4 FEBRUARY 2003. - An Act to amend various political leave provisions for public service personnel (1)

ALBERT II, King of the Belgians,
To all, present and to come, Hi.
The Chambers adopted and We sanction the following:
CHAPTER I^er. - Preliminary provision
Article 1^er. This Act regulates a matter referred to in Article 78 of the Constitution.
CHAPTER II. - Amendments to the Act of 18 September 1986 establishing political leave for public service personnel
Art. 2. Article 1^er§ 1^erthe Act of 18 September 1986 establishing political leave for public service personnel, as amended by the Acts of 4 May 1999 and 27 December 2000, is replaced by the following provision:
« § 1^er. Members of public service staff are entitled, in the cases and in the manner set out below, to political leave for the exercise of a political mandate or function that may be considered.
For the purposes of this Act, members of public service staff shall be entitled to the following:
1° of federal public services and other services of federal public services and pending the replacement of federal departments by these public services, also the departments and other services of federal departments;
2° of public bodies subject to the authority, control or guardianship of the State;
3° of the public social security institutions referred to in Article 3, § 2, of the Royal Decree of 3 April 1997 on measures for the accountability of public social security institutions, pursuant to Article 47 of the Law of 26 July 1996 on the modernization of social security and ensuring the viability of the legal pension schemes;
4° of other State services;
5° of the administrative and logistic framework of the police services referred to in Article 118 of the Law of 7 December 1998 organizing an integrated police service, structured at two levels, with the exception of the soldiers referred to in Article 4, § 2, of the Law of 27 December 2000 on various provisions relating to the legal position of police personnel;
6° of any legal entity of public law other than that referred to in 1°, 2°, 3°, 4° and 5°, which falls within the competence of the federal authority;
7° associations made up of persons of public law, where both such persons and persons of private law, incorporated in the form of a private law society, but whose social purpose is an activity of public interest, with the exception of associations of which persons of public law are provinces and/or communes;
8° of non-profit associations in the creation or direction of which the federal public authority prevails. »
Art. 3. In section 2, of the Act, as amended by the Act of 4 May 1999, the following amendments are made:
1° paragraph 2 is replaced by the following text:
"During periods during which he is on political leave, the staff member is expected to be in service. »;
2° the article is supplemented by the following paragraph:
"The number of days of political leave is set in proportion to the services actually taken by the staff member. »
Art. 4. Section 3 of the Act, as amended by the Act of 4 May 1999, is replaced by the following:
“Art 3. - At the request of personnel referred to in Article 1^er, § 1 and within the limits set out below, a service exemption is granted for the exercise of the following political mandates:
1° (a) communal councillor who is neither mayor nor alderman nor president of a council of social assistance;
(b) member of a social assistance council other than the president;
(c) a member of a district council, other than members of the office and the chair:
2 days per month;
2nd member of the Council of the German-speaking Community, other than the President:
2 days per month;
3° Provincial adviser non-permanent deputation:
Two days a month. »
Art. 5. In section 5 of the Act, as amended by the Acts of 4 and 25 May 1999, the following amendments are made:
1° 1° is replaced by the following text:
"1° communal councillor who is neither a mayor nor alderman nor a president of a social welfare council, a member of a social assistance council, who is neither a president nor a member of the permanent office, or a member of a district council that is neither a president nor a member of the office, of a municipality that counts:
(a) up to 80,000 inhabitants:
2 days per month;
(b) More than 80,000 inhabitants:
4 days per month; »
2° the 2° is replaced by the following text:
"2° ultrasevin, president of the social welfare council or member of the office of a district council of a municipality counting:
(a) up to 30,000 inhabitants:
4 days per month;
(b) 30,001 to 50,000 inhabitants:
a quarter of a full-time job;
(c) 50,001 to 80,000 inhabitants:
half a full-time job; »
3° the 3° is replaced by the following:
"3° bourgmestre of a commune or president of a district council of a commune:
up to 30,000 inhabitants: one quarter of a full-time job;
from 30,001 to 50,000 inhabitants: half a full-time job. »
Art. 6. The following amendments are made to section 6 of the Act:
1° it is inserted a 1°bis as follows:
« 1°bis . The president of a district council of a commune is assimilated, with respect to the ex-officio political leave, to a village of a municipality whose number of inhabitants corresponds to that of the district, the duration of the ex-officio political leave being limited to the percentage of the treatment of that village which he perceives. »;
2° it is inserted a 2°bis as follows:
"2°bis . A member of a district council of a municipality is considered, with respect to ex officio political leave, to a dickhead of a municipality whose number of inhabitants corresponds to that of the district, the duration of the ex officio political leave being limited to the percentage of the treatment of that ultravin that he perceives. »;
3° 5° is replaced by the following:
« 5° Regional Secretary of State of the Brussels-Capital Region, Government Commissioner and Member:
(a) the House of Representatives;
(b) of the Senate;
(c) a Council of Community or Region, except the Council of the German-speaking Community;
(d) the European Parliament;
(e) the Federal Government;
(f) a Government of Community or Region;
(g) of the European Commission:
full-time. »
Art. 7. Section 6bis of the Act, inserted by the Act of 13 May 1999, is repealed.
Art. 8. Section 7 of the Act is repealed.
Art. 9. In Article 8 of the same law, the words "of Article 3, 1°, 2°, 3° and 4°, of Article 5, 1°, 2° and 4°" are replaced by the words "of Article 5, 1°, 2°, 3° and 4°" and the words "of Articles 19 and 130 of the communal law" are replaced by the words "of the new law".
Art. 10. In section 9, paragraph 3, of the Act, the following amendments are made:
1° the words "president of a district council" are inserted between the word "bourgmestre" and the words "echevin";
2° the third paragraph is repealed.
Art. 11. Section 10 of the Act is replaced by the following:
“Article 10. § 1^er. Periods covered by discretionary political leave or statutory political leave are not paid.
For the staff member who is contracted by work, the periods covered by discretionary political leave or by ex officio political leave are periods of service suspension to be considered as eligible services for the increase in the salary scale.
§ 2. Section 4 of the Act of January 10, 1974 regulating the eligibility of certain services and periods assimilated to the service activity for the granting and calculation of the dependant pensions of the Public Treasury is applied to the calculation of the dependant pension of the Public Treasury of the personnel referred to in section 1^er. »
Art. 12. Section 13 of the Act, inserted by the Act of 13 May 1999, is repealed.
CHAPTER III. - Amendment of the Act of 22 March 1995
establishing federal mediators
Art. 13. In section 5, last paragraph, of the Act of 22 March 1995 establishing federal mediators, the reference to section 7 of the Act of 18 September 1986 is supressed.
CHAPTER IV. - Amendment of Royal Decree No. 442 of 14 August 1986 on the impact of certain administrative positions on pensions of public service officers
Art. 14. Article 3, § 7, of Royal Decree No. 442 of 14 August 1986 concerning the impact of certain administrative positions on the pensions of public service officers, replaced by the Royal Decree of 14 June 2001, is supplemented as follows:
"10° the political leave that is assimilated to service activity. »
CHAPTER V. - Abrogatory provisions
Art. 15. Article 1^er of the Act of 6 August 1931 establishing incompatibility and prohibitions concerning ministers, former ministers and ministers of state, as well as members and former members of the Legislative Chambers, paragraphs 6 and 7, inserted by the ordinary law of 16 July 1993, are repealed.
Art. 16. Chapter XI of the Act of 20 May 1997 on various public service measures, including sections 28 to 32, is repealed.
CHAPTER VI. - Entry into force
Art. 17. This Act produces its effects on 1^er January 2001, with the exception of section 2, which produces its effects on 1^er January 2002, and the provisions provided for in Article 6, 1 and 2°, which come into force on the day of the publication of this Act to the Belgian Monitor.
Promulgate this law, order that it be clothed with the seal of the State and published by the Belgian Monitor.
Given in Brussels on 4 February 2003.
ALBERT
By the King:
Minister of Public Service
and Modernization of Administration,
L. VAN DEN BOSSCHE
Seal of the state seal:
Minister of Justice,
Mr. VERWILGHEN
____
Note
(1) Session 2001-2002.
House of Representatives:
Parliamentary Documents - Bill No. 50-1573/1. - Erratum no. 50-1573/2. - Amendments n^bones 50-1573/3-4. - Opinion of the Council of State No. 50-1573/5. - Amendments No. 50-1573/6.
Session 2002-2003.
House of Representatives:
Parliamentary documents - Opinion of the Council of State No. 50-1573/7. Amendment No. 50-1573/8. - Report No. 50-1573/9. - Text adopted by Commission No. 50-1573/10. - Text adopted in plenary and transmitted to the Senate No. 50-1573/11.
Full report: 28 November 2002.
Senate:
Parliamentary Documents - Project referred to by the Senate No. 2-1369/1. - Amendments No. 2-1369/2. - Report No. 2-1369/3. - Decision not to amend No. 2-1369/4.
Annales parliamentarians. - Session of 23 January 2003.