Monitoring of the Federal Legislation dated 29.12.2005

Decision of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation No. 14-P of December 26, 2005 on the Case of Constitutionality of Individual Provisions of Article 260 of the Code of Civil Procedures of the Russian Federation Pursuant to the Appeal of Citizen Y.G.Odiyankov

Not complying with the Constitution of the Russian Federation are recognised to be provisions of Article 260 of the Code of Civil Procedures of the Russian Federation envisaging time limits for processing by the court of applications for the protection of electoral rights submitted during the election campaign, inasmuch as these provisions, according to the sense attributed to them in the judicial practice, prevent the court from solving the appropriate case upon expiry of the specified time limits and serve as grounds to terminate the case.

The Decision is entered into force immediately after annunciation.

Decision of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation No. 13-P of December 21, 2005 on the Case of Constitutionality of Individual Provisions of the Federal Law on the General Principles of Organisation of Legislative (Representative) and Executive Bodies of State Power of the Subjects of the Russian Federation Pursuant to Appeals of a Number of Citizens

Complying with the Constitution of the Russian Federation are recognised to be the provisions contained in Items 1 and 2 of Article 18 of the Federal Law of October 6, 1999 on the general principles of organisation of legislative (representative) and executive bodies of state power of the subjects of the Russian Federation (in the wording of December 11, 2004) stating that a citizen of the Russian Federation is empowered with authority of the higher official of the subject of the Russian Federation (head of the higher executive body of state power of the subject of the Russian Federation) at the presentation of the President of the Russian Federation by the legislative (representative) body of state power of the subject of the Russian Federation.

The Decision is entered into force immediately after annunciation.

Federal Law No. 196-FZ of December 27, 2005 on the Parliamentary Investigation of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation

Specifies the subject of the parliamentary investigation, reasons to start the proceedings, main provisions pertaining to the procedure, as well as the duties of officials and citizens involved in the parliamentary investigation.

Parliamentary investigation applies to facts of gross or large-scale violations of the rights and freedoms of man and citizen guaranteed in the Constitution of the Russian Federation, emergency situations of technical nature and negative consequences of emergency situations of natural and technical nature.

To investigate the mentioned facts and circumstances, the chambers of the Federal Assembly create a commission formed during investigation and dissolved after its termination.

The Law envisages the duty of officials to present necessary information to the commission (documents, materials), as well as the duty of officials and citizens invited by the commission to arrive to its session and provide all necessary explanations on the facts and circumstances investigated by the commission.

As a result of the parliamentary investigation, the commission prepares a summary report endorsed by the chambers of the Federal Assembly and sent to the President of the Russian Federation and the Government of the Russian Federation, after which the parliamentary investigation is considered to be over.

The parliamentary investigation in compliance with the Federal Law applies to the facts and circumstances emerging after its entry into force.

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

Federal Law No. 195-FZ of December 27, 2005 on the Amendments to Articles 2 and 16 of the Federal Law on the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation

Specifies the authority of the Public Chamber in public control over observation of the freedom of speech in mass media. The Public Chamber is empowered, in particular, with the right to attract citizens, public associations and representatives of mass media to discussion of issues of observation of freedom of speech in mass media, implementation of the right of citizens to disseminate information using legal means, guarantees of freedom of speech and freedom of mass information, as well as work out recommendations on the given issues.

The Public Chamber is entitled to issue statements on the violation of the freedom of speech in mass media that may be sent, depending on their conclusions, to registration or enforcement bodies, mass media having permitted the violations, or directly to the founders or the management of these mass media, as well as to other competent state bodies or officials.

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

Federal Law No. 194-FZ of December 27, 2005 on the Amendments to the Federal Law on the Securities Market, Federal Law on Joint-Stock Companies and the Federal Law on the Protection of Rights and Legal Interests of Investors at the Securities Market

Changes the procedure of submission of the report of the results of issue of securities and the terms of implementation of the priority right of stock-holders to purchase the stocks placed by the joint-stock company and securities converted into stocks. In particular, the procedure of registration of the report of the results of issue (additional issue) of emission securities is replaced with a notification of the results of such issue if the broker provides the services of placing of emission securities through an open subscription and the stock exchange provides its listing.

Also changes the procedure of implementation of the priority right of purchase of stocks and emission securities converted into stocks specified in the Federal Law on joint-stock companies. These changes are stipulated by the regulation of the initial public placing of securities.

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

Federal Law No. 193-FZ of December 27, 2005 on the Amendments to the Code of Administrative Violations of the Russian Federation

The amendments enhance administrative responsibility for the violations of the requirements of the patent legislation, copyright legislation and legislation on adjacent rights, legislation on trade-marks, service marks and the names of places of origin of commodities.

Increases the fines from 30-40 to 100-200 minimum amounts of labour remuneration for the import, sale, leasing or another illegal use of the copies of pieces of art or phonograms for obtaining incomes, as well as for illegal use of trade-marks.

Federal Law No. 192-FZ of December 27, 2005 on the Amendment to Article 3 of the Federal Law on the Entry into Force of the Land Code of the Russian Federation

Prolongs from January 1, 2006 to January 1, 2008 the time limits for the redrawing of the right of permanent unlimited) use for the land plots owned by legal entities (except for the legal entities mentioned in Item 1 of Article 20 of the Land Code) for the right of leasing of land plots or the right of gratuitous use for a certain period of time by them (for the purposes of religious organisations), as well as the time limits for the purchase by the mentioned legal entities of the mentioned land plots on the proprietary basis.

Federal Law No. 191-FZ of December 27, 2005 on the Amendments to Article 23 of the Federal Law on the Status of Servicemen

From January 1, 2006, the amount of the lumpsum allowance paid out to draft servicemen at dismissal from the military service is increased to the salary of the monetary subsistence (earlier, Rbl 100), and for those out of orphan children and children having found themselves without parental support, to five salaries of the monetary subsistence (earlier, Rbl 500).

The Federal Law is entered into force from January 1, 2006.

Federal Law No. 190-FZ of December 27, 2005 on the Amendment to Article 13 of the Federal Law on the Status of Servicemen

Contract servicemen of the military positions of the teaching staff of military educational institutions of higher professional education shall get mark-ups to the salary for the occupied position for assistant professor and professor positions, as well as for the scientific grades of the candidate of sciences and doctor of sciences.

The Federal Law is entered into force from January 1, 2006.

Federal Law No. 189-FZ of December 26, 2005 on the Federal Budget for the Year 2006

Endorses the federal budget for the year 2006 with expenses amounting to Rbl 4,270,114,718.3 thousand and incomes amounting to Rbl 5,046,137,500.0 thousand proceeding from the forecasted GDP volume of Rbl 24,380 billion and the level of inflation (consumer prices) of 7.0-8.5%. The surplus of the federal budget in 2006 is fixed in the amount of Rbl 776,022,781.7 thousand.

The average annual rouble rate to the US dollar is forecasted in the amount of 28.6, price for oil - in the amount of USD 40 per barrel. The volume of the Stabilisation Fund as of the end of the year 2006 must be Rbl 2,242.3 billion, the Investment Fund - Rbl 69.7 billion. The upper limit of the internal state debt as of January 1, 2007 is fixed in the amount of Rbl 1.148 trillion.

The Federal Law contains budget forecasts aimed at implementation of strategic goals and priorities of socio-economic development of Russia.

The minimum rates for the stumpage wood available in 2001 will be used with the factor of 1.6 in 2006.

The normatives of payment for the negative impact on the environment specified for the year 2003 will be used with the factor of 1.3 in 2006, and normatives specified for 2005, will be used with the factor of 1.08.

The main specific feature of the federal budget for the year 2006 is the forming of its expenses taking into account four national priority projects - "Agroindustrial Complex", "Public Health", "Education" and "Housing".

The Federal Law is entered into force from January 1, 2006.