belgiquelex.be - Carrefour Bank of Legislation

2 JANVIER 2001. - Law on social, budgetary and other provisions

ALBERT II, King of the Belgians,
To all, present and to come, Hi.
The Chambers adopted and We sanction the following:
On the proposal of Our Prime Minister, of Our Minister of Employment; of Our Minister of Foreign Affairs; of Our Minister of Budget, Social Integration and Social Economy; of Our Minister of Mobility and Transport; of Our Minister of Consumer Protection, Public Health and the Environment; of Our Minister of Social Affairs and Pensions; of Our Minister of Agriculture and Classes
We stopped and stopped:
Our Prime Minister, Our Minister of Employment; Our Minister for Foreign Affairs; Our Minister of Budget, Social Integration and Social Economy; Our Minister of Mobility and Transport; Our Minister for Consumer Protection, Public Health and the Environment; Our Minister of Social Affairs and Pensions; Our Minister of Agriculture and Average Class; Our Minister of Finance and Our Minister of Telecommunications, Enterprises and Public Participation,
are responsible for presenting in Our Name to the Legislative Chambers and to table in the House of Representatives the following bill:
TITRE PREMIER
General provision
Article 1^er
This Act regulates a matter referred to in Article 78 of the Constitution.
PART II
Telecommunications, Companies and Public Participations
CHAPTER I^er
Amendment of the Act of 21 March 1991
reform of certain economic public enterprises
Art. 2
Section 68 of the Act of 21 March 1991 on reform of certain economic public enterprises, as amended by the Act of 20 December 1995, the Royal Decree of 28 October 1996, the Act of 19 December 1997, the Royal Decrees of 4 March and 21 December 1999 and the Act of 3 July 2000, is supplemented as follows:
"32° national roaming: the ability of an operator to allow its customers to access the services offered by another mobile radio network operator in the same country;
33° antenna: device for radiation and electromagnetic wave caption;
34° base station: a set of antennas, cables and electronic transmission and reception equipment to ensure the radio coverage of a given geographic area;
35° support: structure on which base station antennas can be placed;
36° antenna site: set of constructions, including at least one support, antenna and premises for electrical and electronic equipment, allowing the installation and operation of one or more base stations;
37° radio network: set of base stations of a given operator;
38° cost of establishing the antenna sites database: costs related to the establishment or development of a database of antenna sites;
39° periodic costs of the antenna sites database: the annual costs caused by the operation and maintenance of this database. "
Art. 3
In section 79ter of the Act, inserted by the Act of 19 December 1997 and amended by the Royal Decree of 4 March 1999, the following amendments are made:
1° in paragraphs 1^er and 2, the words ", unbundled access to the local loop" are inserted between the words "special access" and the words "and shared uses";
2° Paragraph 2 is supplemented as follows:
"When the Chamber decides on the extension of the time limits for negotiations referred to in Article 108bis, it shall make its decision within ten working days after the application is filed. This extension may not exceed four months from the decision of the Chamber. "
Art. 4
Section 83 of the Act, replaced by the Act of 19 December 1997, is supplemented by a paragraph 3, which reads as follows:
Ҥ3. If, by means of a fully unbundled access, another operator has the exclusivity of the line that gives a user access to the public fixed telecommunications network, the provider of the universal service is presumed to have fulfilled its obligations under sections 83 to 86 and Schedule 1 to this Act. "
Art. 5
Article 89 of the Act is supplemented by a § 5, which reads as follows:
Ҥ 5. The King determines which operators have the obligation to offer national roaming and which operators can benefit from it.
The King sets out the scope of the national roaming and the conditions to which it must be offered, including:
(a) the minimum deployment of a clean network by the operator entitled to national roaming;
(b) services covered by the national roaming contract;
(c) the geographical scope of the national roaming contract;
(d) the duration of the national roaming contract;
(e) circumstances that may terminate all or part of the national roaming contract.
The conditions of national roaming must be reasonable, non-discriminatory and proportional, in particular regarding the nature, quality and pricing of the services offered and access to the network.
The King sets out the circumstances under which an operator who has an obligation to provide the national roaming or an operator who is entitled to the national roaming may refer the Institute to take steps to settle a dispute related to the conclusion or modification of a national roaming contract.
When seized, the Institute may, inter alia, impose the following measures:
(a) establish a time limit for the conclusion of negotiations on the national roaming contract or its amendment, and the measures to be taken in the event that an agreement is not reached within that time limit;
(b) determine which elements should be included in the national roaming contract;
(c) determine specific commitments that must be met by one or more of the parties to the national roaming contract, such as, inter alia, the tariff of the offer of the national roaming calculated according to the method determined by the King.
In the exercise of its jurisdiction, the Institute will consider:
(a) the interests of users;
(b) coverage of less densely populated territories;
(c) regulatory obligations or limitations imposed on the parties;
(d) the opportunity to stimulate the provision of innovative solutions and to offer users a wide range of telecommunications services;
(e) the need to maintain the integrity of the public telecommunications network and the interoperability of services;
(f) the nature of the request in relation to the means available to satisfy it;
(g) the need for the operator to offer the national roaming to maintain the quality of its services and the need to obtain from the operator who is entitled to the national roaming accurate and timely information in order to facilitate the organization of the network;
(h) market positions of the parties;
(i) the general interest, and
(j) the promotion of competition. "
Art. 6
An article 92quinquies, as follows, is inserted in the same law:
"Art. 92quinquies. § 1^er. This section applies to operators referred to in sections 89 and 92 bis.
§ 2. The operator makes every effort to install, to the extent possible, its antennas on pre-existing supports, such as building roofs, towers, facades, without limiting this list.
§ 3. If at least the support of an antenna site is the ownership of one or more operators, the operator responds or they respond favorably to any reasonable request from other operators to allow them to install their own antennas on the existing support.
This sharing obligation is extended to the installation in the adjacent premises, if the latter are the property of one or more operators, electronic or electrical equipment of the base station, to the extent that the building concerned allows the installation of the equipment of the different operators in separate premises.
The operators concerned shall negotiate in good faith an agreement on shared use, the terms of which must be reasonable, proportionate and non-discriminatory. In addition, the royalty for shared use can only be based on the overall cost of direct land acquisition costs, actual construction and maintenance costs, increased by a percentage equal to the average weighted cost of shared use by the operator, as presented by the operator to the Institute and is determined by the Institute.
If at the same time or later several operators ask for shared use, the overall cost will be allocated equally among all operators who share the use.
Operators can only refuse the shared use of an antenna site for duly justified technical reasons and, at their request, are recognized as such by the Chamber.
If the installation of the additional antennas requires significant work to strengthen the existing structure, the proprietary operators of this site are entitled to charge the additional cost investments by the operators who wish the shared use, on the basis of an agreement whose terms must be reasonable, proportional and non-discriminatory.
The provisions of this paragraph shall be extended to antenna sites whose support is the property of a natural or legal person directly or indirectly related to an operator, or that are managed by a third party for the benefit of an operator.
For the purposes of this paragraph, "any physical or legal person directly or indirectly connected" means any natural or legal person on which the operator may exercise, directly or indirectly, a dominant influence, or any natural or legal person who may exert a dominant influence on the operator or who, like the operator, is subject to the dominant influence of another natural or legal person by the fact of the property, financial participation or rules that govern it.
The dominant influence is presumed vis-à-vis a corporation in particular where a natural or legal person, directly or indirectly, in respect of another legal person:
(a) holds the majority of the share capital of the corporation, or
(b) has the majority of votes attached to the shares issued by the legal person, or
(c) may designate more than half of the members of the body of administration, direction or supervision of the corporation.
§ 4. In the event that an antenna site is wholly or partially owned by a third party, the operators operating this site or using it in a shared manner do not object in any way to the conclusion of an agreement between that third party and one or more other operators, by which it is given the opportunity for the latter to use the site in question in a shared manner.
In contracts that operators enter into with third parties referred to in paragraph 1^er, they do not include any clause that would have the effect of prohibiting or making more difficult the shared use of the site in question to one or more other operators, including any clause to impose a condition of reciprocity in any form.
For contracts entered into before the date of entry into force of this Article and which would include such a clause, the operators concerned shall negotiate without delay a modification of the contract, with a view to repealing the clause concerned within a maximum of three months from the date of entry into force of this Article. In addition to this period, any clause shall be deemed to be repealed to the extent that it contravenes the provisions of this section.
§ 5. At least a month before introducing to the competent authorities a request for a urban planning permit for a specific antenna site or for a part of a site, each operator is required to notify the other operators of their intention.
In the month following the notification, the other operators send to the first operator their request for joint use of the antenna site or site part.
Where applicable, the first operator is required to negotiate in good faith the technical and financial conditions of the common use of the antenna site concerned with other operators and to conclude an agreement in accordance with the principles set out in § 3, paragraph 3.
After entering into this agreement, the operators concerned must jointly apply for urban planning permits to the competent authorities.
Without prejudice to the provisions of paragraph 1^er, operators take the necessary measures to ensure that the stability and height of the pylons of the antenna sites they construct, build or modify, are appropriate to the use shared with other operators.
Unless shared use is impossible for technical reasons accepted by the Board, operators take the necessary measures for the shared use of the site by all the operators who requested it.
The obligations arising from this paragraph are applicable to requests for urban planning permits already introduced; Where applicable, operators shall adapt their application within three months of the entry into force of this Article.
§ 6. A database of antenna sites is created to facilitate the shared use of antenna sites that will contain any relevant information to facilitate site assessment for sharing. Requests and plans for new sites will also be appropriately included in the database.
The collaboration of operators in the development and use of the antenna sites database is mandatory.
The King can determine how to manage and administer the antenna database.
The database manager of the antenna sites transmits to each operator and the Institute a complete list of all existing and project antenna sites within three months from the implementation of the database. On the first business day of each month, each operator provides the manager of the antenna database and the Institute with a complete and updated list of all existing and project antenna sites. The database manager informs the operators on a monthly basis of changes to existing and project antenna sites.
This list, presented electronically in a format determined by the Institute, includes the following data for each antenna site:
- the mailing address;
- the geographic coordinates of the support according to the Lambert system;
- the maximum usable height and exposure to the maximum wind of the support;
- the status of the site: site built, permit of urban planning obtained, permit of urban planning requested, site of temporary character.
On the first business day of each quarter, the manager of the antenna database transmits to the Institute a report on the sites being used shared by the operators. This report includes at least the data determined by the Institute.
The establishment costs and periodic costs of the antenna sites database are borne by all operators on the basis of a negotiated agreement between them. If such agreement is not reached within three months of the entry into force of this article, the costs of the antenna sites database and the distribution by operator are determined by the King. If no amendment to this agreement is obtained within three months of the request to this end by a new operator, the costs of the database of antenna sites and the distribution by operator are determined by the King.
The Institute ensures that the antenna site database is managed in the general interest.
Where applicable, the Institute may impose the measures it considers necessary for the preservation of the general interest and for a rapid system for the exchange of information on sites and their shared use.
§ 7. Within three months of the date of entry into force of this Article, contracts already entered into between operators or contracts already entered into between operators and third parties for the shared use of antenna sites are amended, if any, to be brought into conformity with the provisions of this Article.
§ 8. Any disputes between operators relating to the performance of this Article may be submitted to the Chamber in accordance with Article 79ter.
Art. 7
FindIn section 106 of the Act, replaced by the Act of 19 December 1997 and amended by the Royal Decree of 21 December 1999, the following amendments are made:
In paragraph 1^er, a point 5° to read is added:
"5° unbundled access to the local loop. Where the Institute is of the opinion that competition is present to a sufficient extent in the local access market, the requirement for cost guidance on this market is waived. The Institute makes this decision only after a public consultation. "
Art. 8
An article 108bis, as follows, is inserted in the same law:
"Art. 108bis. § 1^er. Each notified operator will provide a reference offer to the Institute by September 15 of each year regarding unbundled access to the local loop. Prior to 15 November, the Institute communicated its comments and any amendments to this offer. The notified operator has a period of one month to make the changes and publish the reference offer.
§ 2. The operators concerned have a period of four months from the date of the application for unbundled access to the local loop to conclude an agreement on this matter. This period may be extended only in accordance with Article 79ter, § 2.
§ 3. The Institute takes all necessary measures to ensure real competition in the unbundled access market to the local loop. "
Art. 9
Article 117bis, as follows, is inserted in the same law:
"Art. 117bis. - The King may impose as a condition of admissibility a guarantee, the amount of which is reasonably proportionate to the sole concession right. Where applicable, the King defines that the guarantee is paid in cash and in the currency it defines on a state account. "
Art. 10
Article 117ter, which reads as follows, is inserted in the same law:
"Art. 117ter. - Any manipulation or attempted manipulation of an individual authorization procedure shall be punished by imprisonment for 15 days to six months and a fine of 100 Belgian francs to three thousand Belgian francs.
In addition, the competent court shall, in this case, grant the guarantee referred to in Article 117bis. "
Art. 11
Are repealed:
1° Article 8 of the Royal Decree of 7 March 1995 on the establishment and operation of GSM mobile networks, as replaced by Article 7 of the Royal Decree of 24 October 1997.
2° Article 9 of the Royal Decree of 24 October 1997 on the establishment and operation of DCS-1800 mobile networks.
3° Section 3 of the Royal Decree of 27 June 2000 amending the Royal Decree of 22 June 1998 on the conditions for the establishment and operation of public telecommunications networks.
CHAPTER II
National lottery
Art. 12
In article 27, paragraph 1^er, from December 24, 1993, the words "2.5 billion" are replaced by the words "3.5 billion".
Art. 13
In section 16 of the National Lottery Act of 22 July 1991, the following paragraph is inserted before paragraph 1^er :
"Before the determination of the profit distribution plan referred to in paragraph 2, the King shall fix the amounts awarded annually to the associations and institutions that He designates. "
PART III
Consumer Protection, Public Health and Environment
CHAPTER I^er
Introduction of a premium regime to promote the transformation of vehicles with LPG installation
Art. 14
Within the budgetary appropriations, a premium of 20,500 Belgian francs is awarded and in accordance with the terms fixed by the King, to the owner of a car, a mixed car or a minibus that converts his vehicle so that it can use as a fuel of liquefied petroleum gas or other liquefied gas.
The premium referred to in paragraph 1^er is granted for facilities executed during the period 1^er January 2001 to 31 December 2002.
CHAPTER II
Pharmaceutical inspection
Art. 15
At Royal Decree No. 78 of 10 November 1967 concerning the exercise of the art of healing, nursing art, paramedical professions and medical commissions are made the following amendments:
1° In Article 38bis, inserted by the law of 17December 1973, the words "Article 4, § 3" are replaced by the words "Article 4, §§ 3, 3bis, 3ter, 3quater and 3quinquies".
2° Article 43, § 1^er, paragraph 2, replaced by the law of 17 December 1973, the words "article 4, § 3" are replaced by the words "article 4, §§ 3, 3bis, 3ter, 3quater and 3quinquies".
Art. 16
In article 224 of the law of 12 August 2000 on social, budgetary and various provisions the first sentence of § 1^er is replaced as follows:
« § 1^er. To finance the operations of the administration in the context of medical devices, their accessories and active implantable medical devices, a fee of 0.05% of the turnover made in the Belgian market for medical devices and their accessories referred to in Article 1^er of the Royal Decree of 18 March 1999 on medical devices and active implantable medical devices referred to in Article 1^er of the Royal Decree of 15 July 1997 on active implantable medical devices, is due by the distributors who delivered these devices to the end user or the controller. "
Art. 17
In section 3 of the Act of 25 March 1964 on drugs, as amended by the Act of 20 October 1998, the words "documentation" are inserted between the words "in their informal or deposit" and "installations".
PART IV
Mobility and Transport
Art. 18
In section 5 of the Act of 27 June 1937 revising the Act of 16 November 1919 on the regulation of air navigation, the current text of which forms paragraph 1 is supplemented by a paragraph 2, which reads as follows:
Ҥ2. The King may, in the matters referred to in paragraph 1, take all necessary measures to ensure the fulfilment of obligations arising from international treaties or international acts taken under these treaties.
These measures may amend, supplement, replace or repeal legal provisions.
This paragraph constitutes, from its entry into force, one of the legal basis for the Royal Decree of 9 December 1998 regulating the investigation of accidents and incidents in civil aviation. "
Art. 19
An article 44bis, as follows, is inserted in the same law:
"Art. 44bis. - The King may, under the conditions it determines, authorize the Minister who has air navigation in his or her delegate to issue, withdraw, restrict or suspend the licences of the flight crew members of the aircraft and to impose examinations or tests on them. "
Art. 20
In Article 6, § 2, second sentence, of the Act of 17 March 1997 on the financing of the TGV project, the words "will bring" are replaced by the words "may bring, for sale by the TGV Financial".
PART V
Economic affairs
General socio-economic survey 2001
Art. 21
Section 9 of the Act of 4 July 1962 on Public Statistics, as amended by the Act of 1^er August 1985 is replaced by the following provision:
“Art. 9. § 1^er. In 2001, the King will conduct a general socio-economic survey by the National Institute of Statistics to create or supplement data banks on persons, training and housing.
This information will be held and updated by the National Statistics Institute.
§ 2. In order to conduct the general socio-economic survey, the National Institute of Statistics may, without any other formalities, access the data held by all public administrations and authorities, provided that the request states:
1° the area covered and the specific purposes of the investigation and the information to be provided;
2° natural or legal persons liable for information;
3° the periodicity of possible updates;
4° the service of the National Institute of Statistics in charge of the processing of these data. "
Art. 22
An article 8bis, which reads as follows, is included in the Act of 8 August 1983 establishing a national register of natural persons:
"Art. 8bis. - The formalities referred to in sections 5 to 8 are not applicable to applications filed by the National Statistics Institute under section 9 of the Act of 4 July 1962 on public statistics. "
Art. 23
Section 15 of the Act of January 15, 1990 on the institution and organization of a Social Security Crossroads Bank is supplemented by the following paragraph:
"The formalities referred to in this section are not applicable to applications filed by the National Institute of Statistics under section 9 of the Act of 4 July 1962 on public statistics. "
PART VI
Social Affairs and Finance
Amendments to the Act of 2 August 1971 organizing a linkage regime to the index of prices to the consumption of wages, wages, pensions, allowances and subsidies of the public treasury, certain social benefits, the limits of pay to be taken into account in calculating certain social security contributions of workers, as well as social obligations imposed on independent workers
Art. 24
Article 4, § 1^er of the Act of 2 August 1971 organizing a linkage regime to the index of prices to the consumption of wages, wages, pensions, allowances and subsidies of the public treasury, certain social benefits, the limits of remuneration to be taken into account in calculating certain social security contributions of workers, as well as the obligations imposed in social matters to independent workers, replaced by Royal Decree No. 156 of 30 December 1982, is replaced by the following provision:
“Art. 4. § 1^er. For the purposes of this Act, the arithmetic mean of the indexes of this month and of the previous three months is considered to be a consumer price index of one month.
Each time the Consumer Price Index, calculated in accordance with paragraph 1^er, reaches one of the pevot indices or is reduced to one of them, the expenses, benefits and limits of the remunerations attached to the pevot index 114.20, are calculated again by affecting them from the coefficient 1.02ⁿ, n representing the rank of the index-pivot reached.
For this purpose, each of the Pivots indexes is designated by a follow-up number indicating its rank, number 1 indicating the Pyvot index that follows the 114.20 index.
For calculation of coefficient 1.02ⁿ, fractions of ten millimetres of unit are rounded to ten millimeths higher or neglected, depending on whether or not they reach 50% of a ten-millime. "
Art. 25
Section 6 of the Act is replaced by the following provision:
“Art. 6. - The increase or decrease is applied:
1° for expenditures that are liquidated per year, from the calendar year following the month in which the consumer price index reaches the pevot index which justifies an amendment;
2° for expenditures that are liquidated by quarter and for the limits referred to in section 1^er, 2°, from the calendar quarter that follows the month in which the index reaches the figure that justifies an amendment;
3° in other cases, from the first month following the month in which the index reaches the figure that justifies an amendment.
The King may agree on specific terms of application in cases where beneficiaries receive, anticipateably or during the first half of the month, an indexed amount. "
PART VII
Public Service and Finance
Amendment of the Act of 1^er March 1977 organising a regime for linking the UK Consumer Price Index with certain expenditures in the public sector
Art. 26
Article 6 of the law of 1^er March 1977, organizing a regime for linking the UK Consumer Price Index with certain expenditures in the public sector, are the following changes:
1° the 3° is replaced by the following:
"3° in other cases from the first month following the month in which the index reaches the figure that justifies an amendment, with the exception of salaries and wages, referred to in section 1^er§ 1^er, (a), (1) and allowances, subsidies and allowances referred to in section 1^er§ 1^er, a), 5) and 6), for which the increase or decrease is applied from the second month following the month in which the index reaches the figure that justifies the change. »;
2° the article is supplemented by the following paragraph:
"The King may agree on specific terms of application in cases where recipients receive an indexed amount for the first half of the month. "
PART VIII
Defence
Transfer of staff from the Belgian Institute of Postal Services and Telecommunications to the Ministry of National Defence
Art. 27
The missions and staff of the Belgian Institute of Postal Services and Telecommunications occupied at the Maritime Radio Service are transferred to the Ministry of National Defence on the date and in the manner determined by the King.
Art. 28
The King sets the administrative and financial status of the staff transferred.
PART IX
Employment and Labour
CHAPTER I^er
Benefit plan for hiring
Art. 29
Article 61, § 1^erParagraph 4 of the Act of 21 December 1994 on social and other provisions, as amended by the Acts of 26 July 1996 and 26 March 1999, is repealed.
CHAPTER II
Plan plus one, plus two, plus three
Art. 30
Article 118, § 1^er, 4°, of the programme law of 30 December 1988, as amended by the law of 13 February 1998, is replaced by the following:
"4° an applicant for employment who is permanently registered as an applicant for employment with a regional employment office for the six months, calculated from date to date, prior to the undertaking, and who, at the time of the undertaking, is:
(a) benefits from the minimum means of existence provided by the Act of 7 August 1974 establishing the right to a minimum of means of existence;
(b) benefits from financial social assistance and is:
- be registered in the population register;
- is authorized for unlimited stay;
- is authorized to stay under section 9, paragraph 3, of the Act of 15 December 1980 on access to territory, residence, establishment and removal of aliens, provided that the extension of the residence permit is subject to the condition of occupation;
- be authorized or allowed, pursuant to sections 9 or 10 of the Act of 15 December 1980 referred to above, to a fixed-term stay provided that the possibility of an indefinite residence permit is expressly provided.
A registration period is equivalent to a regional employment office:
(a) the periods in which job seekers have benefited from the minimum means of existence or financial social assistance referred to in the preceding paragraph;
(b) an occupation pursuant to Article 60, § 7, of the Organic Law of 8 July 1976 of public social welfare centres;
c) an occupation in a program of professional transition pursuant to the Royal Decree of 9 June 1997 pursuant to Article 7, § 1^er, paragraph 3, m, of the Decree-Law of 28 December 1944 concerning the social security of workers relating to occupational transition programmes;
(d) an occupation in a workstation recognized under the Royal Decree of 8 August 1997 of the execution of Article 7, § 1^er, paragraph 3, m, of the Decree-Law of 28 December 1944 concerning the social security of workers concerning the professional reintegration of long-term unemployed persons. "
Art. 31
In article 127bis, paragraph 1^er, from the same law, inserted by the law of 29 December 1990, the words "and 119, (a) and (c)" are replaced by the words "and 119, (a), (c), (e) and (f)".
Art. 32
Article 6, § 1^er, 4°, of the Royal Decree of 14 March 1997 on specific measures to promote employment for small and medium-sized enterprises pursuant to Article 7, § 2, of the Law of 26 July 1996 on the promotion of employment and the prevention of competitiveness, is replaced by the following provision:
"4° an applicant for employment who is permanently registered as an applicant for employment with a regional employment office for the six months, calculated from date to date, prior to the undertaking, and who at the time of the undertaking, is:
(a) benefits from the minimum means of existence provided by the Act of 7 August 1974 establishing the right to a minimum of means of existence;
(b) benefits from financial social assistance and is:
- be registered in the population register;
- is authorized for unlimited stay;
- is authorized to stay under section 9, paragraph 3, of the Act of 15 December 1980 on access to territory, residence, establishment and removal of aliens, provided that the extension of the residence permit is subject to the condition of occupation;
- be authorized or allowed, pursuant to sections 9 or 10 of the Act of 15 December 1980 referred to above, to a fixed-term stay provided that the possibility of an indefinite residence permit is expressly provided.
A registration period is equivalent to a regional employment office:
(a) the periods in which job seekers have benefited from the minimum means of existence or financial social assistance referred to in the preceding paragraph;
(b) an occupation pursuant to Article 60, § 7, of the Organic Law of 8 July 1976 of public social welfare centres;
c) an occupation in a program of professional transition pursuant to the Royal Decree of 9 June 1997 pursuant to Article 7, § 1^er, paragraph 3, m, of the Decree-Law of 28 December 1944 concerning the social security of workers relating to occupational transition programmes;
(d) an occupation in a workstation recognized under the Royal Decree of 8 August 1997 of the execution of Article 7, § 1^er, paragraph 3, m, of the Decree-Law of 28 December 1944 concerning the social security of workers concerning the professional reintegration of long-term unemployed persons. "
Art. 33
Article 6, § 1^er12°, of the same order, inserted by the law of 13 February 1998, is repealed.
Art. 34
In Article 11, paragraph 1^er, of the same order, the words “article 6, § 1^er, 1°, 2°, 3°, 6°, 8° and 10° are replaced by the words "article 6, § 1^er, 1°, 2°, 3°, 6°, 8°, 10°, 14° and 15°".
Art. 35
In article 13 of the same order, amended by the law of 13 February 1998, the words "and will cease to be in force on 1^er January 2001 » are deleted.
CHAPTER III
Interdepartmental budget fund
Art. 36
Article 2 of Royal Decree No. 25 of 24 March 1982 creating a programme for the promotion of employment in the non-marchand sector, as amended by the law of 1^er August 1985, is supplemented by § 6, as follows:
“§ 6. By derogation from §§ 1^er and 3, the King may determine by order deliberately in the Council of Ministers which other categories of job seekers may occupy the jobs referred to in Chapter II, Section 5, of this Order. "
CHAPTER IV
Local employment agencies
Art. 37
With the National Employment Office, an amount of 500 million Belgian francs, taken from the reserves of the Local Employment Agency regime, is allocated for the year 1999 as income specific to the financing of unemployment expenses.
Art. 38
Article 8, § 3, paragraph 1^er, of the Decree-Law of 28 December 1944 concerning the social security of workers, inserted by the law of 30 March 1994 and replaced by the law of 13 February 1998, is replaced by the following provision:
"The activities carried out within the local employment agency can only be accomplished by:
1° of long-term compensated complete unemployed persons;
2° of the total unemployed who are registered as job seekers with a regional employment office and who:
(a) benefit from the minimum means of existence provided for by the law of 7 August 1974 establishing the right to a minimum of means of existence;
(b) receive financial social assistance and are:
- be registered in the population register;
- be allowed for unlimited stay;
- be allowed to stay under section 9, paragraph 3, of the Act of 15 December 1980 on access to territory, residence, establishment and removal of aliens, provided that the extension of the residence permit is subject to the condition of occupation;
- be authorized or allowed, pursuant to sections 9 or 10 of the above-mentioned Act of 15 December 1980, to a fixed-term stay provided that the possibility of an indefinite residence permit is expressly provided. "
CHAPTER V
Amendment of the Act of 24 December 1999
for the promotion of employment
Art. 39
In section 27 of the Act of 24 December 1999 for the promotion of employment, the following paragraph is inserted between paragraphs 2 and 3:
"By derogation from paragraph 1^er, 2° and 3°, the periods referred to therein may be less than twelve months when the duration of training, learning, internship or insertion is less than twelve months. In this case, the first employment agreement referred to in paragraph 1^er, 2° or 3°, is followed by a first employment agreement referred to in paragraph 1^er, 1°, so that a period of twelve months is reached. The period referred to in paragraph 1^er, 1°, is then less than twelve months. "
Art. 40
Section 32 of the Act is replaced by the following provision:
“Art. 32. - The first employment agreement must be found in writing for each individual new worker, at the latest at the time of the commencement of the agreement.
A copy of the First Employment Agreement shall be communicated by the public or private employer within thirty days of the commencement of the agreement, to the officer designated by the King.
The King may, under the conditions and terms and conditions it determines, provide that the communication of the copy of the first-aid agreement provided for in paragraph 2 is replaced by another mode of transmission.
The King sets the model of a first-aid convention.
Only are taken into consideration in respect of the obligation referred to in Article 39, §§ 1^er and 2, and of what is provided for in Article 39, § 3, as well as for the benefit of the reductions of employers' social security contributions referred to in Article 44, the first employment agreements:
1° found in writing in accordance with paragraph 1^er and in accordance with the model referred to in paragraph 4;
2° that were the subject of a communication pursuant to paragraph 2 or paragraph 3.
They shall be taken into account at the beginning of their execution when a copy has been communicated within the time limit referred to in paragraph 2. They shall be taken into consideration only on the date of their receipt by the official designated by the King when a copy has been communicated outside the time limit. "
Art. 41
In section 38 of the Act, the words "less qualified" are inserted between the words "new workers" and the words "in the ties of a first employment agreement".
Art. 42
Section 39 of the Act is replaced by the following provision:
“Art. 39. § 1^er. Public employers who have a workforce, expressed in units, of at least fifty workers on June 30 of the previous year, must occupy an additional number of new workers compared to their staff, calculated in full-time equivalent, in the second quarter of the previous year. The King determines this number by a deliberate decree in the Council of Ministers.
§ 2. Private employers who have a workforce, expressed in units, of at least fifty workers on June 30 of the previous year, must occupy new workers up to 3% of their staff, calculated in full-time equivalent, in the second quarter of the previous year.
§ 3. In addition to these individual obligations, it is assigned to private employers, all together and regardless of the number of workers they occupy individually, to hire new workers up to one percent of the overall workforce, calculated in full-time equivalent, in the second quarter of the previous year, of those of them who have a workforce, expressed in units, of at least fifty workers on the 30 June of the previous year.
§ 4. The new workers are not considered for the calculation of the number referred to in §§ 1^er, 2 and 3.
The King defines what to hear by force and determines the method of calculating the new workers referred to in §§ 1^er, 2 and 3.
§ 5. The occupation of new workers referred to in § 1^er, 2 and 3, constitutes an additional work and cannot be compensated by the termination of staff.
For the purposes of this chapter, the King defines what to be heard by compensation for the recruitment of new workers by dismissal of staff and determines the method of calculating this compensation. "
Art. 43
The following amendments are made to section 44 of the Act:
1° in §§ 1^er2 and 3, the words "as at June 30" are replaced by the words "calculated in full-time equivalent in the second quarter";
2° in § 4, the following paragraph shall be inserted before paragraph 1^er :
“§4. The benefit of the reduction of employers' social security contributions referred to in §§ 1^er, 2 and 3, is also granted, under the same conditions, in the case of occupation of less qualified young persons engaged, in addition, under the first employment agreement defined in article 27, 2°. »;
3° in § 5, paragraph 2 is replaced by the following paragraph:
"By derogation from Article 35, § 3, of the Law of 29 June 1981 referred to above, the benefit of the reductions of the employers' social security contributions referred to in §§ 1^er, 2, 3 and 4, cannot exceed the overall amount of contributions that remain due to the organizations responsible for the collection and recovery of these contributions for all workers occupied by the employer concerned. »;
4° it is added a § 6, as follows:
“§ 6. The new workers are not considered for the calculation of the number referred to in §§ 1^er, 2 and 3. "
Art. 44
Article 45 of the Act is supplemented by § 4, which reads as follows:
“§4. In the case referred to in section 27, paragraph 3, the new worker shall be entitled to a new first-aid agreement referred to in section 27, 1°, so that his employer shall hold him for a period of twelve months. "
Art. 45
In Article 47, § 1^erParagraph 1^erin the same law, the words "as of June 30" are replaced by the words "calculated in full-time equivalent in the second quarter."
Art. 46
Section 54 of the Act is replaced by the following provision:
“Art. 54. § 1^er. Internships in progress on the date of entry into force of this chapter and their possible extension shall be subject to the provisions of Royal Decree No. 230 of 21 December 1983 concerning the internship and professional insertion of young people and its enforcement orders.
Trainees, youth and persons who are assimilated, who are occupied in accordance with Royal Decree No. 230 of 21 December 1983 referred to in the date of entry into force of this chapter, shall be taken into account, proportionally to their occupation time, for the fulfilment of the obligations referred to in Article 39, §§ 1^er, 2 and 3, and for compliance with the condition of occupation referred to in Article 44.
Trainees, youth and persons who are assimilated, who are occupied in accordance with Royal Decree No. 230 of 21 December 1983 referred to in the second quarter of 1999 are not taken into account in calculating the number of personnel referred to in Article 39, §§ 1^er, 2 and 3, and 44
§ 2. The provisions of the above-mentioned Royal Decree No. 230 of 21 December 1983 and its Implementing Orders shall remain subject until their expiry, to the exemptions that are in progress on the date of entry into force of this chapter and which have been granted in accordance with:
1° to Article 9 of the same Royal Decree No. 230 of 21 December 1983;
2° to section 2 of the Royal Decree of 29 March 1990 determining the conditions for certain local administrations to grant a dispensation, total or partial, to the obligation to hire trainees as well as the conditions for reducing the percentage of trainees.
Employers who benefit from the exemptions referred to in paragraph 1^er are exempted from compliance with the obligations referred to in Article 39, §§ 1^er, 2 and 3, until the expiry of these exemptions.
§ 3. The exemptions granted pursuant to Article 10 of the aforementioned Royal Decree No. 230 of 21 December 1983, which are in progress on the date of entry into force of this chapter, shall remain subject until their expiry to the provisions of this Royal Decree and its enforcement orders.
Employers who benefit from the exemptions referred to in paragraph 1^er are exempted from compliance with the obligations referred to in Article 39, §§ 1^er, 2 and 3, until the expiry of these exemptions.
Contracts between the Minister with employment in his or her powers and the companies pursuant to section 10 of the above-mentioned Royal Decree No. 230 of 21 December 1983, which are in progress on the date of entry into force of this chapter, shall remain in effect until their expiry.
However, where the contracts referred to in paragraph 3 provide for the engagement of trainees from or after the date of entry into force of this chapter, only young persons defined in section 23 may be engaged in the links of a first-time agreement.
Persons who, in the second quarter of the year prior to the year in which the contracts referred to in paragraph 3 are terminated, are engaged in the execution of these contracts, are not considered for the calculation of the personnel referred to in section 39, §§ 1^er, 2 and 3, and 44
§ 4. The exemptions granted pursuant to Article 10bis of Royal Decree No. 230 of 21 December 1983, which are currently under way on the date of entry into force of this chapter, shall remain subject until their expiry to the provisions of this Royal Decree and its enforcement orders.
Employers who benefit from the exemptions referred to in paragraph 1^er are exempt from compliance with the obligations referred to in Article 39, §§ 1^er, 2 and 3, until the expiry of these exemptions.
Persons who, in the second quarter of 1999, and those who, in the second quarter of 2000, benefit from the employment or training measures that gave rise to the granting of the exemption referred to in Article 10bis of Royal Decree No. 230 of 21 December 1983 referred to above, are not considered for the calculation of the personnel referred to in Article 39, §§ 1^er, 2 and 3, and 44
§ 5. The reduction of employers' social security contributions referred to in Article 13 of the aforementioned Royal Decree No. 230 of 21 December 1983, the period of which is in progress at the date of entry into force of this chapter, remains subject until the expiry of this period to the provisions of this Royal Decree and the Royal Decree of 29 March 1985 carrying out Article 13, § 1^er, 2°, of Royal Decree No. 230 of 21 December 1983 concerning the internship and the vocational insertion of young people. "
CHAPTER VI
Amendment to the table annexed to the Organic Law
of 27 December 1990
Art. 47
In section 23 - 3 "Employment Fund" of the table annexed to the Organic Law of 27 December 1990 creating budgetary funds, as amended by the Act of 15 January 1999, the following amendments are made:
1° to the second column, the words ", by employers who do not meet the provisions of Article 4 or 7 of Royal Decree No. 230 of 21 December 1983 concerning the internship and professional integration of young people and by employers who do not meet the provisions of Article 39 of the Law of 24 December 1999 for the promotion of employment" are inserted between the words "European Funds" and the words "European Fund"
2° to the third column, the two paragraphs are replaced by the following paragraph: "Refund of employment promotion actions, employment creation actions for young people, promotion and supervision of the apprenticeship of occupations carried out by employed workers, compensation for the reduction of social security contributions in the unemployment sector, and reimbursement of the indu to the European Union Commission. "
CHAPTER VII
Amendment of the Act of 26 March 1999 on the Belgian Employment Action Plan 1998 and with various provisions
Art. 48
Article 122, § 2, of the Act of 26 March 1999 on the Belgian Plan of Action for Employment 1998 and with various provisions, is supplemented as follows:
"From 1^er January 2000 and until 31 December 2000, the insertion agreement referred to in Title I of the Agreement of Cooperation of 30 March 2000 between the State, the communities and the regions concerning the insertion of job seekers to the first-time agreement is considered to be an individual support plan referred to in § 1^er. "
PART X
Social Affairs and Pensions
CHAPTER I^er
Health care and allowances
Section I
Amendments to the Compulsory Health Care Insurance Act
and coordinated compensation on 14 July 1994
Art. 49
Article 34, paragraph 1^er, 5°, (c), 2), of the Compulsory Health Care Insurance Act and Coordinated Benefits on 14 July 1994, as amended by the Act of 20 December 1995, is replaced by the following provision:
"(2) drugs registered in accordance with Article 2, 8°, (a), second and third dash, of the Royal Decree of 3 July 1969 on the registration of drugs; "
Art. 50
An article 35bis, as follows, is inserted in the same law:
"Art. 35bis. Find -$$|AGA from 1^er April 2001 and thereafter every 6 months is set up a new reimbursement base for pharmaceutical specialties referred to in article 34, paragraph 1^er, 5°, c), 1, provided that other pharmaceutical specialties containing the same active principle are refunded, having the same form of administration and the same dosage whose reimbursement base is or was, at the time of admission, less than 16%, taking into account the number of pharmaceutical units per packaging.
The new reimbursement base referred to in paragraph 1^er is calculated on the basis of an ex-factory theoretical price equal to the current ex-factory price reduced by 26.7 per cent and then increased margins for distribution and delivery as granted by the Minister who has the Economic Affairs in his duties and that they are applied to the pharmaceutical specialties issued in open-ended informals to the public on the one hand and for those issued in a hospital pharmacy on the other, as well as to the current rate.
For this purpose, the Minister amends, 1^er April 2001 and thereafter every 6 months, the list attached to the Royal Decree setting out the conditions under which an intervention is granted for health benefits referred to in section 34, paragraph 1^er, 5°, (b) and (c), without taking into account the procedural requirements referred to in Article 35, § 3.
The King may amend the percentage referred to in paragraph 1^er and 2 in the circumstances and conditions and according to the rules laid down by Him. "
Art. 51
In section 51 of the Act, amended by the Act of 20 December 1995, the Royal Decree of 25 April 1997, the Acts of 25 January 1999, 24 December 1999 and 12 August 2000, are amended as follows:
1° § 4 is supplemented by the following paragraph:
"It may in these provisions distinguish between the two groups of expenditure referred to in Article 51, § 8. "
2° It is inserted a § 8, which reads as follows:
“§ 8. The procedures and correction mechanisms set out in this Article shall apply separately to expenses relating to the overall annual budgetary objective resulting from the application of Article 40, § 1^er, paragraph 3, on the one hand, and to the exceptional and special expenses that are fixed by the King under the same paragraph of section 40, on the other hand, to the extent that the two groups of expenses may be distinguished. The General Council determines after the opinion of the Budgetary Control Board what expenses are or are not discernable. "
Art. 52
In section 59, paragraph 3, of the Act, as amended by the Act of 12 August 2000, the words: "It is not enforced by the provisions of sections 61 and 62" are replaced by the words: "Z and X values referred to in section 61 are set at 0".
Art. 53
Section 62bis of the Act, inserted by the Act of 24 December 1999, is replaced by the following provision:
"Art. 62bis. - For the 1996 and 1998 fiscal year, values Z and X are set at 0. "
Art. 54
In section 69, § 5, of the same Act, as amended by the Act of 24 December 1999, the following amendments are made:
1° in paragraph 3, 1°, the words "that the exceedance of these partial budgets may be recovered" are replaced by the words "that the overrun of the overall budget or partial budgets may be recovered";
2° § 5 is supplemented by the following paragraphs:
"In order to fix the amount to be recovered, the exceedance referred to in the preceding paragraph is reduced, before recovery, by 25% of the possible underutilization of the overall annual budgetary objective provided for in section 40. The recovery then covers the resulting net amount.
The King may, when fixing the amount of overtaking on the basis of which recovery takes place, determine which expenses may not be taken into consideration. "
Art. 55
In section 191, paragraph 1^erthe following amendments are made:
§ 1^er. In the 15th, as amended by the Act of 20 December 1995, 22 February 1998, 25 January 1999 and 24 December 1999, the following amendments are made:
1° paragraph 3 is replaced by the following paragraph:
"For the years 1995, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000 and 2001, the amount of this contribution is 2%, 3%, 4%, 4%, 4% and 4% of the turnover that was made in 1994, 1995, 1997, 1998, 1999 and 2000. »;
2° in paragraph 5, the last sentence is replaced by the following provision:
"For the years 1995, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000 and 2001, they shall be introduced respectively before 1^er February 1996, 1^er November 1996, 1^er March 1999, 1^er April 1999, 1^er May 2000 and 1^er May 2001. »;
Paragraph 6 is replaced by the following provision:
"For the years 1995, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000 and 2001, the contribution must be paid respectively before 1^er March 1996, 1^er December 1996, 1^er April 1999, 1^er May 1999, 1^er June 2000 and 1^er June 2001 on account No. 001-1950023-11 of the National Institute of Disability Health Insurance, indicating the following year: " turnover contribution 1994", " turnover contribution 1995", " turnover contribution 1997", " turnover contribution 1998", " turnover contribution 1999" or " turnover contribution 2000". »;
4° the last paragraph is replaced by the following provision:
"The revenues resulting from the above-mentioned contribution are charged in the accounts of the mandatory health care insurance, respectively, for the year 1995 for the turnover contribution, 1994, 1996 for the turnover contribution, 1995, 1998 for the turnover contribution, 1997, 2000 for the 1999 and 2001 turnover contribution, 2000. "
§ 2. A 16°bis is inserted, as follows:
"16°bis the product of recovery referred to in Article 69, § 5. The King sets out the rules for determining the portion of these resources for the financing of health care insurance and the self-employed regime. "
Section II
Amendment of the programme law of 24 December 1993
Art. 56
In Article 43, § 1^er, 1°, of the program law of 24 December 1993, as amended by the law of 29 April 1996, the proposal "the personal interventions relating to pharmaceutical products referred to in article 34, 5°, of the law relating to compulsory health care and compensation, coordinated on 14 July 1994" is supplemented by the following words:
"except those designated by the King."
CHAPTER II
Implementation of social agreements
Art. 57
This chapter provides a regulation for the management of the financial impact of social agreements relating to the health care sector, which are concluded by the federal government with the relevant representative organizations of employers and employees.
Art. 58
The management of the financial impact referred to in section 57 is only possible if the principles of the social agreement mentioned are converted to collective labour agreements or protocols entered into within the relevant bargaining committees provided for in the Act of 19 December 1974 regulating the relationship between the authority and trade union organizations representing its workers.
Art. 59
The King determines, by a deliberate order in the Council of Ministers, measures whose financial impact is taken over by the authority and terms to determine the financial impact, the amount and the payment of the financial intervention.
To this effect the King may:
1° designate the data on which the intervention is determined;
2° designate public services to collect and process these data;
3° determine how the intervention must be calculated;
4° fix the period to which this intervention applies;
5° to determine the natural or legal person to which the intervention must be paid and the times to which the payment must take place;
6° determine the recipient of the intervention;
7° designate the public authorities responsible for the calculation and payment of this intervention, and for the control of its use;
8° designate the portion of the financial impact of the interventions that will be covered by the state budget or the portion of the budget of compulsory health care insurance and allowances.
CHAPTER III
Hospitals
Art. 60
In article 128bis of the Hospitals Act coordinated on August 7, 1987, inserted by the law of February 22, 1998, the words "and conditions" are inserted between the words "according to the rules" and the words "determined by Him".
Art. 61
The amounts awarded, for the period between 1992 and 2000, to hospitals through the financial resources budget, pursuant to section 12quinquies of the ministerial order of 2 August 1986 setting for hospitals and hospital services, the conditions and rules for fixing the day price, the budget and its constituent elements, as well as the rules for comparing the cost and setting of the quota of the hospitalised days, agreements,
CHAPTER IV
Crossroads Bank
Art. 62
Article 46, paragraph 1^erthe following amendments are made to the Act of 15 January 1990 on the institution and organization of a Social Security Bank, as amended by the Act of 6 August 1993:
(a) the 6th is replaced by the following provision: "6° authorize any communication of personal social data in accordance with Article 15";
(b) it is inserted 6°bis, written as follows: "6°bis keep up to date a statement that contains, on the one hand, for each automated processing of personal data carried out by a social security institution for the purpose of applying social security, at least the data referred to in Article 17, § 3, of the law of 8 December 1992 relating to the protection of private life in respect of the personal data treatments communicated to the King shall determine the terms and conditions under which any interested person may consult this list with the Bank-Court; "
CHAPTER V
Public social security institutions
Art. 63
In Article 21, § 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 Act of 26 July 1996 on social security modernization and ensuring the viability of legal pension schemes, as amended by the Act of 12 August 2000 on social, budgetary and other provisions, paragraph 3 is deleted.
CHAPTER VI
Amendment of the Decree-Law of 10 January 1945
concerning the social security of minor and assimilated workers
Art. 64
In Article 2 of the Decree-Law of 10 January 1945 concerning the social security of minor and assimilated workers, last amended by the law of 22 February 1998, a § 3quinquies is inserted as follows:
Ҥ3quinquies. The employers to which this Decree-Law applies shall, under the conditions set out below, be liable for an annual contribution calculated on the basis of a part of the days of unemployment which they declared for their minor workers and assimilated under Article 51 of the Act of 3 July 1978 on employment contracts.
The product of this contribution is intended for the annual holiday plan of manual workers.
The National Social Security Office (ONSS) is responsible for the calculation, collection and recovery of this contribution and for the transfer of its product to the National Annual Holiday Office.
This contribution is considered to be a social security contribution, particularly with respect to declarations with justification of contributions, payment deadlines, application of civil sanctions and criminal sanctions, supervision, designation of the competent judge in the event of a dispute, limitation of legal action, privilege and disclosure of the amount of the debt declaration of the institution charged with the collection and collection of contributions.
Under this measure:
1° m = the total number of days of unemployment under section 51 of the Act of July 3, 1978 relating to employment contracts declared by the employer for all minor and assimilated workers, subject to the laws relating to the annual holidays of workers coordinated on June 28, 1971, which he held during the first three trimesters of the previous calendar year and the fourth trimester of the year preceding the sum of 10 These 10% are rounded arithmeticly to the nearest unit, 0.5 being rounded up. If the result of the m calculation gives a negative number, m is supposed to be zero.
2° n = the total number of days of unemployment under section 51 of the Act of July 3, 1978 referred to above by the employer for all minor and assimilated workers, subject to the laws relating to the annual holidays of the employees coordinated on June 28, 1971, which he held in the first three quarters of the previous calendar year and the fourth quarter of the year preceding that year, diminished by 20% of the sum of the These 20% are rounded arithmeticly to the nearest unit, 0.5 being rounded up. If the result of the n calculation gives a negative number, n is expected to be zero.
3° b = the lump sum of the contribution per day of unemployment being part of m or n.
For the years 2000 and 2001, b is 60 Belgian francs a day.
The annual contribution, due by the employer due to unemployment resulting from economic causes, is equal to (m + n) times b.
During the second quarter of each year, the SONS calculates the amount of the contribution due by each employer referred to in Article 2, § 6 of the above-mentioned Decree-Law of 10 January 1945, provided that all statements were received. In case of late receipt of one or more statements, the calculation is done after the receipt of the last.
The amount due is communicated to the employer at the beginning of the third quarter, except in the case of a late calculation where the amount is communicated to the employer after the calculation.
For the year 2000, the employer must pay the amount due in the month of the communication of that amount. For the year 2001, the employer must pay the amount due in the same time as the social security premiums for the second quarter.
Changes to the declaration cannot diminish the amount owing.
The above provisions have effect in the years 2000 and 2001. The King may extend the measure referred to in paragraph 1 by order deliberated in the Council of Ministers and determine the amount of b for additional years of application. They are for the first time applicable to contributions due in the year 2000. "
CHAPTER VII
Alternative financing
Art. 65
The federal state is empowered to reclaim debts in social security schemes for wage workers and self-employed workers up to:
1° 34 048.2 million Belgian francs for the workers ' diet;
2° 23 500 million Belgian francs for the regime of independent workers.
The amount referred to in paragraph 1^er, 1°, includes refund at 1^er March 2001 of 2,500 million Belgian francs to the National Annual Holiday Office.
The King sets out, by deliberate decree in the Council of Ministers, the list of borrowings that will be taken over by the federal state.
Art. 66
§ 1^er. Find$$|AGA from 1^er January 2001, 23.514 per cent of the value-added tax proceeds are levied from this tax and allocated to social security.
The amount determined in accordance with paragraph 1^er may not be less than the amount of 178,231.8 million Belgian francs and is adjusted annually to the fluctuation rate of the average consumer price index.
On the proposal of the Social Security Management Committee, the King may increase the amount obtained in paragraph 1^er or 2 of the cost of reducing personal or employer contributions.
The King may adapt the amount of alternative funding to make reservations for future social security expenditures.
§ 2. After deduction of:
1° an amount of 1,376.3 million Belgian francs per year in favour of the National Social Security Office of provincial and local governments for the purpose of financing initiatives other than police initiatives referred to in Article 1^er§ 2quater of the law of 1^er August 1985 on social provisions;
2° an amount fixed by royal decree deliberated in the Council of Ministers, for the financing of the administrative supervision of local employment agencies referred to in Article 8 of the Decree-Law of 28 December 1944 concerning the social security of workers;
3° the amount fixed in accordance with § 1^er, paragraph 3, intended for ONS-Gestion gobal, referred to in section 5, paragraph 1^er2°, of the Act of 27 June 1969 revising the Decree-Law of 28 December 1944 concerning the social security of workers;
the balance of the amount obtained in § 1^er is assigned as follows:
1° at 95.77 % at the ONS-Gestion overall;
2° at 4.23 % in the Fund for the Financial Balance of the Social Status of Independent Workers, referred to in article 21bis of Royal Decree No. 38 of 27 July 1967 organizing the social status of independent workers.
§ 3. The amounts fixed according to the method determined in § 1^er and distributed according to the distribution key provided in § 2, are reduced by:
1° 34,048.2 million Belgian francs for the year 2001 with respect to the overall ONS-Gestion;
2° 2,700 million Belgian francs for the years 2001 to 2008 included and 1,900 million Belgian francs for the year 2009 with regard to the Fund for the Financial Balance of the Social Status of Independent Workers.
§ 4. The percentage set at § 1^er is applied to the monthly value added tax product. The amounts referred to in § 2, as amended in § 3, are calculated and paid by monthly instalments.
Art. 67
Sections 89 and 90 of the Act of 21 December 1994 on social and other provisions are repealed.
CHAPTER VIII
Pensions
Art. 68
In section 68, paragraph 5 (a), of the Act of 30 March 1994 on social provisions, as amended by the Act of 21 December 1994, as it read before its replacement by section 1^er of the Royal Decree of 16 December 1996 and as amended by the Act of 12 August 2000, the following amendments are made:
1° a new 2) is inserted, as follows:
"(2) the married beneficiary cohabiting with his spouse for which the amount of pension has been reduced, either pursuant to Article 10, § 4, of Royal Decree No. 50 of 24 October 1967 relating to the retirement and survival pension of employed workers, or pursuant to Article 3, § 8, of the Act of 20 July 1990 establishing a flexible retirement age for employed workers and adapting the pensions of employed workers to the pension
2° the 2) becomes the 3).
PART XI
Social integration
CHAPTER I^er
Amendment of the Act of 15 December 1980 on access to territory, residence, establishment and removal of aliens
Art. 69
In section 77bis of the Act of 15 December 1980 on access to territory, residence, establishment and removal of aliens, inserted by the Act of 13 April 1995, the following amendments are made:
1° it is inserted a § 1^erbis, as follows:
« § 1^erbis. It is punishable by imprisonment from one year to five years and a fine of five hundred Belgian francs to twenty-five thousand Belgian francs, anyone who abuses, either directly or through an intermediary, the particularly vulnerable position of a foreigner because of his illegal or precarious administrative situation, selling, leasing or making available rooms or any other local in the intention of making an abnormal profit. »;
2° to § 2, the words "The offence referred to in § 1^er will be punished" are replaced by the words "The offences referred to in §§ 1^er and 1^erbis will be punished" and the word "it" is replaced by the words "the activity concerned";
3° to § 3, the words "The offence referred to in § 2 shall be punished" are replaced by the words "The offences referred to in § 2 shall be punished".
CHAPTER II
Amendment of the Organic Law of 8 July 1976
relating to public social assistance centres
Art. 70
In section 57ter, paragraph 3, of the Act of 8 July 1976 of the State Social Welfare Centres, inserted by the Act of 24 December 1999, the following amendments are made:
1° in the first sentence the words "public authorities and associations" are replaced by the words "public authorities, legal persons and associations";
2° in the first sentence, the words "social assistance" are replaced by the words "reception";
3° in the first sentence, the words ", under public control and on the basis of a notebook of the charges subject to the royal decree deliberated in the Council of Ministers" are added in fine;
4° in the second sentence the words "public authorities and associations" are replaced by the words "public authorities, legal persons and associations".
Art. 71
In the same Act, a new section 57ter 1 is inserted, as follows:
“Art. 57ter 1. § 1^er. Find$$ AGA a foreigner who has declared himself a refugee and has requested to be recognized as such, is designated as a mandatory place of registration, pursuant to Article 54 of the Act of 15 December 1980 on access to the territory, residence, establishment and removal of aliens, a centre that the State, another authority or one or more public authorities organizes or a place or assistance is provided at the request of the State:
1° as long as the Minister of the Interior or his delegate, or the Commissioner-General for Refugees and Stateless Persons or one of his or her deputys have not decided that a review on the merits of the asylum application is necessary;
2° if the foreigner has challenged before the Council of State the decision of the Commissioner-General for Refugees and Stateless Persons or of one of his deputy, taken pursuant to article 63/3 of the aforementioned law.
In special circumstances the Minister or his or her delegate may waive the provisions of the preceding paragraph.
The designation referred to in paragraph 1^er produces its effects as long as the appeal is before the Council of State.
§ 2. The provisions of § 1^er apply:
1° foreigner who declared himself a refugee after the date on which the programme law of 2 January 2001 was published in the Belgian Monitor and who asked to be recognized as such;
2° to the foreigner who, after the date referred to in 1°, challenged before the Council of State the decision of the Commissioner-General for Refugees and Stateless Persons or one of his deputy, taken under article 63/3. "
Art. 72
In Article 57quater, § 1^er, of the same law, inserted by the law of 25 January 1999, the words "or in the register of foreigners with an unlimited period of residence permit" are inserted between the words "registered in the register of the population" and "and which because of its nationality".
CHAPTER III
Amendment of the Act of 2 April 1965 on the Care of Relief Granted
public social assistance centres
Art. 73
In Article 5, § 4, paragraph 5, of the Act of 2 April 1965 on the care of relief granted by public social welfare centres, inserted by the law of 25 January 1997 and amended by the Royal Decree of 25 January 1999, the words "paragraphs three and four" are replaced by the words "paragraphs 2, 3 and 4". "
CHAPTER IV
Right of requisition
Art. 74
The Minister with the Social Integration in his or her powers, or his or her delegate, may requisition any abandoned building, in order to make it available for the reception of refugees. The right to requisition can only be exercised with just compensation.
The King defines, by a deliberate decree in the Council of Ministers, the limits, conditions and modalities in which the right of requisition can be exercised and the method of calculating compensation. It also sets out the procedure, duration of occupancy and the manner of warning of the owner.
PART XII
Finance
Art. 75
The National Bank of Belgium is responsible for taking charge of certain costs related to the transaction to the fiduciary euro, namely:
- transport costs related to pre-food, up to a maximum of 250 million Belgian francs;
- the costs of transport, sorting and counting related to the dismantling of Belgian franc coins for a total amount of 600 million Belgian francs.
The management of these costs represents a public interest mission referred to in Article 21 of the Royal Decree of 10 January 1999 approving the amendment of the statutes of the National Bank of Belgium.
Art. 76
The financing of the costs of security measures taken during the transition to the fiduciary euro, namely the escorts by the forces of the order of the transports of funds and the monitoring of the places of storage of them, will be done through the Fund for benefits against payment of the budget of the Federal Police. The Fund will be funded on this point by the Treasury thanks to the contribution of advances on Treasury assets on the Bank that will result from the non-return of Belgian franc tickets withdrawn from traffic. A convention between the National Bank and the Treasury will clarify the terms and conditions of this transaction.
PART XIII
International cooperation
Amendment of the Act of 25 May 1999
on Belgian international cooperation
Art. 77
Article 2, 6° of the Act of 25 May 1999 on Belgian international cooperation is replaced by the following provision:
"6° "indirect bilateral cooperation": cooperation, financed or co-financed by the Belgian State, in which a third party, which is not a foreign state or an international organization, responds to the execution of programmes or projects, based on a regulatory system of subsidies or a convention. "
Art. 78
In Article 7 of the Act, the word "mainly" is inserted between the words "direct bilateral cooperation" and "on".
Art. 79
Section 10 of the Act is supplemented by a paragraph, which reads as follows:
"For federations of non-governmental organizations, the criteria are set by the King. "
Art. 80
In Article 11 of the Act, the introductory sentence is replaced as follows:
"Belgium international cooperation concentrates indirect bilateral cooperation on societies, groups, associations or institutions of public law, including communities, regions, provinces and municipalities, or private law other than the organizations referred to in Article 10, selected in accordance with a procedure and modalities established by the King, as "indirect bilateral cooperation partners", which meet at least the following criteria:".
PART XIV
Agriculture
Art. 81
Section 10 of the Act of 3 December 1999 on measures to assist agricultural enterprises affected by the dioxin crisis is supplemented by the following provision:
"6° the amounts that are claimed by the Belgian State pursuant to the provisions made pursuant to this Act. "
PART XV
Entry into force
Art. 82
This law comes into force on the day of its publication in the Belgian Monitor, with the exception of:
- articles 29 and 35 that produce their effects on 1^er December 2000;
Articles 31 and 34 that produce their effects on 10 September 2000;
Articles 41, 42, 43, 45 and 46 that produce their effects on 1^er April 2000;
- title X, chapter II, effective 1^er January 2001;
- Article 67 which comes into force on 1^er January 2001;
- Article 68 which produces its effects of 1^er January 1995 to 31 December 1996.
Promulgation of this law, let us order that it be clothed with the seal to the State and published by the Belgian Monitor.
Given in Châteauneuf-de-Grasse, 2 January 2001
ALBERT
By the King:
The Prime Minister,
G. VERHOFSTADT
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Employment,
Ms. L. ONKELINX
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs,
L. MICHEL
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Budget, Social Integration and Social Economy,
J. VANDE LANOTTE
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Mobility and Transport,
Ms. I. DURANT
Minister of Consumer Protection, Public Health and the Environment,
Ms. M. AELVOET
Minister of Social Affairs and Pensions,
F. VANDENBROUCKE
Minister of Public Service and Administration Modernization,
L. VAN DEN BOSSCHE
Minister of Defence,
A. FLAHAUT
Minister of Agriculture and Middle Class,
J. GABRIELS
Minister of Finance,
D. REYNDERS
Minister of Telecommunications and Enterprises and Public Participation,
R. DAEMS
Minister of Economy,
Ch. PICQUE
EXPOSES OF MOTIFS
TITLE I. - General provision
Article 1^er does not require comment.
PART II. - Telecommunications, businesses and public participation
CHAPTER I. - Amendment to the Act of 21 March 1991 on reform of certain economic public enterprises.
This chapter also amends the Act of 21 March 1991 on reform of certain economic public enterprises.
The Conseil d'État, section de législation, rendered on 20 October 2000 its opinion 30.700/4 on the draft royal decree setting the terms of reference and the procedure for granting authorizations for the third generation telecommunications systems. This draft Royal Decree was adopted by the Council of Ministers of 15 September 2000.
The legislation section noted that some of the provisions of this order appear to be lacking legal basis. This bill creates the necessary legal basis.
This bill also introduces a system of shared use of antenna sites in the law precised.
Commentary article by article
Article 2 does not require comment.
Article 3 inserts a new section 92quinquies in the Act of 21 March 1991 on the reform of certain economic public enterprises.
This article concerns the shared use of antenna sites.
The government has prepared the licensing procedure for third generation mobile telecommunications systems.
In order to allow the entire population, both in the cities and in the countryside, to make use of these new possibilities, mobile telecommunications can only be possible through a network of antennas. This network is also one of the main objectives of the Government and the European Commission, so that everyone can benefit from a wireless, global and uninterrupted service offer. This actually implies national coverage and, therefore, the presence of a sufficient number of antenna sites.
Belgium now has around 5000 antenna sites for mobile telecommunications. The granting of new licences for the third-generation service offering to new operators will create a complementary need for antenna sites, given the new technologies and related equipment.
In the second generation of mobile telecommunications, operators had great freedom to plan their sites, while arrangements had already been made to allow collaboration in the form of a shared use of the sites; However, this use was imposed only when operators were unable to obtain the necessary authorizations or admissions to the construction and/or operation of a site, as stipulated in Article 7 of the Royal Decree of 24 October 1997 amending the Royal Decree of 7 March 1995 on the operation of GSM networks, and Article 9 of the Royal Decree of 24 October 1997 on the operation of DCS00-18 networks.
On the occasion of the introduction of the authorization procedure for the third generation mobile telecommunications systems, the government wishes to take an additional step. Indeed, the establishment of sites whose number has seriously increased has caused considerable problems for operators. The government therefore wants to limit the increase in antenna sites and move to a system of maximum shared use of sites by several operators, based on contractual collaboration within a regulated framework.
This shared use is also inspired by European regulations. In the introduction of Directive 96/19/EG of 13 March 1996 amending Directive 90/388/EEG on competition in telecommunications services markets, the European Commission already considered that new operators should have equal opportunities in the development of their network, and that those who, due to essential requirements related to environmental or urban objectives, would be limited in this development, should have access to reasonable conditions of other operators; the refusal of the right of access and passage by existing operators could, under the circumstances, be considered an abuse of their economic power position. In article 4 quinquies of this directive, a first provision of shared use of sites was inserted for cases where the granting of authorizations, due to requirements such as urban planning or the environment, would not be possible, - in order to avoid any discrimination when granting such rights. In Directive 97/33 of 30 June 1997 on interconnection, the European Parliament and the Council have yet to take another step; the development of shared use has been prescribed by national authorities in the absence of useful alternatives, on the basis of agreements reached between operators; the same directive allowed Member States to impose shared use after a public consultation of all concerned parties.
In 1999 and 2000, the Government organized, through the Institute and its external consultants, a number of public consultations during which all interested persons were invited to express their views. Thus, the Government wishes to introduce the shared use, so that the introduction of the revolutionary technology of the third generation, attached to the park of existing antenna sites, has no adverse effect, and that all operators enjoy equal opportunities in the development of their infrastructures.
The Government considers that the public consultations it has held meet the obligation to consult Directive 97/33, which the Council of State recognizes the ambiguity and various possible interpretations.
According to the Government, this is indeed a generic and general public consultation obligation. However, to the extent that a shared use of sites leads to additional work, a change in building or environmental permits could in principle be necessary.
In this way, the government ensures that it does not discourage the development of clean networks by operators, and introduces a right to shared use, on a contractual basis, within the framework of a database of accessible and managed sites in common and in return for a reasonable and non-discriminatory allowance, with a role of conflict resolution by the House for Interconnection, leased lines, special access and shared uses. Rapid resolution of conflicts is essential to the proper functioning of the system.
Paragraph 1^er new 92quinquies describes the operators that fall under the application of the article; This applies to the operators referred to in sections 89 and 92 bis of the Act of 21 March 1991 on the reform of certain economic public enterprises, including authorized operators of mobile telecommunications systems of the second and third generations, and the operators of the said local wireless loop as referred to in the Royal Decree of 27 June 2000, whose provisions on shared use are replaced by those of this article, so that a uniform and managed system in common is put in place.
Paragraph 2 requires operators to make maximum use of existing supports so that the number of sites and pylons remains limited.
Paragraph 3 regulates the situation of the shared use of a site whose support is at least owned by one or more operators; these operators must respond favourably to the request of one or more other operators to have a shared use of the support and adjacent premises (but distinct).
Paragraph 2 of paragraph 3 is determined the consensual basis of shared use, with the principle that the provisions of the agreements must be reasonable, proportional, non-discriminatory and with a fixed price rule. The fixed price rule is intended, on the one hand, not to shake the motivation for the installation of sites required by the introduction of a so-called "cost plus" system, but on the other hand, provides for real but limited income, by fixing of facturable basic costs and a general fee allowance, which covers costs for the search for antenna sites and for obtaining the necessary authorizations; the latter is the average weighted cost of capital (the so-called "WACC") proposed by each operator to the IBPT and fixed by the IBPT so that it is reasonable and non-discriminatory and in order to avoid any abuse of economic power position by the operators, owners or holders of authorized sites whose number has been increasingly reduced.
Paragraph 5 of paragraph 3 describes the only possibility of refusal of shared use, namely the duly justified technical reasons that are accepted by the Board for interconnection, leased lines, special access and shared uses; the exception prescribed in paragraph 5, paragraph 4, is identical. If only incremental costs are caused by shared use, this may not result in a refusal, but in a refactoring of incremental costs on the basis of the requirements of paragraph 3.
In response to the State Council's remarks, the Government confirms that only purely technical reasons can be invoked, within the framework of its firm determination to encourage and make practicable shared use.
Paragraph 7 of paragraph 3 prescribes the same rules if the support is the ownership of a third party, which is directly or indirectly linked to the operator or which manages the site on behalf of an operator.
Paragraph 4 sets out the principles for sites that are wholly or partially owned by a third party. The operator or operators of these sites do not oppose the use shared by one or more other operators, and clauses, such as exclusivity clauses, which would prevent or complicate shared use, are prohibited. Existing clauses must therefore be amended by operators in agreement with their contractor or are repealed after a transitional period.
Paragraph 5 prescribes the exchange of information between operators regarding the necessary preparations for the realization of new sites, so that each operator can address its shared use request on time and that common requests for authorizations can be introduced.
Logically, it is stipulated in paragraph 2 of paragraph 5 that operators take the necessary measures to adapt the stability and height of their antennas, during construction or adaptation, to the future shared use, while paragraph 3 contains a transitional provision with respect to applications for authorization introduced.
The provisions of paragraph 5 do not interfere with regional urban and environmental skills. No formal condition regarding urban planning or the environment is imposed. It is only a way to make the system of shared use more effective.
The Government notes that the State Council does not contest the federal government's jurisdiction in this matter. In the opinion of the Council of State, the Government will consider a cooperation agreement with the Regions.
In paragraph 6, a database of antenna sites is created that must make possible and promote the shared use of sites. Operators have the opportunity to create and manage this database, but if the database is not operational three months after the entry into force of 92quinquies, the King may impose the rules of management, administration and funding; operators are obliged to collaborate in the database, to provide for its financing and to manage it under the control of the IBPT, which draws this competence, such as the development of more precise rules if necessary, of section 109quater of the law.
Paragraph 7 provides operators a period of three months after the entry into force of the article to adapt existing contracts to the shared use and, if necessary, to the provisions of Article 92quinquies.
Based on the law and powers of the House for Interconnection, leased lines, special access and shared uses, this proceeding is referred to in paragraph 8 in relation to the resolution of conflicts relating to shared use.
Paragraph 9 repeals existing regulations for shared use so that a uniform system is established, including second-generation, third-generation and local wireless loop operators.
Article 4 deals with national roaming. This provision is inserted to reduce the structural disadvantage of new mobile telecommunications operators when they enter the Belgian market of mobile phones compared to existing operators that already have a clean network and privileged access to the end user.
Article 4 aims to eliminate these competitive inequalities by temporarily and under certain conditions giving the possibility to the operators that the King will determine to enter into a national roaming contract. This provision is also intended to prevent, in the absence of a clean network, those operators from offering services, or only after a long period of time, in parts of the country where population density is lower.
The Institute may, upon request of one of the operators concerned, impose measures so that a national roaming contract is concluded or amended. Section 4 specifies some of the measures that, if any, the Institute may take. The Institute must be careful to achieve by the measures it imposes on the establishment of a fair balance between the legitimate interests of the two operators concerned, users, including those in places where population density is lower, and the general interest. In addition, a number of political goals will be taken into account, including innovation, interoperability, the quality of service delivery and the promotion of competition.
Article 5 inserts a new section 117bis in Chapter XI of the Act of 21 March 1991 on the reform of certain economic public enterprises.
Given the importance of the honest conduct of the procedures for granting individual authorizations and the honest treatment of candidates, it is appropriate that the public authority have the opportunity to severely punish candidates who manipulate or attempt to manipulate a procedure of granting. These are offences that jeopardize the proceedings or equality of candidates, such as price agreements, collusion, illegal removal of other candidates or disruption of real competition.
The guarantee aims to ensure, on the one hand, the smooth running of the individual authorization procedure, and on the other hand, the financial capacity of candidates to meet their obligations.
If the constitution of the guarantee is imposed, it is indicated to define the amount of the guarantee in relation to the minimum single concession right at the beginning of the proceedings, and if so, the single concession right as defined by the procedure. Given the possible confiscation, it is stipulated that it must be the payment of an amount on a state account.
The guarantee is only constituted for the proper conduct of the procedure and is not maintained after the grant of the authorization.
Due to the fact that the exclusion of the granting procedure appears insufficient to give up a candidate who cannot or does not want to participate in the proceedings in any event, this article states that Article 314 of the Criminal Code is applicable for such offences, and that the court pronounces the confiscation of the guarantee.
CHAPTER II. - National lottery
Art. 6. Under the Programme Law of 24 December 1993, the National Lottery has since 1994 been indebted to the State budget of a monopoly pension, the amount of which is fixed by royal decree deliberated in the Council of Ministers, to a maximum of 2.5 billion.
According to the royal decrees made pursuant to this legal provision, the National Lottery paid to the State budget for each year from 1994 to 1999, an amount of 2.5 billion.
Since 1994, the amount of monopoly rent due by the National Lottery has therefore remained constant, notwithstanding the significant increase in its turnover from 34.3 billion in 1994 to 42.3 in 1999.
Art. 7. Experience shows that the legal process currently governing the allocation of the benefits of the National Lottery has a rigid character which, in practice, makes it materially impossible to grant grants to associations and institutions whose projects and activities, useful to the general interest, require support under pain of being able to be completed.
In order to avoid this coffin contrary to the general interest, the proposed provision aims to allow the King to assign, a portion of the benefit of the National Lottery to associations and institutions before the annual determination of the profit plan by royal decree deliberated in the Council of Ministers.
Thus, dividends will be allocated in 2001 to:
- International Cooperation
- the Buildings Board
- Resuming federal authority grants to various organizations:
European Centre for Missing and Abused Children
Centre for Equal Opportunities and Racism
Fondation Roi Baudouin
Royal Belgian Cinematheque
Europalia
Film Museum
Anti-poise center
Geneva Cancer Centre
PART III. - Protection of consumption, public health and the environment
CHAPTER I. - Introduction of a premium regime to promote the transformation of vehicles with installation L.P.G.
At the Council of Ministers of 17 October 2000, it was decided to reserve $0.3 billion to "ozone" measures. To achieve the environmental objectives set, a large number of vehicles are required to be equipped with L.P.G. installation. For this reason, a premium system is introduced to promote the conversion of vehicles to a L.P.G. power supply. Bonuses will be awarded for a period of two years beginning 1^er January 2001.
CHAPTER II. - Pharmaceutical Inspection
Art. 9. At Royal Decree No. 78 of 10 November 1967 concerning the exercise of the art of healing, of nursing art, of paramedical professions and of medical commissions, the penal provisions referred to in articles 38bis and 43 which are applicable to offences under Article 4, § 3 of the same order are made applicable to offences under other provisions of Article 4 concerning the opening of public officials §
These paragraphs, which were inserted by the Act of 13 May 1999, relate to the registration of open-ended informals. This article aims to provide for the possibility of taking sanctions when not applying these provisions (e.g. failure to pay for registration).
Art. 10. In section 224 of the Act of 12 August 2000 on social, budgetary and various provisions, a fee of 0.05% on the turnover of the Belgian market was provided for medical devices. In order to avoid any contestation it is specified that medical device accessories as well as active implantable medical devices are also targeted.
Art. 11. In section 3 of the Act of 25 March 1964 on medicines, it is added to the possibility of making the presence in the informals of certain facilities, appliances and medicines mandatory that the presence in these same informals of the documentation to be determined by the King.
This in order to make it mandatory for the presence in each informal of the magistral therapeutic form, in preparation, which describes how to prepare the magistral preparations. This form will be produced and sold by the administration.
PART IV. - Mobility and transport
Art. 12. This article aims to delegate to the King the power to adapt all provisions regulating air navigation to obligations arising from international treaties, including those provided for by regulations or directives of the European Community. A similar delegation is provided for in Article 1^er of the Act of 18 February 1969 on Measures for the Enforcement of International Treaties and Acts on Road, Rail or Inland Water Transport.
This article has a retroactive effect in order to prevent potential problems in the implementation of the Royal Decree of 9 December 1998 regulating the investigation of accidents and incidents in civil aviation.
Art. 13. The new article 44bis gives an undeniable legal basis to the delegation of jurisdiction referred to in sections 36 to 38 of the Royal Decree of 15 March 1954 regulating air navigation
Art. 14. The TGV Financial is an anonymous public law company (Law of 17 March 1997) whose purpose is to make available to the S.N.C.B. funds through the subscription of shares without voting rights of the S.N.C.B. for a maximum amount of BEF 125 billion in order to contribute to the necessary investments for the TGV on Belgian territory.
Article 6, § 2 of the Act of 17 March 1997 also provides that the S.N.C.B. will subscribe to the capital of the TGV Financial to a maximum of 10 billion francs per supply of real estate in its private domain, according to a fixed schedule. This supply of real estate must be realized by their sale in order to guarantee the cash required to the TGV Financial.
In return, the shares of the NBC will be released on a separate schedule.
However, in practice, the time frame for the provision of land is impossible to meet due to technical difficulties (leaving legislation that imposes demanding procedures for the valuation, transfer (notarial acts) and sale of land, . ).
An "express" sale in the emergency, before various urban adaptations, would also be synonymous with a loss of profits since the sale would be based on a very low estimate of the Committee of Acquisition since it is often land classified as public utility.
In 2000, the contribution of real estate should be made up to 10 billion francs. To date, a contribution of 4.4 billion francs remains to be made. This delay mortgages the results of the TGV Financial.
As a result, it is necessary to allow the S.N.C.B. to release its participation in the TGV Financial in cash and to amend the Act of 17 March 1997 which imposes a release in kind (terrain) before 31.12.2000 so that the S.N.C.B. can meet its commitments and that the TGV Financial receives the funds within the time frame.
PART V. - Economic Affairs
General socio-economic survey 2001
The provisions of this chapter have a double objective.
First, to mark in the text of the law the change of priorities by replacing the concept of census with that of general socio-economic survey and indicating that it will be an exceptional operation.
It is at the National Institute of Statistics that it will be in the future to update the available information and to preserve its quality, for the benefit of all users of this statistical information.
Secondly, to clarify the ability of INS to access administrative information, as the use of administrative records is the best guarantee:
1° of administrative simplification;
2° of cost reduction.
1. The general socio-economic survey
The government examined the opportunity to conduct a census operation.
He questioned his usefulness and justification, on the basis of, inter alia, the finding that a large number of socio-economic or demographic information are now available in administrative records.
The advisory body created next to the INS, the High Council of Statistics, after having conducted a wide consultation with interested communities, both the authorities at all levels, federal, regional or community, as well as academic circles and other potential users of census data, had issued a notice recommending the operation. The Commission had highlighted the information that, unlike the widespread opinion, cannot be removed from the operation of the administrative registers and therefore requires a direct question from the respondents.
The enumeration of the population is only a partial aspect of the census operation, despite the fact that the etymology of the word refers specifically to this specific activity and that the official name in Dutch further marks the link between the population and the enumeration ("Volkstelling"). Since the censuses were organized, at the initiative of the father of modern statistics, the Belgian Adolphe Lambert Quetelet, the purely "counting" aspect has always been partial, alongside a socio-economic information gathering function. It has been in Belgium since 1846.
The "censing" operation can therefore only be reduced to the population count.
It is therefore not to know the population's figure that a census is carried out, but to collect information on demographics, households, household equipment, housing, employment and training.
In the preparation of Operation 2001, based on current legislation, the INS had focused on a double mission:
- identify the information already available in the files and which should in principle no longer be requested from the respondent;
- study alternative solutions to the traditional conduct of a census: sending of census agents, under the municipal authorities, financed by the federal budget, to each respondent.
The report of the Superior Council of Statistics, details the solutions studied and the analysis.
The government has therefore decided to conduct a general socio-economic survey in 2001, for the last time:
1. collected housing, diploma and training data;
2. processed data on demography and social issues;
3. used as intensively as possible information extracted from administrative records.
At the end of this operation, the National Institute of Statistics will have basic data banks: on demography (in fact, the National Registry that is regularly communicated to it), on social information (based on the files of social security institutes) and on housing, diplomas and levels of training, three new data banks that the INS will have created as part of the 2001 survey operation and that it will regularly update.
In the future, there will be no need for heavy general intelligence-gathering operations.
2. Access to administrative data
It is imperative that the National Statistics Institute be able to access the information of these registers without hindrance.
This right is already recognized by Article 24bis of the current statistical law. At the same time or later, specific legislation regulating the legal status or access to certain data banks has provided for authorisation or control devices, which have been passed on to specialized data protection bodies.
This is the Act of 8 August 1983, which organizes a national register of natural persons, the Act of 8 December 1992 on the protection of privacy with regard to the processing of personal data, in particular with regard to the power of its body, the Commission on the Protection of Privacy, and the Act of 15 January 1990 on the institution and organization of a Bank-Career to the Social Security Committee, and
The coexistence of two legal provisions, one granting an unlimited and uncontrolled right of access to the INS, the other submitting access to data in the control power of certain organizations, creates a conflict of laws situation that is very prejudicial to the INS mission. Indeed, in the material reality of things, the control bodies, by exercising the powers conferred on them by the law, without regard to the power that the law also gives to the INS, effectively impose a system of control of access and limitation of access and thus prevent the INS from fully exercising its legal mission. As a result, it cannot reflect the objective of administrative simplification or perform its mission in an optimal manner.
The economy of protection legislation is irrelevant to the statistical mission. They aim to protect people from illegitimate uses of data. The legislator has made it clear that, for the exercise of statistical missions, as defined by law, no individual situation can ever be revealed and no decision to affect an individual situation can be taken on the basis of statistical results.
It should be noted, therefore, once again, that it is the principle of access to administrative information at the request of the INS that is of a rule and that the protection bodies do not have to intervene, since statistical legislation organizes its own system of privacy and business secrecy, of a nature and of efficiency equivalent to that organized by law in general.
The legislator thus decides the conflict of law, which he himself created and anticipates the new statistical legislation, indicating the conditions under which the INS is allowed to access this information.
Technically, in order to avoid further discussion, it amends the organic laws of the main depositaries of such data, the Social Security Cross-Band and the National Register of Physical Persons (Law of 15 January 1990 and 8 August 1983).
PART VI. - Social Affairs and Finance
Amendment of the Act of 2 August 1971 organizing a linkage regime to the index of prices to the consumption of wages, wages, pensions, allowances and subsidies of the public treasury, certain social benefits, the limits of pay to be taken into account in calculating certain social security contributions of workers, as well as social obligations imposed on independent workers
This title pursues a double objective:
The first objective is to modify the smoothing method in force for indexing social allowances (double smoothing of mobile averages) and to align it with the criterion used for indexing public service salaries (simple smoothing: mobile average of the health index of the last four months).
This amendment is necessary for two reasons: the first is the notion of horizontal equity between the different members of society. The second reason is the notion of administrative simplification.
To this effect, it is necessary to amend Article 4 § 1^er of the above-mentioned Act and Article 6, 1 and 6, 2°.
The second objective tends to reduce the duration of the period between the crossing of the pivot index and the effective adaptation of social allowances (currently from the second month following that from which the "pivot" index was exceeded).
The aim is to respond, as far as possible, to the demands of the population regarding the purchasing power.
To do so, it is necessary to amend Article 6, 3° by imposing an adaptation of the indexation of social allowances the first month following that from which the index-pivot was exceeded.
Since administrative changes will be necessary for recipients who receive an amount raised as a result of an indexation during the first part of the month, the King is given jurisdiction to stop specific terms and conditions of application of the law.
Within certain parity commissions, social partners chose to refer to the collective labour agreements referred to in the Act of 5 December 1968 on collective labour agreements and parity commissions to the indexing mechanism as referred to in the Act of 2 August 1971 These social partners have therefore opted for the application of the indexing mechanism defined by the legislator. Given the amendments to the bill submitted to the Act of 2 August 1971, the government invites the relevant social partners to consider whether they wish to renegotiate this aspect within the Joint Commission.
PART VI. Public Service and Finance
As in Chapter V on the Act of 2 August 1971 organizing the indexing of social benefits, this chapter also reduces the period between the crossing of the index-pivot and the effective adaptation of certain expenditures in the public sector.
To do so, it is necessary to amend Article 6, 3°, of the aforementioned Law of 1^er March 1977 by imposing an adjustment to the indexation of these expenses the first month following that from which the index-pivot was exceeded.
Salaries and wages in the public sector, as well as allowances, subsidies and allowances as long as they are granted under the performance of service benefits of the beneficiaries of these salaries and wages, are excluded from the reduction of the indexation period established by the amendment of section 6, 3° of the law of 1^er March 1977 organising a regime for linking the UK Consumer Price Index with certain expenditures in the public sector.
Since administrative changes will be necessary for recipients who receive an amount raised as a result of an indexation during the first part of the month, the King is given jurisdiction to stop specific terms and conditions of application of the law.
Within certain parity commissions, social partners chose to refer to the collective labour agreements referred to in the Act of 5 December 1968 on collective labour agreements and parity commissions to the indexing mechanism as referred to in the Act of 1^er March 1977. These social partners have therefore opted to apply the indexing mechanism defined by the legislator. In view of the amendments to the Bill submitted to the Act of 1^er March 1977, the government invites concerned social partners to consider whether they wish to renegotiate this aspect within the Joint Commission.
PART VIII. - Defence
Transfer of staff from the Belgian Institute of Postal Services and Telecommunications to the Ministry of National Defence
By the Royal Decree of 3 April 1997 on measures relating to the transfer of certain agents from Belgacom to the federal authority, personnel, including the Marine Radio Service, were transferred to the Belgian Institute of Postal Services and Telecommunications, with effect of 1^er April 1997.
This Royal Decree determines in Article 6 that staff members may be made available to other public services.
Pursuant to a decision of the Council of Ministers of 28 March 1997, the activities and staff of the Marine Radio Service were resumed by the Ministry of National Defence.
On 24 February 2000, the Council of Ministers decided to establish the legal framework for the transfer of personnel currently employed at the Marine Radio Service of the Belgian Institute of Postal Services and Telecommunications to the Ministry of National Defence. In order to continue to operate the Marine Radio Service, 70 jobs are required. Upon their departure, MRS personnel who are transferred will be replaced by 50 military personnel and 20 civilian personnel.
This draft law creates the legal basis for the implementation of this decision of the Council of Ministers.
Article 21 states that the missions and staff of the I.B.P.T. who are assigned to the Marine Radio Service will be transferred to the Ministry of National Defence.
In this regard, consideration will be given to the acquired rights of the staff members concerned at the I.B.P.T.. They maintain their administrative and financial seniority, as well as the treatment, holiday pay, allowances, allowances, bonuses and benefits they had obtained in Belgacom and held at the I.B.P.T. in accordance with the date of their transfer to that body. Of course, this provision will be negotiated with representative trade union organizations.
The date and precise terms of this transfer shall be fixed by the King.
Article 22 authorizes the King to establish the administrative and financial status of the personnel transferred.
PART IX. - Employment and work
The amendments made in the following two chapters are:
- Extend the benefit plan to hire, as well as plan +2, +3 beyond 31/12/2000, and include people who benefit from financial social assistance and who are registered in the population register in the scope of the +1, +2, +3 plans and benefit to hire.
- In addition, amendments have been introduced to ensure the socio-professional integration of foreign nationals who are allowed to stay in Belgium and who have access to the job market without special restrictions. These include persons regulated on the basis of the Act of 22 December 1999.
CHAPTER I. - Employment benefit plan
Art. 23. The plan system benefits the hiring that expires on 31 December 2000 is extended for an indefinite period.
CHAPTER II. - Plan plus one, plan plus two, plan plus three
Art. 24. The scope of the plan plus one is changed with respect to job seekers who benefit from the minimex or financial social assistance. Minimex and various categories of beneficiaries of financial social assistance (persons registered in the registers of the population; those allowed to stay for unlimited duration; those whose right to stay is conditioned by obtaining a job; Finally, those allowed to stay for a specified period of time with the express prospect of being granted an unlimited residence permit after a certain number of renewals) now belong to the scope of the law, provided that they have been registered for at least six months as job seekers with a regional employment office.
Art. 25. The National Employment Office must issue an attestation, as is already the case for other categories of job seekers, for persons whose right to unemployment benefits has been suspended for long-term unemployment and for persons wishing to reintegrate into the job market who are engaged in the more one plan.
However, for persons who have been hired before the date of publication of this Act, employers may still obtain this certificate.
Art. 26. This section changes the scope of application, with respect to job seekers, the plan plus two and the plan plus three in the same way as the plan plus one.
Art. 27. This is a technical derogation following the above-mentioned modification of the scope of the plan plus two and the plan plus three.
Art. 28. This article concerns the same system as that provided for in Article 25, but for the plan plus two and the plan plus three.
Art. 29. The plan plus two and the plan plus three, which expires on 31 December 2,000, are extended for an indefinite period.
CHAPTER III. - The Interdepartmental Budget Fund
Art. 30. Based on this article the King may add other categories of job seekers to the scope of the Interdepartmental Budget Fund.
Thus, the same categories of job seekers as those included in the scope of the plan plus one, plus two and more three by sections 24 and 26 can benefit from the Interdepartmental Employment Promotion Budget Fund.
CHAPTER IV. - Local employment agencies
Art. 31. This section authorizes the National Employment Board to allocate in 1999 500 million francs reserves of the ELA regime as income specific to the financing of unemployment expenses.
Art. 32. The scope of application of local employment agencies is changed with respect to job seekers: regularized and other categories of foreign nationals who are likely to obtain an unlimited right of residence are added.
CHAPTER V. - Amendment of the Act of 24 December 1999 for the promotion of employment
Only more than a semester after the coming into force of the Act of 24 December 1999 for the promotion of employment, the first-time agreement was very successful: in six months, some 25,000 young people had already been engaged and this number is growing steadily.
This period led to some lessons learned that resulted in some technical changes:
- the possibility of entering into a first employment agreement for a period of less than one year when the duration of training or learning is itself less than one year; in this case, a contract of employment must follow the training or learning so that the first employment agreement reaches a total of twelve months;
- the extension of the time limit in which a copy of the first employment agreement must be communicated to the administration in accordance with the model convention that the King sets;
- calculation of the number of conventions based on the number of employers in the second quarter of the previous year rather than June 30.
This amendment produces its effects on 1^er April 2000. Indeed, the National Social Security Office is already taking into account the number of employees in the 2nd quarter of the previous year to determine the obligation of employers and the reductions in social contributions that may be claimed in the event of occupation of less qualified young people. However, it will be ensured that this amendment of the Act does not prejudice employers who wish to avail themselves of their workforce as at 30 June 1999.
In addition, other changes are more fundamental:
- only the occupation of less skilled youth is considered to be a period of unemployment or registration as a job applicant for the application of other employment measures;
This amendment also produces its effects on 1^er April 2000. However, it will also be ensured that it does not harm employers who, before the date of publication of the law programme to the Belgian Monitor, would have already engaged, to another measure in favour of employment that requires a period of unemployment or registration as an applicant for employment, qualified young people who would have ceased to be occupied in the bonds of a first employment agreement;
- transiently, the reduction of social contributions for youth internship regulations, one year after the end of the internship, remains granted to employers when this period is underway in 1^er April 2000.
Section 33 amends section 27 of the Act of 24 December 1999 for the promotion of employment by providing that, where training, learning, internship or insertion have a duration of less than twelve months, the first employment agreement referred to in section 27, paragraph 1^er, 2° or 3°, is followed by a first employment agreement referred to in paragraph 1^er, 1°, - i.e. a contract of work so that a duration of 12 months is reached.
To do so, it is necessary to derogate, at the same time, from the duration of the first employment agreement that consists of a labour contract and the minimum duration of the first employment agreement that consists of an alternative between employment and training, apprenticeship, internship or insertion.
This amendment allows the young person to benefit from a first-time agreement for one year and, therefore, allows the young person to take into account the obligations of the employer in a first-time agreement.
Section 34 amends section 32 of the Act as follows.
The employer will have a period of thirty days instead of seven to communicate to the administration a copy of the first employment agreement. The first-aid conventions that have been communicated within the deadline will be taken into account at the beginning of their implementation. Those who have been communicated outside the time limit will be taken into consideration at the date of their receipt. This provision, as well as the extension of the time limit, is relaxed compared to the original texts.
In addition, only the first-aid conventions that will conform to the model that the King sets will be considered as first-aid conventions. Finally, it should be noted that the existing model will be considerably simplified.
The law gives the King the power to provide that the communication of the copy of the First Employment Agreement may be replaced by another mode of transmission.
Section 35 is intended to retroactively change to 1^er April 2000 Article 38 of the same law: the assimilation of the occupation of new workers under the First Employment Agreement to a period of unemployment or registration as an applicant for employment, for the application of other measures in favour of employment, no longer applies to new less skilled workers. In fact, it seemed inappropriate to allow the occupation of new skilled workers to be assimilated, which would have opened a right to benefits to the employer who would then have occupied them in the context of other measures in favour of employment, while the reduction of social security employers' contributions is granted, within the framework of the First Employment Agreement, only in the case of occupation of new less skilled workers.
Section 36 retroactively changes to 1^er April 2000 Article 39 of the Act.
The first three paragraphs provide that employers must occupy new workers in relation to their workforce, not as of June 30 of the previous year, but in the second quarter of the previous year, the number being calculated in full-time equivalent. In this way, the number of new workers can be determined by the bodies responsible for the collection and collection of social contributions in a fairer manner.
Furthermore, § 4, paragraph 3, was deleted because this provision was incorporated in Article 32.
Section 37 retroactively changes to 1^er April 2000 Article 44 of the Act.
First, it introduces the same reference, in the second quarter, rather than June 30 of the previous year, than that provided by the amendment of section 39.
In addition, § 4 is amended to make it clear that the reduction of social contributions can be granted, not only when the first employment agreement consists only of a contract of work, but also when it is partly a contract of work.
Furthermore, in order to guarantee legal security, it is specified that it is by derogation from section 35, § 3, of the law of 29 June 1981 establishing the general principles of social security of employed workers, that the benefit of the reductions of social contributions provided for in article 44 cannot exceed the total amount of contributions that remain due.
Finally, it is specified that new workers are not considered in the workforce of employers on the basis of which the percentages of occupation of new workers must be achieved to obtain the reduction of social contributions.
Section 38 completes section 45 taking into account the amendment to section 27.
Section 39 retroactively changes to 1^er April 2000 section 47 of the Act by replacing, as in sections 39 and 44, the reference in the second quarter rather than June 30 of the previous year.
Section 40 retroactively changes to 1^er April 2000 Article 54 of the Act of 24 December 1999 referred to above.
§ 1^erParagraph 1^er, it is specified that not only the courses in progress on 1^er April 2000 shall remain subject to the provisions of Royal Decree No. 230 of 21 December 1983 concerning the internship and professional integration of young people and its enforcement orders, but also to the extension of the courses in progress on 1^er April 2000 when this extension occurs after that date. In this way, the trainee can be occupied for a year, even if his six-month internship expires after the 1st^er April 2000.
§ 1^er, paragraph 2, it is added that trainees and persons who are similar to them are taken into consideration in respect of the condition of occupation imposed to obtain the reduction of social contributions referred to in section 44.
Similarly to § 1^er, paragraph 3, it is added that the same persons are not considered in the number referred to in section 44.
The amendment to § 2 has the effect that the exemptions from the obligation to occupy trainees who are in progress on 1^er April 2000 remains subject to the regulations on the internship until they expire when these exemptions have been granted to companies in difficulty or local governments, either under a remediation plan requiring a reduction of staff or in financial difficulties.
It should also be noted that local governments that created a local employment agency before 1^er January 1992 are obliged to take care of young people while they were not to hire interns.
It was considered that there was no longer a need to maintain a derogatory regime in favour of these local governments for more than eight years and that they should be put on the same footing as other local governments.
It is also specified that these employers are, until the expiry of these exemptions granted in accordance with the rules relating to the internship, exempted from their obligations with respect to the first employment agreement. In the event of a partial exemption, it is self-evident that this has effect only in respect of the jobs on which the exemption is carried.
The following amendment is intended, for greater clarity, to split § 3 of Article 54 of the Act of 24 December 1999 in two paragraphs.
§ 3 now deals only with exemptions from the obligation to occupy the interns granted, in accordance with Article 10 of the aforementioned Royal Decree No. 230 of 21 December 1983, to the enterprises that have committed themselves, through a contract with the Minister of Employment, to create additional full-time jobs assigned, by indeterminate employment contract, to young people under 30 years of age.
This provision provides that the exemptions granted in accordance with Article 10 of Royal Decree No. 230 of 21 December 1983 referred to above are in progress on 1^er April 2000 remain subject to the rules for the internship until they expire.
It is also specified that employers are, until the expiry of these exemptions granted in accordance with the internship regulations, exempted from their obligations with respect to a first employment agreement.
This provision also provides that the contracts between the Minister of Employment and the companies pursuant to Article 10 of the aforementioned Royal Decree No. 230 of 21 December 1983, which are in progress on 1^er April 2000 remain applicable until their deadline. Thus, these employers are assured of the maintenance of their exemption up to the expected deadline, thus making paragraph 2 of the initial superfluous §3.
The new § 4 deals only with exemptions to the obligation to occupy interns granted on the basis of Article 10bis of the same Royal Decree n°230 of 21 December 1983. This new paragraph ensures that employers covered by the ministerial orders issued pursuant to the Royal Decree of 2 February 1998 carrying out the above-mentioned article 10bis the continuation of their exemption until the due date, i.e. until 31 December 2000. After that date, a similar exemption may be granted pursuant to section 42 of the Act of 24 December 1999, if the social partners, in their 2001-2002 interprofessional agreement, again decide to allocate a percentage of the payroll to shares in favour of persons who are likely to benefit from an insertion path.
In summary, these amendments ensure that employers who were exempted from the obligation to occupy trainees, that, until the expiry of these exemptions, they will - as a transitional measure - exempt from the obligation to occupy new workers in the bonds of a first-time agreement.
In addition, these amendments provide that they are not taken into account in the workforce that is used to determine the obligation to enter into the first employment agreement and the percentages of occupation of new workers who must be reached to obtain the reduction of social contributions:
- persons who are engaged in the execution of contracts between the Minister of Employment and the companies pursuant to Article 10 of the aforementioned Royal Decree No. 230 of 21 December 1983, in the second quarter of the year preceding the year in which these contracts end;
- persons who, in the second quarter of 1999 and 2000, benefit from the employment or training measures resulting in the granting of the exemption referred to in Article 10bis of Royal Decree No. 230 of 21 December 1983 referred to above.
Finally, a § 5 is added in fine to article 54 of the same law. It states that the reduction of social contributions provided for in the internship regulations remains acquired to employers provided that the period in which it is granted is in progress on 1^er April 2000.
CHAPTER VI. - Modification of the table annexed to the Organic Law of 27 December 1990 creating budgetary funds
The purpose of this bill is to enable the Fund to collect compensatory allowances due to:
- by companies or administrations that, in contravention of the provisions of Royal Decree No. 230 of 21 December 1983 concerning the internship and professional integration of young people, do not occupy the mandatory number of trainees or have terminated staff in compensation for the engagement of interns;
- by employers who, in contravention of the provisions of section 39, subsection 3, section 1st, Chapter VIII, Part II - Employment - of the Act of 24 December 1999 for the promotion of employment, do not occupy the mandatory number of new workers or who have fired staff in compensation for the engagement of new workers.
This chapter also aims to extend the Fund's intervention opportunities to actions that promote job creation for young people.
CHAPTER VII. - Amendment of the Act of 26 March 1999 on the Belgian Employment Action Plan 1998 and with various provisions
Article 42 adapts the legal texts to the new reality, namely the replacement, from 1^er January 2000, of the 1999-2000 Cooperation Agreement of 3 May 1999 between the State, the Communities and the Regions concerning the plan of accompaniment of the unemployed by the Agreement of Cooperation of 30 March 2000 between the State, the Communities and the Regions concerning the insertion of job seekers into the First Employment Agreement. As a result, the allocation of the proceeds of the contribution due from 1^er January 2000 by employers as part of the support of the unemployed is reformulated given this new cooperation agreement.
PART X. - Social Affairs and pensions
CHAPTER I. - Amendments to the Compulsory Health Care Insurance Act and Coordinated Allowance on July 14, 1994
One of the pillars of the 2001 Health Care Insurance budget is the drug policy.
After consultation with the sector's stakeholders on this issue, a policy will be developed, based on the following strength lines:
- to achieve greater efficiency;
- pay attention to innovations;
- safeguard accessibility for the patient;
- to ensure expenditure control.
This is reflected in a series of measures. First, simplified structures and accelerated procedures for accepting and revising drug refunds will be developed, together with better scientific support and compliance with the deadlines set out in a European directive. These measures will be the subject of a separate bill.
In addition, measures will be taken to promote a sound drug policy, integrating it into a comprehensive vision of care. It is within this framework that the incentive to use and generic drugs is also located using a reference reimbursement system.
For the year 2001, the budget economy is estimated at about 1 billion francs, taking into account generic drugs on the market or that will be marketed in the short term.
This measure aims at a double effect: on the one hand, the average price of the drugs in question will decrease and, on the other hand, we try to strengthen the appeal for new generics.
Through campaigns conducted by the authorities and mutualities, pharmacists, doctors and insured persons will be informed of alternative means available on the market, which meet the most severe demands of public health.
Section 44 of this bill provides for the inclusion of section 35 bis in the Act of 14 July 1994 on compulsory health care and allowances.
Another measure taken under the new drug policy is the setting up of a realistic budget based on objective political choices.
A convention is concluded with the pharmaceutical industry on this subject. It states that, in the event of an overrun of the budget in question in 2001 $94.8 billion for the overall drug budget, the industry will have to reimburse the health care insurance for an amount equal to 65% of the overrun, reflecting the industry's share in the start-up price. This amount will be distributed among pharmaceutical companies based on their turnover.
Sections 45 and 46 of this project set the above-mentioned overall budget and establish the above-mentioned recovery mechanism.
For the same year 2001 the turnover contribution remains due. The amount is maintained to 4% of the revenue generated in 2000.
Article 46 creates the legal basis for this purpose.
It is necessary for the government that the means that, within the framework of the overall budget objective (equal to 542.8 mrd FRB), at 22.3 mrd FRB are reserved for new priority initiatives, will not be spent to finance other activities. To this end, it is necessary to organize a precise budgetary follow-up.
Articles 47 and 51 set out the procedure to be followed.
In order to achieve more elaborate financial accessibility, section 48 provides the possibility of adapting the current mechanism of tax deductible.
This mechanism, as organized by section 43 of the Act-Program of 24 December 1993, excludes from the application of the tax deductible personal interventions relating to pharmaceutical products in their entirety.
Given that some pharmaceutical products are an essential component of the health care of many insured persons and that these products represent a significant expense position for these insured persons, this bill allows for consideration of personal quotas for certain pharmaceutical products, which will be determined by the King, when applying the tax deductible, so as to improve financial accessibility to health care.
By A.R., similar parallel measures will be taken for the social franchise.
Finally, a financial technical provision is included in this project.
Sections 49 and 50 set for the 1996 and 1998 fiscal years Z and X to O. These values are therefore that for those years the recovery previously provided by law is not carried out.
However, the articles of the law must be maintained in order to calculate the coefficient of market share for subsequent years.
Commentary article by article
Art. 43. This section specifies the definition of generic drugs, referring to registration provisions.
Art. 44. This article introduces a reference reimbursement system for certain pharmaceutical specialties.
Concretely it is proposed to introduce a reference refund when, for an active principle and an identical form of administration, various "non-patent" specialties are available. The basis for reimbursement will be set in this case at 16% below the current level of reference specialties.
The measure in question comes into force on 1^er April 2001. Since 2002, the lists in question will be published twice a year in the form of A.M.
Articles 45 and 46. These articles establish the principle of a comprehensive budget for the drug sector, the recovery mechanism that is linked to it, and specify the destination of the amounts that may be recovered.
Section 46 extends the contribution provisions on the turnover of pharmaceutical specialties for the year 2001.
Articles 47 and 51. When setting the overall budget objective, exceptional or special expenses may be added, beyond the level of expenditure that results from the application of the actual growth standard of 2.5%. These amounts must be considered as amounts affected, in that they can only be used for the financing of well-defined or new initiatives. They can therefore not be used to finance existing activities, whose changes in consumption and cost must be made within the limits of the legal growth standard of 2.5%.
In order to avoid a possible unplanned increase in existing activities to exhaust the financial resources provided for these well-defined or new initiatives, it is desirable to submit the evolution of the two sets of expenditures separately to the correction procedures and correction mechanisms.
Since this is not always possible, it is up to the General Council to determine when it is feasible and when it is not.
Art. 48. This article amends section 43, § 1, 1 of the Act-Program of December 24, 1993 in that the King determines that only personal interventions for the pharmaceutical products that he defines are taken into account for the application of the tax deductible.
Articles 49 and 50. The current section 62bis of the coordinated law on 14 July 1994 states that sections 61 and 62 of this Act are not applied for 1996 and 1998.
The result is that the market share coefficients for 1996 cannot be calculated.
In the advance phase for the year 1997 no budgetary exceedance was found. However, section 61 is applicable. The coefficients on the market share can therefore be calculated normally, but not the correction factors, which are to be calculated on the basis of the coefficients on the market share of the years 1994, 1995 and 1996.
If, in the final recovery phase, there is no budgetary overrun, the laboratories must not pay a discount for the year 1997 and there is no problem for this year.
The market share coefficients for 1998 cannot be calculated.
As from 1999 and subsequent, it is impossible, in the event of possible budgetary exceedances, to proceed with the calculations provided for in section 61.
CHAPTER II. - Hospitals
With regard to hospitals, two elements are proposed: on the one hand, under the Hospitals Act, the King is empowered to determine the conditions under which statistical data must be communicated by the manager to the Medical Council; On the other hand, a second provision is intended to regulate the amounts paid in the past and to cover the cost of the sectoral agreements concluded in 1991 for staff working in services not funded from the financial resources budget.
In its current version, section 128bis states that the King may, according to the rules determined by him, set the financial or statistical data that must be communicated by the manager to the Medical Council of a hospital. The proposed amendment is intended to confer on the King the competence to establish conditions as well.
Sectoral agreements concluded in 1991 between workers' and employers' representative organizations provided, for hospital staff working in fees-funded services, that the government would provide such funding, either through measures to implement section 140 of the Coordinated Hospitals Act, or through adjustments to the nomenclature of medical benefits, or through other regulations. In this case, regulations were promulgated by the Royal Decree of 29 September 1992 implementing Article 94, paragraph 3, of the Hospitals Act. Based on insufficient legal basis, this Royal Decree was cancelled by the Council of State by a decision of 15 March 1996. Meanwhile, an article 139bis was inserted by the Royal Decree of 16 April 1997 in the Hospitals Act. It is the legal basis on which a new Royal Decree can be taken. However, the proposed section aims to regularize the financial resources budget amounts for the period 1992-2000.
CHAPTER III. - Banque-carrefour
Under section 46, paragraph 1^er, 6°, from the Act of 15 January 1990 on the institution and organization of a Social Security Crossroads Bank, the Supervisory Committee is required to keep a list of social data communications of a personal nature to the Bank where it has granted permission or has been informed of. In practice, this list also includes the data referred to in Article 17, § 3, of the Act of 8 December 1992 on the protection of privacy with respect to the processing of personal data concerning the automated processing of personal data carried out by social security institutions for the application of social security. It is recommended that a legal provision be made to reflect this practice.
The terms and conditions that the King may determine on the basis of draft article 46, paragraph 1^er, 6bis, relate only to the publication of the above list and relate as such to a measure of publicity of the administration. The Council of State notes that they cannot result in an exemption from the rules relating to the right to consult the files referred to in Article 10 of the Act of 8 December 1992 on the protection of privacy with respect to personal data processing. This is all the more true because the list in question does not include personal data but only mentions the kind of data it is about.
As the Privacy Act is, in fact, not even an application to this list (as it is not a personal data), the power given to the King may not have any effect on the rules of rectification of personal data.
CHAPTER IV. - Public social security institutions
The Royal Decree of 3 April 1997 on measures for the accountability of public social security institutions pursuant to section 47 of the Act of 26 July 1996 on social security modernization and ensuring the viability of legal pension schemes, which is the basis for the accountability of parastatals, was a situation in which it could reasonably be expected that the modernization of parastatals would take place faster than that of the administration. As a result, this rapid modernization process was avoided by a slower process for the rest of the administration. For this reason, a number of provisions provided for rules that systematically derogated from what was generally applicable to the public authorities, particularly with respect to government personnel. Thus, the parastatals should in principle not follow the general status of the staff and therefore there should be derogatory rules for consultation.
With the radical changes that the Minister of Public Service has put in motion for the entire state apparatus, this reasoning is no longer valid; Even more, the accountability of parastatals seems to be exceeded by the modernization of all public authorities. It is therefore no longer necessary, or even more desirable, to foresee in principle other rules for parastatals. Both do not exclude that derogations that relate to the specificities of the parastatals should remain possible.
For this reason, the law of 12 August 2000 made certain amendments to the aforementioned Royal Decree. These amendments also had to adapt the rules for public and personal consultation, otherwise the parastatals would no longer be interested in the consultation on the status of personnel that is applicable to them. It was then chosen for a particular form of joint dialogue.
At the meeting on 10 July 2000, while the programme law had already been discussed in the House, Committee A, however, expressed support for the usual consultative structure and not for the special structure proposed in the programme law. Following the decision of this meeting, the Sector 20 Committee was established in the meantime.
However, both imply that the special regime that was introduced by the Program Act of 12 August 2000 must be rescinded. Another regime should not be provided for, since, in the absence of a provision to the contrary, the normal rules of consultation are applied, which was the purpose of Committee A.
CHAPTER V. - Adaptation of the Decree-Law of 10 January 1945 concerning the social security of minor and assimilated workers
As a result of what was decided in the framework of the Inter-Professional Agreement 1999-2000, the Act of 12 July 2000 amending, with respect to the employer's contribution to unemployment as a result of economic causes, the Act of 29 June 1981 establishing the general principles of social security for employed workers, establishing a new special contribution for social security in order to empower employers in the context of economic unemployment. The same measure shall apply to employers subject to the Decree-Law of 10 January 1945 concerning the social security of minor and assimilated workers.
CHAPTER VI. - Alternative financing
Articles 57 and 58. In order to strengthen the public's confidence in the financial situation of social security, the government proposes on the one hand to take over the debts of social security. At the end of 2000, these debts will amount to 34,0 billion francs in the wages of wage workers and 23.5 billion francs in the self-employed regime.
On the other hand, the state adapts the level of alternative financing. With respect to the wages of wage workers, the adjustment will take place in 2001 to the amount of the debts taken.
With respect to the self-employed regime, adaptation will be carried out to a maximum amount that is possible without jeopardizing the budgetary balance. Since the amount of debts in the self-employed system exceeds the reduced amount of alternative funding, it will be appropriate to continue to be taken into account in the coming years. This means that the amount of alternative funding will be reduced annually by a fixed amount, until the amount of debt recovery is reached. The surpluses resulting from an increase in contributions remain within the plan, as well as the margins created as a result of the non-depreciation of debts at the expense of the plan.
The level of alternative financing, as set out in § 1, will be applied again from 2002 for the wage-workers regime and from 2010 for the self-employed regime.
Article 59 is intended to replace Article 89 (and 90) of the Act of 21 December 1994 on social and other provisions in order to adapt the alternative financing of social security to the decisions of the budgetary conclave and to the resumption by the State of the debt of social security.
With regard to the adaptation of the amount of alternative funding for future spending in social security, reference is made to the government's decisions regarding the Aging Fund.
CHAPTER VII. - Pensions
Article 68 of the Act of 30 March 1994 on social provisions established a solidarity deduction on legal pensions and benefits in lieu of pension to supplement them.
The legal basis of this solidarity restraint cannot be contested. However, specific provisions must be provided to ensure the execution of the above-mentioned article for the period of 1^er January 1995 until December 31, 1996.
To this end, section 23 of the Act of 12 August 2000 on social, budgetary and other provisions determines what is to be understood by a legal pension, by a single beneficiary and by a beneficiary with a family charge, the cases for which the deduction must be paid to the Pension Plan Balance Fund, how a capital must be converted to a fictitious annuity and in which order of priority that deduction must be applied to the various pensions of the same beneficiary.
A material error resulted in the omission in the above-mentioned article 23 of the Act of 12 August 2000, of a point that contains one of the definitions of the notion "beneficiary with family responsibility".
This definition is included in section 60.
Like Article 23 of the Act of 12 August 2000, Article 60 produces its effects of 1^er January 1995 to 31 December 1996. As for the justification of retroactivity, reference is made to the considerations developed in relation to the above-mentioned article 23.
PART XI. - Social integration
Art. 61. Because of the current influx of asylum seekers, the cheap housing market in most larger cities with relatively high concentration of foreigners and poor people is saturated. Even in smaller municipalities, it is not obvious to find affordable housing for a claimant. Many owners are not inclined to rent their property to foreigners in general or to asylum seekers in particular. This limited housing offer is a source of despair for many asylum seekers. Affordable housing owners are often in bad faith and enjoy the situation in a disgraceful way. These bad-faith exploiters and owners fill their pockets with an important part of the financial aid.
Some examples. More and more rooms for a person are rented to ten people and square meters. Some houses are even rented several times a day in stages of eight hours for example. Asylum seekers and families with children live in debilitating circumstances. This is unacceptable. For this reason, an additional article will be added to the Foreigners Act of December 15, 1980, making it explicitly punishable to operate and to rent multiple units of the same accommodation.
Art. 62. The law currently provides that the Minister who has the Social Integration in his powers may charge the Red Cross of Belgium, the other authorities, the public authorities and associations that meet the conditions set by the King, to provide social assistance to asylum seekers, at the expense of the State, according to the rules laid down by convention.
In order to cope with the very significant increase in the number of places to be accommodated, among other things, on the basis of a general tender and to offer the possibility of a convention with all valid candidates, the terms "lawyers" are added as a possible promoter to provide social assistance to asylum seekers.
Currently the legislation already provides that a centre organized or approved by the State is designated to refugee candidates as a compulsory place of registration for the duration of the admissibility of their asylum application. It is generally accepted that absolute preference goes to a first reception in a reception centre. This form of reception also offers guarantees for adequate quality reception especially at the beginning of the asylum procedure, when asylum seekers are not accustomed to language, living conditions and housing, social gains, rights and duties related to their status and others. In addition, this form of reception protects against abuses by human exploiters and traffickers who take advantage of the vulnerable situation in which many refugees are found and prevents the financial assistance obtained by some refugee candidates from being recovered by these rather malicious people.
In order to guarantee this form of reception to any newly arrived asylum seekers, it is determined in respect of social assistance that each asylum seekers must be designated at a reception centre for the duration of the examination of the admissibility of the asylum application. This implies that this person can obtain social assistance in this centre only and that for the duration of the examination of admissibility, CPAS is discharged from social assistance. Thus, CPAS can better apply to social assistance to poor refugee candidates whose application for asylum was declared admissible. These are the persons about whom the competent authorities have decided that a substantive examination is necessary and which therefore have a real chance of being recognized as refugees. In this way, CPAS acquires a social mission for a small group of people, which will improve the quality of service delivery. These people will also be a bit accustomed to the language and ways of living what will benefit communication and good understanding. The provision of assistance from CPAS can also be placed in a more sustainable perspective.
In exceptionally serious circumstances, the Minister or his or her delegate may neglect the requirement to designate a reception centre. Here, for example, is the situation where a refugee candidate's wife arrives after her husband while the latter has already settled in a certain commune. In such exceptional circumstances, it is more than equitable that a reception centre will not be designated as a compulsory place of registration to the wife, but that she will join her spouse in her home, with possibly the same place of compulsory registration as her husband. Special circumstances are also circumstances in which hospitality capabilities are insufficient and where, a qualitatively equivalent alternative that includes material assistance must be offered.
In accordance with the decision of the Court of Arbitration No. 43/98 of 22 April 1998, refugee candidates who lodged an appeal before the Council of State against a confirmed decision of non-admissibility of the Commissioner-General continue to be entitled to social assistance, even if stricto sensu they no longer hold a residence permit. Following this decision, it has already been found that more refugee candidates lodge an appeal before the Council of State against the above-mentioned decisions of the Commissioner-General, in some cases only to obtain a financial assistance benefit longer.
Since the asylum authorities have definitively decided that the asylum application must be considered non-receivable, it is no longer advisable to continue to charge the CPAS for the social assistance provision to these persons.
Regardless of the possibility of suspension or cancellation of the contested decision, the rebuttable presumption that these persons are in a very precarious residence situation if they remain in the country, remains valid for the duration of the examination of the appeal by the State Council. In this context, it is better that they be accommodated in a reception centre where they will receive the necessary service during the processing of the appeal by the State Council. In accordance with the above reasoning, it is in other words also appropriate to unload the CPAS from the social assistance to these people, which will allow them to better apply to social assistance to those refugees who are still appointed to them.
The allocation of a centre or place that exempts social assistance from the State's request and its costs, as a compulsory place of registration, shall apply only to all new asylum seekers and all new remedies brought to the State Council against the decisions of the Commissioner General, as soon as the day after the entry into force of this article.
It is therefore not the purpose of assigning a centre or place that dispenses social assistance at the request of the State and at its expense to the claims under way at the time of the entry into force of the provision.
The amendment to section 57ter, 3rd paragraph of the Organic Law of 8 July 1976 of the Public Social Assistance Centres is intended to extend the number of promoters in the organization of the reception of asylum seekers. Among other things, valid candidates who subscribe to the general tender that will be launched by the authority for the creation of additional greeting places.
The new article 57ter bis provides in § 1 clearly when a place of compulsory registration in a centre or similar initiatives must be designated. These are two situations:
1. until it is decided that an examination on the merits of the asylum application is necessary, in other words, until a decision on the admissibility of the claim has been taken;
2. if the refugee candidate has filed an appeal with the Council of State against a confirmed decision by the Commissioner-General.
In exceptionally serious circumstances it may be derogated from the requirement to designate a centre (or similar initiative) as a mandatory place of registration. Public servants who indicate the mandatory place of registration to assess these circumstances; as they already do. The principle remains clear: a compulsory place of registration is a centre.
§ 2 specifies for which application for asylum the generalized compulsory place of registration will be applied in particular for all new asylum applications and new appeals to the State Council against the decisions of the Commissioner General, introduced on the day following the entry into force of this new article.
Art. 64. The purpose of this amendment is to open federal employment assistance programs to foreigners registered in the Aliens Register and who have an unlimited residence permit. This concerns the following programs to activate financial social assistance:
- vocational transition programmes;
- service jobs;
- the hiring plan activated;
- social integration initiatives;
- the insertion inside.
The opening of federal employment assistance programs is the best guarantee of integration in society for these categories of people. This also reflects the government's desire to register in an active social state by transforming financial social assistance into employment assistance. However, this policy of professional integration is limited to categories of foreign nationals who are granted an unlimited residence permit. These include the expansion of the conditions of access to these programs: persons regulated with unlimited residence permit and persons who have benefited from family reunification after the probationary stay.
Article 57 quater § 1 is extended to foreigners registered in the register of foreigners who have an unlimited residence permit.
Art. 65. This amendment is essential to open federal employment assistance programs for foreigners, registered in the Aliens Register and granted an unlimited stay permit. It is related to the amendment of section 57 quater of the Act of July 8, 1976 organic CPAS which allows to activate financial social assistance.
This is a technical adaptation made necessary by the extension of the employment measures of certain foreigners registered in the foreign register.
Art. 66. In order to provide, from the date of the entry into force of the general allocation to a centre or place that dispenses social assistance at the request of the State and its costs, for all new asylum seekers and for all new remedies to the Council of State against the decision of the Commissioner General; it is necessary to be able to guarantee the capacity of adequate reception at all times. For this reason, it is anticipated that the Minister who has the Social Integration in his powers or his delegate may requisition any abandoned building in order to make it available for the reception of asylum seekers.
The possibility of being able, in the event of insufficient imminating capacity, to carry out an abandoned building requisition, does not unload the authority of its responsibility to be able to estimate as accurately as possible the necessary accommodation needs. This, however, is not always possible and therefore an instrument must be provided to guarantee the right to social assistance in order to be able to lead a life in accordance with human dignity in a centre or place that dispenses social assistance at the request of the State and at its expense.
The King deliberately determines to the Council of Ministers the limits, conditions and conditions under which the right of requisition may be exercised. It also determines the procedure, duration of use and the terms and conditions for the owner's information.
As the Conseil d'Etat points out, depriving the owner of his right to freely dispose of his property, without awarding compensation, hardly agrees with the principle of proportionality. Article 66 therefore provides that the right of requisition can only be exercised through fair compensation.
This article provides a right of requisition for the Minister who has the Social Integration in his powers or his delegate in order to allow him to requisition abandoned buildings to guarantee the reception of refugee candidates.
By deliberately decreed to the Council of Ministers, the King sets out the limits, conditions and modalities according to which the right of requisition can be exercised. It also determines the procedure, duration of use and the terms and conditions for the owner's information.
PART XII. - Finance
1^er January 2002 euro coins and tickets will be put in circulation. Belgium will finalize the transition to the fiduciary euro by the end of this year. It provides that professionals will already have the means of payment in euro at their disposal in the fall of 2001 and that individuals will be able to purchase coins in euro as of 15 December 2001 (pre-payment). A first collection of coins in Belgian franc will take place after the summer (the "drive" operation).
The transition to the fiduciary euro is an unprecedented operation. To make it successful the consensual commitment of all relevant actors is necessary. To this end, the authorities will be responsible for certain costs:
- Pre-food transportation costs
Pre-food is necessary for the success of the entire passage scenario. The collaboration of a large number of sectors, quite exceptionally compared to habits, is essential in this case. Contrary to the involvement of professionals during the dual circulation period based on Council Regulation (EC) No 974/98 of 3 May 1998 - their possible collaboration with "pre-food" is quite voluntary. Specifically, these expenses would relate to reimbursements of additional specific costs (mainly transport) exposed by the market sectors as part of "pre-food". These are only third-party costs (mainly the area of the transportation of funds); financial institutions and business enterprises bear their internal costs anyway.
It is expected that the National Bank of Belgium will take charge of transport costs related to pre-food up to 250 million BEF. This amount is an absolute ceiling that cannot be exceeded.
- Costs related to demonetization
During the period of dismantling the Belgian franc, it is necessary that the public authorities take charge of the costs of transporting, sorting and counting coins in Belgian franc removed from the traffic. The proposed scenario provides only one count of the parts removed from the traffic that will be carried out by the carriers under the control of the National Bank of Belgium and the Royal Mint. This operation will replace the current double or multiple verification of the carriers and the National Bank and demonstrate an efficiency that will benefit all actors. It would be good for consensual collaboration that this economy would be reflected in other sectors.
It is expected that the National Bank of Belgium will take charge of the transport, sorting and counting costs related to the dismantling for a total amount of 600 million FRB.
- Security costs
Finally, the public authorities will have to take additional security measures: not only during pre-food, but also during the period of double traffic and during the decommissioning of the Belgian franc.
Pre-nutrition will be accompanied by very important funds transport in the last months of 2001; This will result in a very high concentration of liquidity in distribution points towards the end of 2001. This situation requires very important security measures to prevent criminal acts as a preventive measure. The costs associated with these security measures will be charged to the existing budget fund for benefits against payments from the federal police budget. They are estimated at 1095 million FRB, of which 392 million FRB is in charge of the 2001 budget.
Funding will be provided by the Treasury through the contribution of advances from the National Bank of Belgium. Those if will be compensated for Treasury claims on the Bank resulting from the non-return of FRB tickets withdrawn from traffic, the countervalue goes to the Consolidated Revenue Fund.
PART XIII. - International cooperation
Amendment of the Act of 25 May 1999 on Belgian international cooperation.
The wording of the provisions on indirect cooperation daned by the law of 25 May 1999 on Belgian international cooperation made it impossible to implement the provisions concerned. In addition, there is made, without any motivation, a choice for an exclusively conventional system of indirect cooperation. The current system is primarily regulatory and would therefore be contrary to the law, which is not desirable. In addition, the current text of the law makes it impossible to co-finance the o.n.g.'s, universities and other indirect actors for their activities in Belgium, while the northern actions have traditionally, and fortunately are part of their activities.
This is why it is proposed to amend the text to make indirect cooperation possible on the basis of regulations or conventions and not to limit it to activities in partner countries. The current text of Article 10 gave rise to doubts about the co-financing of O.n.g. federations; it is proposed to erase this doubt.
The text was supplemented by a provision in which the King sets out the criteria to be met by NGO federations. These criteria are already set out in the Royal Decree of 18 July 1997.
Finally, some inconsistencies between Dutch and French texts are corrected.
PART XIV. - Agriculture
The purpose of this article is to extend the revenues of the "Funds for the Compensation of Agricultural Enterprises Affected by the Dioxin Crisis" established by the Act of 3 December 1999 on measures to assist agricultural enterprises affected by the dioxin crisis with the amounts due to the provisions of this Act.
PART XV. - Entry into force
These are articles of entry into force. As long as some articles come into force on a different date than that of the publication of this law in the Belgian Monitor, a justification is found in the relevant chapters.