LV: Latvia plans eLegislation system

The Latvian government is planning to create a legislative information system to improve coordination of the law-making process and ensure greater public participation.

This project was proposed by the Ministry of Justice and recently discussed in a meeting of top-level ministry civil servants. It is intended to limit unexpected changes in the existing legal framework, due to lack of communication between key players in the law-making process.

The proposal would create a single information system for the legislative process by joining and improving existing systems. This new approach would enable electronic information to be obtained on laws, draft laws, published legal acts and other documents. It would also have a search function. Creating such a system would cost approximately LVL1.25 million (about €1.79 million) while its maintenance would be in the region of €400 000 every year.

Although there is already a system named ePortfolio, which contains information on projects, it does not contain all details of the drafting process, and access is restricted. Another system, the Parliament Draft Law Register, is a database accessible to the general public, but the publication of drafts is often delayed. Therefore, neither this Register, nor any other database, allows consultation, for example, of proposals submitted by Parliamentary committees. Since there are no other information exchange mechanisms, the flow of information between Parliament committees and different ministries is slow and inefficient. Although in theory citizens have the right to participate in the law-making process, in practice the system has many shortcomings and does not encourage active public participation.

If the project is approved by the government, the Ministry of Justice will have to pass all relevant laws by 1 May 2008.

Further information

• Eparvalde
  

© European Communities 2007
Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged.
The views expressed are not an official position of the European Commission.
Disclaimer

RO: New agency for the eGovernment services infrastructure

Last June, the Romanian Government adopted an Emergency Ordinance which regulates the organisation and function of an Agency for the Information Society Services (AISS).

The new agency will have as its main responsibility the implementation and operation at national level of the informatics systems that provide eGovernment services. Thus, AISS will take over the specific responsibilities of the General Inspectorate of Communications and Information Technology in this field.

The agency will indeed be in charge of developing and operating the following applications mainly:

• eGovernment portal (e-guvernare.ro);
• Electronic procurement portal (e-licitatie);
• The Informatics System for the electronic attribution of international goods road transport authorisations (autorizatiiauto.ro).

Subordinated to the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, AISS will be managed by a president and two vice-presidents assigned or dismissed by an order of the minister for Communications and Information Technology. Both positions will require passing an examination.

The Agency’s income will be composed of the fares of the electronic systems that it manages and operates as well as of revenues from activities developed in its own field of work, donations and sponsorships but also internal and external credits contracted in compliance with the applicable law.

Further information

• Ministry of Communications and Information Technologies
• General Inspectorate of Communications and Information Technology
• Romanian eGovernment portal
• eProcurement portal
• Vehicle registration and permits system

© European Communities 2007
Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged.
The views expressed are not an official position of the European Commission.
Disclaimer

E-Democracy '07: 08 November 2007, London

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