Legislative Steps Research Articles

Constitutional Court Jurisprudence and Its Role in Shaping Public Administration Reform in Romania

This article aims to investigate the jurisprudence of the Constitutional Court regarding the public administration reform in Romania. We take into consideration the motivation of the public authorities involved in the law-making process, as well as the interpretation of the judges of the Constitutional Court concerning the legislative steps regarding the adoption of an Administrative Code, decentralization, the transfer of competences, the status of civil servants, and finally the legal regime of the newly established or reorganized institutions/authorities. The study also evaluates the steps to reform the public administration concerning the observance of the principles of constitutional loyalty, the separation of powers, the supremacy of the Constitution, and the role of the Parliament.

Child drowning mortality in Israel: Trends and measures for prevention

Introduction: In this study, we use the media-based database of Beterem-Safe Kids Israel, to provide a 15-year review of unintentional fatal childhood drowning in Israel, between 2008 and 2022. Method: It total, we identified 257 cases of child mortality due to drowning during this period. Results: Our results demonstrate a gradual rise in childhood mortality due to drowning, from 72 cases in 2008–2012, to 85 cases in 2013–2017, and to 100 cases in 2018–2022. Especially worth noting is the increase in childhood drowning in domestic swimming pools. We point to a link between low socioeconomic status and cases of drowning, showing that the risk of drowning extends beyond a mere matter of caregiver inattention. We recommend a series of regulatory and legislative steps to reduce fatal childhood drowning, including fencing built around domestic swimming pools, extending lifeguard activity hours, adding declared beaches, forming programs of safe behavior in water environments for adolescents, and establishing swimming lessons during the 2nd grade, for all populations. We further recommend that a special focus will be put in municipalities situated at the bottom of the socioeconomic index.

Do Your Genes Fit: How Life Insurance Companies Discriminate Based on Genetic Test Results

Abstract The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (GINA) represents a significant legislative step in protecting U.S. citizens from genetic discrimination in health insurance and employment. However, despite its broad preventive measures, GINA has limitations in scope and enforcement. Notably, it does not extend protections to life insurance, disability, and long-term care insurance, leaving U.S. citizens susceptible to genetic discrimination. State-level legislative efforts have tried to reconcile these vulnerabilities. Many state-level legislative efforts vary in effectiveness, with some states like Florida and Illinois enacting more robust laws. The future of genetic information protection requires an amendment to GINA or new federal legislation, drawing from successful state models to ensure adequate protections. This paper advocates for such national legislation, highlighting the minimal impact on the life insurance market and the importance of safeguarding genetic privacy to foster trust in genetic testing and scientific progress.

A bankjegyektől a jegybankokig

In the 17-18th century, during the process of civil transformations, starting from the economic policy based on the era of absolutism, the first central bank regulations appeared in Europe. Mainly the disorganization and crisis of public finances and the need to finance various wars led governments to establish central banks and to provide central banking functions to privately owned banks. The most important issues included the regulation of banknote issuance and legal tender, the management of state funds, the financing of the state debt, as well as the relationship with the state, in other words, the content of central bank independence. Each country followed different paths, and accordingly, the classic and the Prussian models of central bank development can be described based on the different legislative steps. The study presents the main characteristics through the English, German, French, American and Hungarian examples, primarily by characterizing the legislative peculiarities and illuminating the political historical background by applying the methods of comparative law.

Public Consultation in Kosovo

The primary aim of the paper is to explore whether the public consultation system in Kosovo enables respective stakeholders to contribute and protect their interests during the process of drafting government policies and legislation. Based on the analysis of Kosovo’s legal framework in place, and findings from the empirical research with CSOs, we can conclude that Kosovo has undertaken substantial legislative steps and introduced new tools and guidelines to improve the public consultation system at the central and municipal level of government. Therefore, from the legal point of view, minimum standards for the consultation process are established under Kosovo’s legal framework. Considering the role of civil society organisations and their influence on policymaking in Kosovo, particular attention has been paid to the CSOs’ perception of this issue. The analysis of a sample of documents and CSOs’ responses reveals concerns on whether stakeholders are enabled to contribute to the drafting of policies and legislation. A major issue of concern with regard to the effectiveness of the current consultation system in Kosovo is the low response rate from stakeholders as compared to the number of documents open to consultation. The study demonstrates a lack of clarity about how institutions select, invite and involve stakeholders, whether they select the appropriate stakeholders to participate in the drafting and consultation process, and whether sufficient information and feedback is provided to them about the individual consultations.

Human Rights Violations Connected with Deforestation – Emerging and Diverging Approaches to Human Rights Due Diligence

As the climate and biodiversity crises gain unprecedented attention, many governments across the global north are taking legislative steps to address deforestation in supply chains linked to their domestic consumption or commercial activities, among them, the United Kingdom (UK) and the European Union (EU).1

Artificial Intelligence Crimes

The rapid evolution of information and communication technologies and the diversity of interconnection networks have been significant factors in broadening the application do-mains of such technologies. Consequently, so-called artificial intelligence crimes (AIC) have emerged involving a corresponding rise in criminality figures, affecting individuals' rights and freedoms. The emergence of AI-related crimes has triggered many challenges for the judiciary nationally and internationally. Thereby, jurisprudence and the judiciary must consider whether the existing provisions of law are sufficient to confront these crimes, or is there a need to strengthen international, regional, and national legislation to cover such cases. Such peculiarities characterizing AI crimes have complicated dealing with criminal activities, and they are usually dealt with using traditional criminal provisions, which may be compromised by the principle of criminal legality and the limited interpretation of a criminal provision. Accordingly, legislative steps must be taken to combat such crimes by enforcing legal provisions intended to criminalize the newly introduced criminal acts.
 
 Received: 31 October 2022 / Accepted: 22 December 2022 / Published: 5 January 2023

Kryptowerte zwischen WAG 2018 und MiCAR

Crypto-assets have become an integral part of many investors‘ portfolios. A recent study by the European Central Bank suggests that around 10% of European households hold crypto-assets. Taking into account the current global trends, it is not surprising that the European Union has decided to take legislative steps. On 5 October 2022, the result of the informal trilogue between the European Commission, Parliament and Council was presented (MiCAR draft). Even though the draft still has to be adopted by the European Parliament, it can be assumed that we are dealing with the final text. The following article provides an

ОРГАНИЗАЦИЯ ГОРОДСКОЙ ВЛАСТИ В ЕКАТЕРИНБУРГЕ — СВЕРДЛОВСКЕ (ноябрь 1923 г. — октябрь 1930 г.)

The paper examines the activities of the Sverdlovsk City Soviet (Council) in the period from the formation of the Ural oblast to the liquidation of district system of administration. It is possible to distinguish several stages of the functioning of the City Soviet, which were determined by legislative steps of the central government in relation to local administration, including the publication of regulations on City Soviets. The paper proves that an independent City Executive Committee was not created in the structure of the City Soviet, and the activities of the City Soviet were serviced by the apparatus of the Gubernatorial Executive Committee, and later the District Executive Committee and its respective departments. The City Soviet in its activities was largely accountable to the district authorities. The paper examines the evolution of administrative apparatus of the City Soviet, its main divisions (Presidium, Departments, Sections) and their subordination, as well as the working order of its structural parts. It analyzes the degree of involvement of deputies in the work of the City Soviet. The paper also shows the role and place of Party and Soviet authorities on the regional and district levels in the management of the city, their relationship with the Sverdlovsk City Soviet and the division of powers between them in solving issues of daily functioning of the city and key directions of its development. The author found that the tendency to expand the rights of City Soviets in the administrative, financial and economic spheres gradually took shape, and they received additional powers to address city issues. The result of this trend was the transformation of Sverdlovsk in 1929 from a regional center into an independent administrative-territorial unit with its subordination to the regional authorities.

Health Care Financing: Examining Key Legislative Steps to be Employed by the Federal Government

Health Care Financing: Examining Key Legislative Steps to be Employed by the Federal Government

Towards the Practical Realisation of the Concept of Equal Pay for Equal Work in Ghana: Some Comparative Lessons from South Africa and the United Kingdom

The Constitution of Ghana and the Labour Act provide that all workers in Ghana are entitled to equal pay/remuneration for equal work. The practical realisation of equal pay for equal work is also a global goal embodied in key international instruments. Notwithstanding this, the meaning and scope of the concept have proven somewhat difficult to understand. Some countries have promulgated legislation and statutory guidelines to provide clarity. In Ghana, the operational aspects of the concept have not yet been fully explored. In addition, Ghanaian courts have not been approached to pronounce on its scope. While the government of Ghana has introduced some wage determination structures to give effect to the concept, unfortunately these apply only to public-sector workers. This article seeks to advance arguments on the practical realisation of equal pay for equal work or work of equal value in the Constitution and Labour Act. It discusses the meaning of the concept under international law. It also draws some legislative and judicial lessons from the legal position in South Africa and the United Kingdom on the various approaches to equal pay claims. The article suggests that Ghana take legislative steps to provide clarity and a comprehensive framework to govern the various aspects of equal pay for equal work and work of equal value.

Liability for assistance to aggressor state: issues of qualification and improvement of criminal law

From the moment of the open attack by the Russian Federation, the issues of criminal law response to encroachments on the foundations of Ukraine’s national security, which have not been resolved since the beginning of the war in 2014, have reemerged. Among the most urgent was the question of whether provisions of criminal law in force as of February 24, 2022 ensured the possibility of providing a proper assessment of the actions of persons who in various forms assist the aggressor state. The first decision made in order to solve this issue was the introduction of Article 111-1 “Collaborative activity” to the Criminal Code of Ukraine. Due to the belief of the People’s Deputies of Ukraine in the inadequacy of such a legislative step, another criminal law prohibition has appeared – Art. 111-2 “Assistance to the aggressor state”.
 The purpose of the research is in critical understanding of the debatable aspects of the criminal law novel about aiding the aggressor state, based on the results of which scientifically based recommendations should be developed in order to improve relevant provisions of the current criminal law and practice of its application.
 It has been proven that, despite the noble intentions of the parliamentarians, the inclusion of Art. 111-2 “Assistance to the aggressor state” has increased both the conflicting nature of the domestic criminal law and the legal uncertainty partially inherent in it, and also forces us to once again talk about excessive criminalization. Among the achievements of the legislative work related to the construction of the criminal law prohibition dedicated to aiding the aggressor state, one can only include the non-use in the current wording of Art. 111-2 of the Criminal Code of unjustifiably abstract phrases “other voluntary interaction with representatives of the aggressor state” and “any cooperation with representatives of the aggressor state”.
 Based on the example of criminal law assessment of such manifestations of assistance to the aggressor state, such as the transfer of material resources to the armed formations of the aggressor state and the implementation or support of the decisions and / or actions of the aggressor state, armed formations and / or the occupation administration of the aggressor state, the problematic nature of differing analyzed crime from collaborative activity, treason and justification, recognition as legitimate, denial of armed aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, glorification of its participants has been demonstrated. The problem, which has risen as a result of the partially inappropriate duplication of legislative material, is proposed to be solved in one of three ways to optimize the articles of the Criminal Code on liability for treason, collaborative activity and assistance to the aggressor state.

الحماية الدستورية للحقوق والحريات العامة في ظل دستور العراق الدائم لسنة 2005

Civil society organizations are one of the institutions that support democratic systems and they are the non-governmental organizations, since governmental organizations are naturally biased to governments. Civil society organizations work to promote public freedoms through their activities stipulated in both the Iraqi Constitution of the year 2005 and the Egyptian Constitution of the year 2014, where each of them were granted freedom to form association and syndicates. As well as the national legislation, which regulates the work of those organizations, to achieve the objectives for which they were established in promoting and supporting human rights and fundamental freedoms.The Egyptian draft Law No. 70 of 2017, as well as the Iraqi NGO Law of 2010, provided a model for enabling the work of these organizations, and organizing their legitimate activities, and prohibiting their activities that “harm national security, public order, public morality, public health, or territorial integrity.” However, it is preferred to expand the circle of the establishment of civil society organizations and to remove the obstacles towards their development, and then the Egyptian and Iraqi legislators should take the necessary legislative steps to achieve this purpose. Whereas, the civil society is the nucleus of true democracy, which allows the opposition to discuss and take Anti attitudes against the performance of the work of the government.

Evaluating the Effects of Denmark's New Tobacco Control Act on Young People's Use of Nicotine Products: A Study Protocol of the §SMOKE Study.

(1) Background: In December 2020, a broad majority of political parties in Denmark agreed on a new tobacco control act. In addition, price increases on tobacco in 2020 and 2022 became part of the Danish Finance Act. This study protocol describes the study “§SMOKE–A Study of Tobacco, Behavior, and Regulations” designed to monitor and evaluate the implementation and effect of the new strengthened tobacco control acts. The overall aim is to monitor tobacco use among young people before, during, and after implementation of the new tobacco control legislation, including an increased price on tobacco, a ban on point-of-sale tobacco displays, and plain packaging. Subgoals are to monitor overall use of nicotine products, attitudes, and norms. (2) Methods: This study is designed as a five-year impact evaluation with repeated cross-sectional survey data collections. The baseline survey was conducted before implementing an increased price on tobacco, the first step in the new legislation, initiated 1 April 2020. Study participants (n = 37,500) were a random sample of individuals living in Denmark aged 15 to 29 years. (3) Conclusions: This study examines the impact of the new strengthened tobacco control legislation in Denmark from 2020 to 2025. The findings of this study are relevant to other countries facing implementation of similar measures to explore intended and unintended consequences of the legislation and help to identify how the legislation could be further improved.

The fallacies of central bank independence

The fallacies of central bank independence

Second Medical Use Patents and Compensation for the Delay in Marketing Authorisations: The Curious Case of Vietnam

Abstract There has been a concern that developing countries which join new-generation FTAs might jeopardise their population’s access to medicines because those FTAs mandate TRIPS-plus patent standards. This article, however, argues that Vietnam, through its unusual legislative steps, has avoided increasing patent protection for medicines without (yet) violating international obligations. Its practice is examined via two specific patent-related issues: second medical uses and compensation for the delay in marketing authorisations. Regarding the first issue, the author finds that the law is deliberately ambiguous, as it neither rejects nor allows second medical use inventions. Regarding the second issue, Vietnam’s newly amended law in 2022 has arguably adopted a unique form of compensation: it waives the patent maintenance fees instead of extending the patent term. The paper concludes that because of the country’s sluggish local industry as well as its legislators’ struggle to keep pace with increasingly changing IP standards in the new FTAs, language ambiguity and lip service have become Vietnam’s weapons of choice.

Electronic Surveillance in Court Proceedings and in the Execution of Criminal Penalties: Legislative and Logistical Steps Regarding Operationalising the Electronic Monitoring Information System (EMIS) in Romania

The latest innovations in the field of electronics and telecommunications have revolutionised and brought new dimensions to human activities. As well as in other sectors, we observe that a wide range of electronic means have also shown their utility in criminal justice. Undergoing continuous development, these means ensure efficient monitoring of subjects and contribute to higher efficiency of judiciary systems, and provide “more humane” conditions compared with traditional incarceration for offenders when they execute criminal penalties. In this context, this study discussed the main challenges faced by Romania in implementing electronic monitoring (EM) devices in court proceedings and in the execution of criminal penalties. These have been researched from different perspectives, including those related to the current legal framework, opportunities provided by today’s developments in electronics, and in terms of financial public resources allocated for such purposes. Our study is among the few articles published on this topic and it brings to light both the advantages of introducing the Electronic Monitoring Information System (EMIS) in Romania, as well as the limitations, and overviews the international experience in this area by assessing the measures that have been taken so far worldwide to implement EMIS effectively. The final part of the paper presents the study conclusions, its limitations, and future lines of research.

Ženidba u Državi Vatikanskog Grada i crkvene odluke o ženidbi u pravnom poretku RH

This paper analyses the issue of recognition of canon marriage (matrimonium) that has been concluded in the Vatican City State and also the effects of decisions of church courts on marriage in the Republic of Croatia. Firstly, the authors elaborate the issue of the status of the state and legal order of the Vatican City State, including its regulation of marriage. After the initial findings the question of recognition of marriage concluded in the Vatican City State in the Republic of Croatia is analysed. The conclusion in this aspect is that such a marriage is recognised in Croatia and its registration in the personal status record should be facilitated. In the following chapters the authors first analyse all the potentially relevant church courts’ decisions that concern canon marriage in the Vatican City State. Thereafter, they elaborate whether such decisions may be recognized in Croatia given the fact that church, and not state, courts decide on the issue. Given the specificities of the Vatican City State that are evidenced in the fact that those decisions have direct effect, the authors conclude that such decisions are to be generally differentiated from church courts’ decisions. Finally, the paper deals with the application of Art. 13/4 of the Agreement on legal issues between the Holy See and the Republic of Croatia that regulates how church decisions on marriage are given effect in Croatia. However, without further legislative steps, the courts cannot apply the rule. So far, such steps have not been taken and the concerned parties can only gain civil effects of cessation of marriage through civil courts.

A short overview of the reform of Hungarian defence and security regulations

At the autumn session of 2020, the Hungarian National Assembly issued the ninth amendment of the Fundamental Law of Hungary, which substantially reforms the foundations of the system of rules concerning the special legal order which enters into force on 1 July 2023.1 However, the Fundamental Law provision is only the first step in a comprehensive series of legislation and measures that will put the entire defenceand security administration on a new footing. Without aiming to be exhaustive, this text provides a short overview of the provisions and legislative steps underlying the Fundamental Law that will renew the depth and functioning of the defence and security regulatory system and enable public administration as a whole to better meet the security challenges of the 21st century.

Targeting sustainable greenhouse agriculture policies in China and Denmark: A comparative study

Greenhouse agriculture has become vitally important in promoting sustainable food supplies globally, especially by encouraging local production and consumption practices. However, it also represents an industry with a high risk for groundwater pollution due to much higher application limits allowed for nitrogen fertilizers compared to conventional agriculture. Although sufficient focus has been placed on characterizing any environmental impacts stemming from agriculture, including greenhouses, the influence of social, economic and political aspects on this process are generally overlooked. This one-sided focus may be partly due to the complexity of environmental systems, i.e. in measuring the state of the system accurately. However, any actions taken by a government, i.e. in the form of policy instruments, will play a key role in ensuring the safety and quality of agricultural products and the surrounding environmental systems. Insufficient knowledge regarding policy and related influential factors may thus slow the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals and ultimately inhibit environmental protection. In light of this, a cross-national comparative study was carried out to enable a systematic understanding of Chinese and Danish greenhouse agriculture policy using the agro-environmental DPSIR (Driver, Pressure, State, Impact, Response) indicator framework. We critically examined whether current legislative steps for mitigating anthropogenic sources of N-pollution are suitably aimed at the parameters controlling (driving) specific pressures/impacts on groundwater. The potential for reaction (feedback/responses) within each legislative system, as well as the key gaps in policy responses for monitoring both water and N-fertilizer applied in greenhouses were identified. Notably, most responses are found to target only the pressure component of the framework. This discovery opens the door for the development of additional response mechanisms, which together could result in more sustainable policy measures for greenhouse agriculture that may be more effective, more quickly. Although many countermeasures exist for control of land, water and fertilizer use at the national level in both countries, their deployment depends heavily on effective stakeholder engagement and local-level adoption strategies, indicating a more holistic and multi-objective (less fragmented) policy approach is needed. Importantly, this paper demonstrates an alternative implementation of the DPSIR framework, where comparative study applications may be used to enable mutual learning that may enhance the uptake of disruptive solutions (technological and/or policy advancement), recognizing that incremental change may not be cost-efficient or sustainable especially for regions with critical water issues.