Monitoring of the Federal Legislation dated 6.06.2006

Federal Law No. 76-FZ of June 3, 2006 on the Amendments to the Federal Law on the Special Economic Zones in the Russian Federation

Introduces a new type of special economic zones - tourist and recreational special economic zones with the goal of development and efficient use of tourist resources in the Russian Federation. Defines the particulars of creation, functioning and liquidation of special economic zones of the mentioned type, the terms of entrepreneurial activities on their territory, as well as the mechanisms of state regulation in the given sphere.

In particular, tourist and recreational special economic zones shall be created on one or several parts of the territory of the Russian Federation. They may cover the territory of several municipal formations or include completely the territory of an administrative and territorial formation.

The territory of the tourist and recreational special economic zone may be used for development of the deposits of mineral waters, medicinal muds and other natural recreational resources.

The Government of the Russian Federation is entitled to define the types of activities prohibited in the special economic zone. The Law also envisages opportunities of handing over of a number of functions of the management body of the special economic zones to a joint-stock company with one hundred percent of stocks belonging to the Russian Federation.

The Federal Law is entered into force thirty days after the day of its official publication.

Water Code of the Russian Federation No. 74-FZ of June 3, 2006

Specifies the legal fundamentals of use and protection of water objects. Envisages preservation in the federal property of all natural water objects (rivers, lakes and so on), as well as of such man-made water objects as water storages and canals. Defines the sphere of reference of the Russian Federation, subjects of the Russian Federation and municipal formations in the sphere of use and protection of water objects. Regulates the issue of transfer of part of the authority to the bodies of executive power of the subjects of the Russian Federation at the expense of subventions from the federal budget.

Besides, the Water Code specifies the procedure of granting of water objects or parts thereof for use under the water use contracts or decisions. Under the contracts, water objects are granted for use at cost, and under decisions - free of charge.

Significant part of the Code is dedicated to issues of management in the sphere of use and protection of water objects. Such management is suggested on the basis of the basin principle. 20 basin districts are defined for this purpose, as well as the river basins, sub-basins and operational water portions. Special attention is paid to the planning of use and protection of water objects that must be implemented in each basin district according to the schemes of complex use and protection of water objects.

Federal Law No. 73-FZ of June 3, 2006 on the Entry into Force of the Water Code of the Russian Federation

According to the Law, the Water Code is entered into force from January 1, 2007. Water use licenses and contracts issued and concluded before January 1, 2007 are preserved until their expiry. Meanwhile, opportunities to redraw the mentioned documents at the desire of water users is envisaged for the water use contracts or decisions envisaged in the Water Code.

The Federal Law is entered into force from the day of its official publication except for Articles 12 and 19 envisaging a special procedure for entry into force.

Federal Law No. 72-FZ of June 3, 2006 on the Invalidation of Part 6 of Article 234 of the Code of Criminal Procedures of the Russian Federation

Part 6 of Article 234 of the Code of Criminal Procedures regulates the procedure of preliminary hearings in the first instance court, request of the defence to summon the witness to prove the alibi of the accused must be satisfied only if it was declared in the course of the preliminary investigation and was repelled by the investigator or prosecutor. The given request may be satisfied also if the availability of such witness becomes known after the end of the preliminary investigation. The Decision of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation No. 13-P of June 29, 2004 recognised the given norm as not complying with the Constitution of the Russian Federation.

Thus, decisions on the request of the defence to summon the witness to confirm the alibi of the accused are to be taken according to the common procedure specified for the requests for the summoning of new witnesses declared by the parties in the course of the preparation for the court session, which is in compliance with the principle of competition and equality of sides.

Federal Law No. 71-FZ of June 3, 2006 on the Amendment to Article 155 of the Family Code of the Russian Federation

According to the new wording of Article 155 of the Family Code, adoptive parents shall get monetary resources on the monthly basis for each child according to the procedure and in the amount specified by the laws of the subjects of the Russian Federation. Earlier, the given procedure and amount must have been defined by the Government of the Russian Federation. Thus, the given norm is being brought in compliance with the Federal Law No. 184-FZ 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 stating that social support of orphan children, children having found themselves without parental support (except for the children studying in the federal educational institutions) is included in the sphere of reference of the bodies of state power of the subjects of the Russian Federation.

Federal Law No. 70-FZ of June 3, 2006 on the Amendment to Article 20 of the Federal Law on Labour Pensions in the Russian Federation

According to the actual wording of Article 20 of the Federal Law on labour pensions in the Russian Federation, when the pensioner reaches 80 years of age, the basic part of the labour old-age pension is increased (to Rbl 1,800 a month). In this case, the mentioned category of citizens has to submit application for recalculation to the body in charge of the pension support. The amendments permit to make such recalculation without the application on the basis of information available with the body in charge of the pension support.

Federal Law No. 69-FZ of June 3, 2006 on the Ratification of the Agreement to Institute the Eurasia Bank of Development

Ratifies the Agreement signed in Astana on January 12, 2006. The Eurasia Bank of Development is founded to assist a stable development of the economy of the participating states of the Agreement, maintain high rates of their economic growth, development and expansion of the trade and other forms of economic links among them, promote direct investments.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 351 of June 3, 2006 on the Procedure for Granting State Guarantees of the Russian Federation for the Borrowings to Provide Engineering Infrastructure for Land Plots and Modernise Communal Infrastructure for the Purpose of Housing Construction

The guarantee is provided to secure execution of obligations of the subject of the Russian Federation or municipal formation for the part making up to 50% of the amount of the main debt. Meanwhile, the guarantee does not provide for the execution of obligations of the principal to pay the interest for the use of the credit, other interest, commission, as well as the fines and penalties for the violation of obligations of the principal.

The Decision defines the terms, as well as the list of documents to be submitted to the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation to obtain a positive decision permitting to get the guarantee. A significant condition of the appropriate contract must be creditor obligation to cede in favour of the Russian Federation represented by the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation the creditor claims right under the credit contract, another security of execution of obligations of the principal under the credit contract before the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation executes obligations under the guarantee.

The period of guarantee is determined by the period of execution of obligations secured with the guarantee plus 70 calendar days. The credits secured with guarantees are targeted ones and are directed only for the implementation of the appropriate projects. Control over the use of the credits secured with guarantees for designated purposes is vested in the Federal Agency for Construction and the Housing and Communal Complex.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 349 of June 3, 2006 on the State Control of the Process of Denaturing of (Adding of Denaturing Agents to) Ethyl Alcohol and Non-Edible Alcohol-Containing Products and the Content of Denaturing Agents in Them

The sphere of reference of the Federal Tax Service of Russia shall include in addition the authority of the state control of the process of denaturing of (adding of denaturing agents to) ethyl alcohol and non-edible alcohol-containing and the content of denaturing agents in them.

Organisations producing denatured ethyl alcohol and/or denatured non-edible alcohol-containing products and possessing licenses for production, storage and supplies of produced ethyl alcohol, including the denatured one, and/or for production, storage and supplies of produced non-edible alcohol-containing products must keep the logbook of denaturing of (adding of denaturing agents to) ethyl alcohol and non-edible alcohol-containing products and the content of denaturing agents in them.

Control is vested in the officials of the departments of the Federal Tax Service of Russia in the subjects of the Russian Federation and appropriate inspections of the Federal Tax Service of Russia to be carried out in the form of planned and extraordinary checks at the place of location of the organisation or its separate division indicated in the license.

When implementing control measures, the checking applies to: logbook of denaturing of (adding of denaturing agents to) ethyl alcohol and non-edible alcohol-containing products and the content of denaturing agents in them; produced denatured ethyl alcohol and/or denatured non-edible alcohol-containing products to reveal the presence and determine concentration in them of denaturing agents or mixtures thereof, the content being at least: kerosene or gasoline - 0.5% of the volume of ethyl alcohol; denatonium benzoate (bitrex) - 0.0015% of the weight of the ethyl alcohol; crotonic aldehyde - 0.2% of the volume of ethyl alcohol.

The Decision is entered into force from the day of official publication.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 340 of June 2, 2006 on the Endorsement of the Rates of Export Customs Duties for Individual Types of Paper and Paperboard

The rates of the export customs duties for individual types of paper and paperboard are fixed in the amount of 0% of the customs cost.

The Decision is entered into force one month after the day of its official publication.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 333 of May 29, 2006 on the Reserve Training Exercises and Some Issues of Execution of the Military Duty

Endorses the Regulation on the reserve training exercises defining the types, procedure of determination of the beginning and end; functions of the Ministry of Defence of Russia, other federal bodies of executive power where the federal law envisages military service, their territorial bodies where they keep records for military purposes; procedure for calling up the citizens of the Russian Federation being in the reserve to the training exercises; procedure of organisation of the training exercises; procedure and amounts of material support for the citizens undergoing training exercises; rights and duties of officials of organisations and citizens pertaining to the training exercises.

The reserve training exercises are a complex of measures to prepare citizens for the military service carried out in the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, other troops, military formations and bodies.

Preparation of citizens for the military service may be arranged in the course of: planned sessions, manoeuvres, training and practical work of servicing of armaments, military equipment and other material resources of the reserve stocks in the forces, military units (ships), organisations of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, other troops, military formations and bodies and military commissariats, checks of combat and mobilisation preparedness of the military units and military commissariats.

The training exercises are subdivided into: training exercises and exercises to check combat and mobilisation preparedness of the military units and military commissariats.

The calling up to the training exercises shall be arranged by the military commissariats in pursuance of the decrees of the President of the Russian Federation. Decision to call up the citizen to the training exercises is drawn up as an order of the military commissariat.