The government commission considered the latest initiatives of deputies and senators

The Government Commission on Legislative Activities on Monday considered a new batch of proposals from representatives of the State Duma and the Federation Council. Conceptually, the United Russia bill on new powers of regions in the field of youth policy and the initiative of senators aimed at combating foreigners obtaining migration status through a fictitious marriage were supported. But the proposals of representatives of the parliamentary opposition, suggesting some additional social payments to family members of combatants, as well as parents receiving child benefits, were recognized by the commission as “in need of significant improvement.”

The Government Commission on Legislative Activities conceptually supported the bill of senators Yuri Valyaev and Irina Rukavishnikova. The initiative is aimed at preventing foreign citizens from using fictitious marriages and adoption procedures to obtain migration status in Russia. The authors want to adjust the provisions of laws regulating additional conditions for a simplified procedure for obtaining the right to reside in Russia by foreigners married to Russians or having children with Russian citizenship. In addition, the senators propose to cancel a temporary residence permit or residence permit for those foreigners who received it as parents or adoptive parents of Russian citizens, but were deprived of parental rights by a court or in the event of cancellation of such adoption.

The commission also gave a positive opinion on the draft of a group of United Russia deputies on additional powers of the regions in the field of youth policy. These include the training of young specialists, including through the system of student teams, assistance in the labor education of young people, and “the correct formation of the value of work.” The authors were asked to make corresponding amendments to the law “On the general principles of the organization of public authority in the constituent entities of the Russian Federation.” In addition, the bill clarifies the concept of “young specialist” and introduces a new one – “young worker”, which, however, the government commission considered unnecessary and duplicative of the first. The commission’s conclusion also states that new powers may entail new expenses, which means, in accordance with Art. 83 of the Budget Code, it is necessary to describe their sources. The authors are recommended to finalize the document taking into account these comments before considering it in the first reading.

The commission also refers to the article of the Budget Code in its conclusions to the bills of Yaroslav Nilov (LDPR) and Nina Ostanina (Communist Party of the Russian Federation). At the same time, both documents, according to the commission, need significant improvement. Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Labor and Social Policy Yaroslav Nilov proposed establishing a monthly cash payment in the amount provided for participants in the Great Patriotic War for family members of deceased participants in the Great Patriotic War and persons equivalent to them, disabled people and combat veterans. The commission’s conclusion states that this proposal does not comply with the concept of the law on veterans, which establishes the largest volume of social support measures for direct participants in hostilities during the Great Patriotic War. At the same time, the bill gave rise to disagreements between some departments: the Russian Guard supported it, while the Ministry of Labor, the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Economy, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Justice and the FSB spoke out against it.

The head of the Duma Committee on Family Affairs, Nina Ostanina, proposed increasing to 18 the age of a child for whom a monthly allowance is assigned in connection with his birth and upbringing. In its conclusion, the government commission states that supporting citizens with children “is a priority in the government’s activities” and lists the payments that parents are already receiving.

However, the commission supported another bill by Yaroslav Nilov, subject to revision before submission to the State Duma. It proposes to establish administrative liability for the forced disembarkation of a disabled person of the first group from a bus, tram or trolleybus for traveling without a ticket. The government requests that the explanatory note be supplemented with an analysis of “actually committed acts that fall under the characteristics of such offenses, their number, dynamics, reasons and conditions of commission.” At the same time, the commission notes possible difficulties with visually determining the disability group.

The government considered the proposal of communist Mikhail Matveev to provide for increased criminal penalties for crimes in the sphere of illegal alcohol trafficking that resulted in serious harm to health or death. The draft review states that amendments to the Criminal Code were already adopted in April, providing for unalternative imprisonment for up to ten years for causing the death of two or more persons by negligence.

Pavel Sklyanchuk, a member of the Russian Association of Public Relations Committee, predicts low chances of passage for those bills that have received a recommendation for significant revision. “According to established practice, the government uses streamlined language in conclusions and reviews of bills from opposition factions,” explains the expert. “This is done so that the opposition cannot use the legal assessments of the White House for criticism, but in fact it is “neither no nor yes.” “The committees interpret it in favor of rejecting draft federal laws.”

Ksenia Veretennikova