64. federal law, which enacted a federal law to ensure transparency in the exercise of political and economic interests (lobbying and advocacy transparency law-LobbyG) and amended the court fee law

The National Council has decided:

Article 1

Lobbying and advocacy transparency law-LobbyG

Section 1

General provisions

Scope

§ 1. (1) This federal law regulates behavioural and registration duties in the case of activities that directly influence certain decision-making processes in the legislation or enforcement of the federal government, the federal states, the municipalities and the municipal associations. should be taken into account.

(2) This federal law shall not apply to the representation of interests by the social partners and collective agreements with the exception of the registration requirements in accordance with § § 9 and 12. It is not applicable to the representation of interests by other self-governing bodies and interest groups, with the exception of the behavioural duties according to § 6 and the registration requirements in accordance with § § 9 and 12.

(3) On political parties, on churches and religious societies recognised by law, the Austrian Community and the Austrian Association of Cities, the statutory social insurance institutions and their main association, as well as on This federal law is not applicable to interest groups that do not employ employees as representatives of interest.

(4) This is without prejudice to commercial law provisions and professional and civil law provisions for lawyers, notaries, patent attorneys, business alarms and civil engineers.

Exceptions

§ 2. The provisions of this Federal Act shall not apply

1.		on the activities of a function-holder in the performance of his/her duties;
2.		on the activities of a person with whom these non-corporate interests are perceived,
3.		on the perception or representation of the interests of a party or of a party in connection with administrative or judicial proceedings,
4.		the legal advice and representation of lawyers, notaries, business trustees and other persons empowered to do so,
5.		on the perception of foreign policy interests in diplomatic or consular transport, and
6.		on activities carried out on the initiative of a function-holder.

Competence

§ 3. (constitutional provision) Matters relating to the duties of lobbying and advocacy, the duties to register in the lobbying and advocacy register and the legal consequences of the infringement of such obligations shall be in law and in law enforcement Federal thing.

Definitions

§ 4. In the sense of this federal law means:

1.		Lobbying activity: any organised and structured contact with officials for the purpose of influencing the meaning of Section 1 (1) in the interests of an adjudicating entity;
2.		Lobbying order: a contract of payment by which a contracting entity requires the contractor to engage in lobbying activities;
3.		Lobbying companies: a company whose business is also subject to the acquisition and fulfilment of a lobbying contract, even if it is not permanently applied;
4.		Lobbyist: a person who exercises a lobbying activity as an institution, service or contractor of a lobbying undertaking or whose duties include such activity;
5.		Business lobbyist: The institution or service of a company which has more than a minor role of lobbying activities for that undertaking or for a company affiliated with it in the group, unless it is the perception of the institution or service of a company. professional obligations laid down by law;
6.		Representation of interests: any organised and structured contact with officials for the purpose of influencing within the meaning of Section 1 (1) in the common interest of the members of self-governing bodies or interest groups;
7.		Self-governing bodies: a non-territorial self-governing body established by law or regulation, who exercises professional or other common interests of its members, as well as an association of self-governing bodies, who have these interests nationwide true;
8.		Interest group: an association or a contractual association of several persons, whose activities include the perception of common interests and which is neither a lobbying company nor a self-governing body;
9.		Stakeholders: Bodies or servants of a self-governing body or association of interests, whose predominant role is the representation of interests;
10.		Function Carrier : the Federal President, members of the Federal Government or of a national government, members of national general representative bodies, civil servants, contract staff and other institutions, insofar as they are within the framework of legislation, enforcement or Private sector management of the federal government, the Länder, the municipalities and the municipal associations.

Section 2

Behavioural duties

Lobbying activities

§ 5. (1) Lobbying companies, companies employing business lobbyists, lobbyists and business lobbyists may only commend lobbying activities for registration in the lobbying and advocacy register, and during the period of exercise in an upright position.

(2) A lobbying company may carry out a lobbying order only from the date of notification of the registration in the lobbying and advocacy register, as well as during upright registration.

(3) Moreover, a lobbying company

1.		to notify the contracting authority of an estimate of the estimated fee for a lobbying order and to inform him immediately of any overshooting of this estimate;
2.		to draw the attention of its contracting authority to the registration obligations associated with a lobbying order, provided that it has no knowledge of it; and
3.		to refrain from asserting, in contact with clients and customers, a non-existent order or consulting relationship with a function carrier.

Principles of lobbying activity and advocacy

§ 6. Anyone who has a lobbying activity or who carries out an interest representation has

1.		in the case of each initial contact with a function carrier, its task as well as the identity and the specific concerns of its mission or service provider, or of the self-governing body or association of interests,
2.		to refrain from obtaining information in an unfair manner,
3.		to give truthful information to the information available to him in the performance of his duties,
4.		to be informed about the limitations of the activities and incompatibility rules made available to the function carrier and to comply with these restrictions and
5.		to refrain from any unfair or undue pressure on officials, but it does not preclude the adoption of socially accepted and lawful actions in order to give an intervention the right to: .

code of conduct

§ 7. Lobbying companies or companies that employ business lobbyists have to base their lobbying activities on a code of conduct and must, in any case, be particularly aware of this in their internet presence. At the request of any interested person, they must make public access to the code of conduct, or follow the code of conduct.

Activity Constraint

§ 8. A function carrier may not act as a lobbyist (§ 4 Z 4) during the period of its function in its remit. Further provisions relating to the incompatibility of tasks and activities shall remain unaffected.

Section 3

Registration requirements

Lobbying and advocacy registries

§ 9. (1) The Federal Minister for Justice carries out a register of lobbying and advocacy for automation, in which:

1.		Lobbying companies (department A1) and their responsibilities (Division A2),
2.		Companies employing business lobbyists (Department B), as well as
3.		Self-governing body (Department C) and
4.		Interest groups (Department D)
shall be entered.

(2) Entries in the departments A1 and B to D shall be easily accessible to the public and shall be made available free of charge.

(3) The data to be submitted shall be communicated electronically to the Federal Minister of Justice for registration in such a way as to provide for authentication. The Federal Minister for Justice has to release the data after examination for inclusion in the register or to refuse the inclusion in the register if the data disclosed do not comply with the requirements of this Federal Law or the registration of the data is not in accordance with the requirements of this Federal Law. is inadmissible.

(4) In Division A2, the Federal Minister for Justice has granted access to the contracts of a lobbying order and officials with whom a lobbyist has been in contact with the entries directly concerned. Any other person or institution shall be consulted after consulting the Lobbying Company and the contracting authority, if such persons or bodies have a significant overriding interest in the secrecy of the data entered therein. to be able to state the legal interest on the grounds of Article 8 (2) of the MRK. Any further statutory rights of registration shall remain unaffected.

(5) Changes registered or subject to registration shall be notified not later than three weeks after the entry of the change for registration.

Division A

§ 10. (1) Lobbying companies have to register in the Register Division A1 for registration:

1.		before taking up their duties
a.			Name (company), if applicable, company name number, registered office and the relevant business address for deliveries, as well as the beginning of the financial year,
b.			a short description of their professional or business activities,
c.			an indication of the Code of Conduct (§ 7) and
d.			where appropriate, the Internet address of its website;
2.		the names and dates of birth of their lobbyists before they start their activities; and
3.		within nine months of the end of the financial year for the previous financial year, the total turnover generated by lobbying activities and the number of lobbying orders processed.

(2) In the Register Division A2, lobbying companies have to disclose immediately after the entry of the contract for registration:

1.		Name (company), if applicable, company name number, as well as seat and the business address of the contracting authority of a lobbying order, which is relevant for deliveries, as well as
2.		the agreed role.

Division B

§ 11. Companies that employ business lobbyists have to register in the Register Division B for registration:

1.		Prior to the first recording of lobbying activities:
a.			Name (company), if applicable, company name number, registered office and the relevant business address for deliveries, as well as the beginning of the financial year,
b.			a short description of their professional or business activities,
c.			an indication of the Code of Conduct (§ 7) and
d.			where appropriate, the Internet address of its website;
2.		the names and dates of birth of their business lobbyists prior to commending their activities; and
3.		within nine months of the end of the financial year for the previous financial year, whether the expenditure on lobbying activities for the past marketing year exceeds the sum of EUR 100 000.

Divisions C and D

§ 12. (1) Self-governing bodies shall be admitted to the Register Division C for registration:

1.		name, seat and address relevant to delivery,
2.		the legal basis of its establishment,
3.		where appropriate, the Internet address of its website,
4.		within nine months of the end of the financial year for the previous financial year, the total number of persons who are mainly active as representatives of interest; and
5.		within nine months of the end of the financial year for the previous financial year, the estimated costs of the audit institution, confirmed by its accounting or statutory auditor, or any other statutory or statutory control body, of the Representation of interests.

(2) Interest groups shall be notified in the Register Division D for registration:

1.		name, seat and address relevant to delivery,
2.		a short description of their contractual or statutary remit,
3.		where appropriate, the Internet address of its website,
4.		within nine months of the end of the financial year for the previous financial year, the total number of persons who are mainly active as representatives of interest; and
5.		within nine months of the end of the financial year for the previous financial year, the estimated costs of the audit institution, confirmed by its accounting or statutory auditor, or any other statutory or statutory control body, of the Representation of interests.

(3) Self-governing bodies and interest groups may also comply with their registration obligations by making an electronic link under their name to a website on which the data referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 are published. Registration shall be announced.

(4) The obligations referred to in paragraphs 1 to 3 may be fulfilled by a number of self-governing bodies or associations of interests in an announcement for registration by a body which has been registered for that purpose.

Section 4

Sanctions and other legal consequences

Administrative penalties

§ 13. (1) Who

1.		, contrary to Section 5 (1), exercises a lobbying activity or causes one of its lobbyists or lobbyists to
2.		runs a lobbying order, contrary to Section 5 (2),
If the offence is not punishable by a judicial penalty, it must be punished with a fine of up to EUR 20 000, in the case of repeated acts of inaction of up to EUR 60 000.

(2) Anyone who, in addition to the cases of paragraph 1, violates his registration obligations in accordance with § § 10 and 11, is subject to an administrative surrender and is, if the act is not threatened with judicial penalty, with a fine of up to 10 000 euros, in the case of the to punish repeated acts of up to 20 000 euros. Similarly, a client of a lobbying order, as well as a lobbying company or company employing a business lobbyist, is fined up to EUR 10 000, up to EUR 20 000 in the case of repeated acts of the crime. , provided that he or she has agreed to a success story prohibited in accordance with § 15 (2).

(3) The competent authority responsible for administrative proceedings under the first and second subsections of paragraph 1 and 2 shall have the Federal Minister for Justice of the initiation and final conclusion or the cessation of an administrative criminal procedure to be notified without delay.

Deletion from the lobbying and advocacy register

§ 14. (1) The Federal Minister for Justice may delete a person registered in the lobbying and advocacy register with a communication from the register if the deletion is due to a serious and lasting violation of conduct. or registration obligations under this federal law, and does not constitute a disproportionate intervention in the area of employment. The Federal Minister for Justice can also only threaten such a deletion if this is sufficient to prevent the person registered in the register from further violations of her conduct or registration duties.

(2) The deletion and the threat thereof shall be noted in the Register for a period of three years. A new registration after a deletion shall not be allowed until the end of this period.

(3) The Federal Minister for Justice has to delete a person registered in the lobbying and advocacy register from the register if it is due to a criminal act in accordance with § § 153, 153a, 168b, 302 or the § § 304 to 309 Penal Code, BGBl. No 60/1974, has been finally convicted. In the event of such a conviction, a new registration shall be admissible only after the expiry of the repayment period. The criminal courts have the Federal Minister for Justice to agree on such a final conviction.

Nullity of contracts

§ 15. (1) A lobbying order shall be void if, contrary to § 5 (1), it is concluded with a lobbying company which has not been announced or registered for registration, or if it is not disclosed or registered for registration in accordance with § 5 (2). What someone knowingly gave for such an order is falling in favor of the federal government.

(2) The agreement of a success story from a lobbying order, as well as the agreement of a success story for a particular lobbying activity between a lobbying company and its lobbyists, or between a company that Business lobbyists, and the business lobbyist, is void, provided that the lobbying activity is aimed at concluding contracts with the Confederation, a country, a municipality or a community association; that of a lobbying company The success of such a contract shall be forfeited in favour of the Federal government. In addition, the agreement of a guarantee of success shall be void in so far as the success story is in an unreasonable relationship with the other charge for the order.

(3) If the contractual parts of a lobbying order to the Schein (Section 916 (1) ABGB) have agreed to a fee which significantly exceeds the true value of the contract, this part of the remuneration shall be forfeited in favour of the Federal Government.

Section 5

Final provisions

Entry into force and transitional provisions

§ 16. (1) This federal law, with the exception of § 3, occurs with 1. Jänner 2013 in force.

(2) (constitutional provision) § 3 of this Federal Law comes with 1. Jänner 2013 in force.

(3) The provisions of § § 5 to 8 shall apply only to activities which shall be exercised after 31 December 2012. The provisions of § 15 shall apply only to contracts and agreements concluded after 31 December 2012.

(4) Lobbying companies, companies employing business lobbyists, self-governing bodies and interest groups that are already active before the entry into force of this Federal Law and continue to operate have the data in accordance with the § § 9 to 12 to March 31, 2013 to be announced for registration. Until that date, they, as well as their lobbyists, business lobbyists and interest representatives, may continue their activities without registration.

(5) The provisions of § 13 shall apply only to acts which are committed after 31 March 2013.

Enforcement

§ 17. The Federal Minister of Justice is responsible for the enforcement of this federal law.

References

§ 18. Insofar as other federal laws are referred to in this Federal Act, these are to be applied in their respectively applicable version.

Article 2

Amendment of the Court Fees Act

The court fee law, BGBl. No. 501/1984, as last amended by the Federal Law BGBl. I n ° 53/2011 and the Federal Minister of Justice BGBl. II No 242/2011, shall be amended as follows:

1. In § 2 Z 7, the quote "TP 14 Z 3, 4, 8, 9, 10 and 11" by quoting "TP 14 Z 3, 4, 8 to 11 and 13 to 15" replaced.

2. The following Z 13 to 15 shall be added to the tariff post 14 after Z 12:

" 13.		for entries for the first registration of lobbying companies in the
		Lobbying and advocacy registries Division A1 ........................... 600 Euro
14.		for entries for the initial registration of companies in the
		Lobbying and advocacy registries Division B ............................ 200 Euro
15.		for input to the first entry into the
		Lobbying and advocacy registries Division C and D .................. 100 euro ".

3. In Art. VI the following Z 48 is added after Z 47:

" 48.		§ 2 Z 7 and subheading 14 Z 13, 14 and 15 in the version of the Federal Law BGBl. I n ° 64/2012 are 1. Jänner 2013 in force. § 31a is to be applied to the charges newly created by this Federal Act in tariff post 14 Z 13 to 15, with the proviso that the basis for the redetermination of these fee amounts will be the final published for March 2011. Index number of the 2000 consumer price index, read by the Federal Statistical Office, Austria. "

Fischer

Faymann