlier assigned length-of-service pensions to the federal state servants must be recalculated from July 1, 2002.

The Federal Law is entered into force from the day of its official publication.

Federal Law No. 33-FZ of May 7, 2004 on the Amendments to Article 3 of the Law of the Russian Federation on the Customs Tariff and Article 5 of the Federal Law on the Amendments to Part 2 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation and Some of the Other Acts of the Legislation of the Russian Federation, As Well As on Invalidation of Individual Acts of the Legislation of the Russian Federation

Changes the procedure of calculation of the limiting rate of the import customs duty for the Urals brand of raw oil. Changes the scale of the export duty for oil by fixing two additional intervals of the average price for oil at the world markets of raw oil materials. In the interval of USD 109.5 to USD 146 per ton, the limiting duty rate is fixed in the amount not more than 35% of the difference between the available during the monitoring period average price for the given oil in USD per ton and USD 109.5. In the interval of USD 146 to USD 182.5 per ton, the limiting duty rate is fixed in the amount not more than USD 12.78 per ton and 45% of the difference between the available during the monitoring period average price for the given oil in USD per ton and USD 146.

The Law increases the tax rate at extraction for the period from January 1, 2002 to December 31, 2006 - from Rbl 347 to Rbl 400 per ton. Also changes the formula to be used by the taxpayers to determine independently on the quarterly basis the factor to the mentioned tax rate characterising the dynamics of the world prices for oil.

The Federal Law is entered into force one month after the day of its official publication except for the norms on the raising of the tax rate and determination of the coefficient to it. The given norms are entered into force from January 1, 2005.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 231 of May 6, 2004 on the Endorsement of the Amounts of the Average Single Doses of Narcotic and Psychotropic Substances for the Purposes of Articles 228, 228.1 and 229 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation

To qualify the large and specially large amount of narcotic and psychotropic substances found in illegal circulation responsibility for which is specified in Articles 228, 228.1 and 229 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, endorses the amounts of the average single doses of narcotic and psychotropic substances.

The large amount is recognised to be the quantity of the narcotic, psychotropic substance or their analogue exceeding the average single dose of consumption ten or more times, and the specially large amount - fifty and more times.

Thus, criminal responsibility for the purchase or storage of narcotic substances may occur if 10 or more of such doses of the prohibited preparation are found with a person. Smaller amounts may inflict an administrative punishment.

The Decision is entered into force from May 12, 2004.