LAW FOR ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COUNCIL
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Chapter I.
GENERAL
Art. 1. (1) Established is Economic and Social Council as a consultative body expressing the will and the structures of the civil society for the economic and social development.
(2) The Economic and Social Council, called hereinafter “the council” is a corporate body at budget support with headquarters in Sofia.
Art. 2. The goals of the council shall be:
1. to provide the participation of a wide circle of representatives of the civil society in the public and economic life, strengthening the principles of the constitutional democratic and social state;
2. to serve as a permanent institutional form of the social dialogue and the consultations on the economic and social policy between the government and the structures of the civil society;
3. to answer to the legal aspirations of the social and economic groups, to the structures of the civil society to express opinion, statements and proposals regarding acts of the legislative and executive authority having impact on their interests.
Art. 3. The council shall carry out its activity on the basis of the principles of independence, cooperation and cooperation with the state bodies, equality, pluralism of the opinions and publicity.
Chapter II.
ACTIVITY
Art. 4. The council shall work out and adopt:
1. statements on draft laws, national programmes and plans regarding the economic and social development;
2. statements on acts of the National Assembly regarding the economic and social development;
3. statements on strategic problems of the economic and social policy;
4. annual memorandums on the economic and social development of the country;
5. analyses of the problems of the economic and social policy included in its annual working plan.
Art. 5. (1) The statements under art. 4, item 1 shall be worked out upon a proposal of the chairman of the National Assembly, of the Council of Ministers, as well as in the cases determined by a law.
(2) The statements under art. 4, item 2 shall be worked out upon a proposal of the President of the Republic in fulfilment of his authority under art. 98, item 4 and art. 101, para 1 of the Constitution of the Republic of Bulgaria.
(3) The council can work out statements according to art. 4, item 1 and 2 by its own initiative as well.
(4) The acts of the council according to art. 4, item 3 – 5 shall be included in its annual working plan.
Art. 6. The state and municipal bodies shall be obliged to submit the information necessary for the work of the council, inasmuch as something else is not established by special laws.
Chapter III.
MEMBERS
Art. 7. (1) The council shall consist of chairman and 30 members divided into three groups.
(2) The chairman of the council shall be elected by the National Assembly upon a proposal of the Council of Ministers, coordinated in advance with the groups represented in the council.
(3) The first group shall consist of 10 members appointed by the managing bodies of the representative organisations of the employers on national level acknowledged by the Council of Ministers by the order of art. 3 of the Labour Code.
(4) The second group shall consist of 10 members appointed by the managing bodies of the representative organisations of the workers and employees on national level acknowledged by the Council of Ministers by the order of art. 3 of the Labour Code.
(5) The third group shall consist of 10 members distributed as follows:
1. one representative of the national organisations of the agricultural producers appointed by their managing bodies;
2. one representative of the national organisations of the industrial cooperations appointed by their managing bodies;
3. one representative of the national organisations of the craftsmen appointed by their managing bodies;
4. one representative of the national professional branch organisations appointed by their managing bodies;
5. one representative of the national organisations of the consumers appointed by their managing bodies;
6. one representative of the national organisations of the women appointed by their managing bodies;
7. one representative of the national ecological organisations appointed by their managing bodies;
8. one representative of the national organisations of the disabled appointed by their managing bodies;
9. two independent scientists – specialists on the issues of the economic and social policy appointed by the Council of Ministers upon proposal of the Minister of the Economy and the Minister of Labour and Social Policy and upon consultations with the groups represented in the council.
Art. 8. (1) The mandate of the chairman and of the members of the council shall be 4 years.
(2) Within the term of the mandate under para 1 the organisations under art. 7, para 3, 4 and 5 can replace their representatives by the order of their appointment, including by applying the principle of rotation between the representatives of the individual organisations. The replacement shall be obligatory in case of occurrence of some of the circumstances of incompatibility according to art. 9, para 1.
(3) Until the expiration of the mandate under para 1 the chairman of the council and the members under art. 7, para 5, item 9 cannot be replaced except in the cases of:
1. resignation;
2. permanent impossibility to fulfil their functions;
3. occurrence of some of the circumstances of incompatibility according to art. 9, para 1;
4. death.
(4) In the cases under para 3 the chairman of the council and the members under art. 7, para 5, item 9 shall be replaced by the order by which they have been elected or appointed.
Art. 9. (1) Chairman and members of the council cannot be:
1. persons with foreign citizenship;
2. persons under age;
3. person under judicial disability;
4. persons without higher education;
5. national representatives and municipal counsellors;
6. persons under art. 19 and 19a of the Law for the administration and members of their political offices;
7. civil servants;
8. judges, prosecutors and investigators;
9. staff military men in the context of the Law for the defence and the armed forces of the Republic of Bulgaria, as well as officers and sergeants in the context of the Law for the Ministry of Interior;
10. persons elected in the national leaderships of political parties;
11. persons convicted for deliberate indictable offence, unless they have been rehabilitated;
12. persons deprived of the right to occupy managing, accountancy or material liability position;
13. persons who have been members of managing bodies of trade companies terminated due to declared bankruptcy, if dissenting creditors have remained.
(2) The lack of the circumstances under para 1 shall be declared in writing as follows:
1. by the chairman of the council – before the National Assembly;
2. by the chief secretary – before the chairman of the council;
3. by the members of the council – before the bodies appointing them.
Art. 10. (1) Within three months before the expiration of the mandate of the council its chairman shall address the bodies and the organisations under art .7 for taking the necessary activities for the election or appointment of a new chairman and members of the council.
(2) If the procedures under art. 7 are not concluded by the expiration of the mandate of the council its chairman and/or the members of the respective group shall continue to fulfil their functions until the election or approval of the new chairman and/or members.
(3) The chairman and the members of the council can be elected or approved for an unlimited number of mandates.
Chapter IV.
MANAGEMENT
Art. 11. Bodies of management of the council shall be:
1. the plenary session;
2. the chairman;
3. the board of chairmen.
Art. 12. The plenary session shall:
1. adopt regulations for the activity of the council;
2. adopt the annual plans and reports on the work of the council;
3. approve the draft annual budget and the accountancy report on its fulfilment;
4. adopt the personnel structure and the size of the remuneration according to art. 22 and 25 within the scope of the approved annual budget;
5. adopt decisions related to the approval of the acts under art. 4;
6. approve the deputy chairmen;
7. elect the chairmen and the members of the standing and temporary commissions.
(3) The meetings of the plenary session shall be considered regular if they are attended by the chairman and at least half of the members of the council.
(4) The chairman and the members of the council can vote “pro”, “con” and “abstained”.
(5) The decisions of the plenary session under para 2, item 1 – 3 shall be adopted by a majority of no less than two thirds of the present members of the council.
(6) The decisions of the plenary session under art. 4 and under art. 13, para 2 shall be taken by a majority of no less than three fourth of the present members of the council.
(7) The decisions of the plenary session under para 2, item 4, 6 and 7 shall be taken by a majority of more than half of the present members of the council.
(8) The members of the council who vote “con” in taking the decisions under para 6 shall have the right to present in writing their reserves, which shall be attached to the approved act.
Art. 13. (1) The chairman shall:
1. manage the activity of the council and represent it;
2. convene plenary session by his initiative or by an initiative of one third of the members of the council and chair the meetings of the plenary session and of the board of chairmen;
3. sign the acts adopted by the plenary session, order their sending to the interested bodies and their publication by the order of art. 19, para 2;
4. be first degree administrator of the budget of the council;
5. appoint the chief secretary;
6. determine by a written order a deputy chairman who will substitute him in his absence;
7. distribute among the commissions the proposals for statements according to art. 5, para 1 and 2;
8. inform the public about the activities of the council.
(2) In the cases of art. 8, para 3 the plenary session shall elect one of the deputy chairmen for temporary executive of the functions of the chairman until the election of a new chairman by the National Assembly for a period until the end of the mandate of the council.
Art. 14. (1) The deputy chairmen of the council shall be three and each of them shall be nominated by each of the groups under art. 7.
(2) The deputy chairmen shall substitute the chairman of the council and shall fulfil functions delegated by him in writing.
Art. 15. (1) The board of chairmen shall consist of the chairman and the deputy chairmen. The chief secretary shall also participate in its meetings with a consultative voice.
(2) The board of chairmen shall consult and assist the work of the chairman between plenary sessions and shall propose their agenda.
(3) Upon a proposal of members of the Economic and Social Council, of its commissions and by its initiative the board of chairmen shall take decisions for working out statements in the cases under art. 5, para 3.
(4) The board of chairmen shall discuss and propose to the plenary session the drafts of:
1. the regulations for the activity of the council;
2. the annual working plan;
3. the annual budget;
4. the annual report on the activity of the council;
5. the annual report on the fulfilment of the budget;
6. the staff structure and the size of the remuneration under art. 22 and 25.
(5) The meetings of the board of chairmen shall be considered regular if at least three of its members participate. The decisions shall be taken unanimously.
(6) As an exception, in cases of objective impossibility to provide the quorum under para 5 the chairman or his deputy, in the cases under art. 13, para 2, shall personally fulfil the functions under para 2, 3 and 4.
Art. 16. (1) The chief secretary shall be appointed by the chairman upon approval of his nomination by the board of chairmen. He must meet the requirements of art. 9, para 1.
(2) The chief secretary shall:
1. manage the work of the administration of the council, conclude and terminate the employment relations with its employees;
2. coordinate the development of the drafts under art. 15, para 4 by an order established by the regulations for the activity of the council;
3. send the materials for discussion at the meetings of the plenary session and of the board of chairmen;
4. be in charge of the minutes of the meetings of the plenary session, the board of chairmen and the commissions under art. 18 and the storing of the documentation of the council;
5. fulfil other functions assigned to him by the regulations for the activity of the council.
Chapter V.
ORGANISATION OF THE ACTIVITY
Art. 17. The Economic and Social Council shall work on the basis of regulations for its activity and annual plans.
Art. 18. (1) Established at the council shall be standing and temporary commissions consisting of members of the council, elected on parity principle by the three groups.
(2) The work of the commissions shall be organised in compliance with the regulations for the activity of the council.
(3) The commissions under para 1 shall prepare for the plenary session draft acts according to art. 4, observing the deadlines determined by the regulations for the activity and by the annual plan for the work of the council.
Art. 19. (1) The plenary sessions of the council shall be public unless the council decides otherwise.
(2) The acts under art. 4 shall be published by a decision of the plenary session in an official bulletin of the council.
Chapter VI.
FINANCING
Art. 20. The activity of the council shall be financed by its budget which shall be a part of the state budget for the respective year, and by international programmes.
Art. 21. (1) The council shall have an independent budget which shall be drawn up and allocated upon a proposal of the board of chairmen by the plenary session. The fulfilment of the budget shall be carried out by the council.
(2) The draft budget of the council shall be presented to the Ministry of Finance for coordination with the draft law for the state budget.
(3) The Council of Ministers shall annually present to the National Assembly, together with the draft state budget, the draft budget of the council together with a detailed substantiation to it and a report on the expected fulfilment of the budget for the previous year.
(4) The Council of Ministers can make its substantiated proposals and objections on the draft budget of the council.
Art. 22. (1) The resources from the budget of the council shall be spent for support of its activity, for remuneration of external experts, for maintaining contacts and cooperation with the Economic and Social Committee of the European Communities and with other similar foreign and international institutions.
(2) The remainder of the budget of the council for the current year shall be included in the budget for the next year.
Art. 23. The annual reports on the fulfilment of the budget and on the activity of the council shall be presented by its chairman to the National Assembly.
Art. 24. The spending of the resources of the budget of the council shall be controlled by the Audit Office.
Art. 25. (1) The activity of the council shall be assisted by an administration. The structure and the functions of the administration shall be determined by the regulations for the activity of the council.
(2) The chairman, the chief secretary, as well as the employees of the administration under para 1 shall work under legal terms of employment.
Transitional and concluding provisions
§ 1. Within one month from the enactment of the law the Council of Ministers shall extend an invitation to the organisations under art. 7 to present decisions for appointment of their representatives in the Economic and Social Council, as well as the declarations under art. 9, para 2.
§ 2. Within two months from the enactment of the law the organisations under art. 7 shall appoint their representatives in the council.
§ 3. Within one month from the appointment of the representatives under § 2 the Council of Ministers shall carry out the consultations under art. 7, para 2 and para 5, item 9 by:
1. proposing to the National Assembly the nomination for chairman of the council;
2. appointing the members under art. 7, para 5, item 9.
§ 4. Within one month from the election of chairman the Council of Ministers shall provide premises for the work of the council.
§ 5. The deputy chairmen shall be elected at the first plenary session of the council convened by its chairman.
§ 6. The following amendments and supplements are introduced to § 2 of the transitional and concluding provisions of the Law for the non-profit corporate bodies (SG 81/00):
1. The previous text becomes para 1;
2. Para 2 is created:
“(2) Until the enactment of the law under para 1 the registration of new trade union organisations, the entry of amendments of circumstances of corporate bodies of the existing trade union organisations subject to registration, as well as the related found judiciary proceedings, shall be carried out by the order of chapter one. The court shall enter the data under art. 18, para 1, item 1 – 3, 5 – 7 and 9 of the law.”
§ 7. The fulfilment of the law is assigned to the Council of Ministers.