JOHN CARLOS I

KING OF SPAIN

To all who present it and understand it.

Sabed: That the General Courts have approved and I come to sanction the following Law.

EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

Communications services in general and, in particular, the postal services, constitute a basic element for economic development, dynamizing the other productive sectors of the country's economy and being indirect generators. of wealth and employment. They are also a key element for social cohesion, for increasing the competitiveness of businesses and for the development of trade in Spain.

Justifies especially the regulation of the postal sector, the need for explicit recognition of everyone's right to access postal communications at an affordable price.

Initially, in our country the existence of a monopoly by the State, for the provision of the postal service, was left in our country. This idea was giving in to impulses of reality. However, the change of criterion was only translated into partial and asistematic normative provisions. In a lot of cases, those provisions didn't even have enough range. The regulations applicable to the Spanish postal sector are now dispersed in a large number of provisions.

The framework that, for a long time, has served to regulate postal activity in Spain has been the Postal Ordinance of May 19, 1960. However, after that date, reality has changed extraordinarily.

It is therefore necessary to establish a systematic regulation in which the system to which the provision of the universal postal service is to be determined is determined, the right to postal communications of all the Citizens and businesses and the area of the postal sector that is liberalised is recognized, setting the basic rules that allow for free competition. The Law provides legal certainty to those who compete in a market under free competition which, until now, lacked a substantive regulation that clearly determines the outline of their rights and obligations.

The adoption by the European Parliament and the Council on 15 December 1997 of Directive 97 /67/EC on common rules for the development of the internal market in postal services in the Community and on the improvement of the the quality of the service, inspires the new postal regulation in Spain.

The Law is approved on the basis of exclusive competence that the State recognizes in article 149.1.21. of the Spanish Constitution, in the field of postal services.

Under the above mentioned Community Directive 97 /67/EC, this Law is intended to ensure:

(a) the establishment of a legal framework to collect the rights and obligations of users and operators (Title I); (b) a liberalized scope of action by postal operators, with the free competition regime being envisaged In the case of a very important part of the sector, in harmony with Article 38 of the Constitution (Title II), and (c) the regulation of the universal postal service, which all corresponds to an affordable price and, in particular, the determination of a the reserve system in favour of the operator to whom the provision of that operator is entrusted, in accordance with a rate system (Title III).

Within the activity of postal operators, there is a scope for liberalisation in which prices will be set according to the supply and demand game. On the other hand, the price regime provided for by the provision of the universal service, which is not reserved for the operator to which it is entrusted, guarantees sufficiently the rights of the users of the postal service. The fixing, in legal terms, of the basic parameters for the determination of the fees to be paid by the aforementioned operator for the performance of the reserved services, gives an additional guarantee to the users concerned.

At the same time, the Law regulates the Postal Administration (Title IV) establishing the State's competences and determining the functions of the Government and the Ministry of Public Works. The Postal Advisory Board is also established as the Government's top advisory body on postal services.

Likewise, an inspection regime and other violations and sanctions are collected (Title V) more adapted to the wording of Article 25.1 of the Constitution than the one preceding it, taking into account the latest case-law of the Constitutional Court. Provisional measures are permitted to ensure, in the sanctioning procedure, the effectiveness of the resolution that is delivered in its day.

The text of the Law concludes with five additional provisions, six transitional provisions, one repeal and four endings. In particular, the additional provision provides for the provision of the universal postal service to the public enterprise postal and telegraphic entity, without prejudice to the fact that, in the field not exclusively reserved for the performance of the postal service, the concurrency of other operators.

In short, with a determined will to clarify the liberalized scope and to combine this pretension with a specific regime for the operator in charge of the provision of the universal postal service, according to its specific needs and the obligation to be entrusted to it and under the Community regulatory framework, a basic and unitary regulation of the postal sector in Spain is established.

TITLE I

General provisions

Article 1. The purpose of the Law and the nature of postal services.

1. The purpose of this Law is the regulation of postal services in order to guarantee the provision of the universal postal service to all citizens, to satisfy the needs of postal communication in Spain and to ensure a free range of postal services. competition in the sector.

2. Postal services are services of general interest which are provided under competition rules. They only have the public service consideration or are subject to public service obligations, the services regulated in Title III.

Article 2. Scope and exclusions.

1. The following postal services shall be governed by the provisions of this Law:

(a) The collection, admission, classification, processing, course, transport, distribution and delivery of postal items. Postal items are those that include objects whose physical and technical specifications allow their traffic, at least, through the public postal network.

(b) The financial instruments, consisting of the different forms of rotation by which payments are ordered to natural or legal persons on behalf of others, through the public postal network.

(c) Other services which, having similar nature to the former, are expressly determined as postal services by the Government, in the execution of international agreements that oblige Spain.

2. Services carried out under self-provision are excluded from the scope of this Law.

For the purposes of the preceding paragraph, it is understood that there is a self-benefit scheme where the same natural or legal person is found at the origin and destination of the correspondence consignments and the same person performs the service in case (a) a subject acting exclusively for her, using means other than those of the operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted. In no case shall the reserved services referred to in Article 18 be disturbed by self-provision.

Article 3. Secrecy and intervention of postal communications.

1. In the provision of postal services, operators shall ensure the secrecy of communications in accordance with Article 18.3 of the Constitution and compliance with the provisions of Article 55.2 of the Constitution and Article 579. of the Criminal Prosecution Act.

2. Operators providing postal services may not provide any information concerning the existence of the postal service, its class, its external circumstances, the identity of the sender and the consignee or its addresses. The provisions of the Organic Law 5/1992, of 29 October, of Regulation of the Automated Treatment of Personal Data, shall apply as appropriate.

Article 4. Classification.

1. Postal services, on the basis of the conditions required for their provision, are classified in the following categories

A) Services included in the scope of the universal postal service. Inside them, in turn, is distinguished between:

(a) Services reserved for the operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted.

(b) Services not reserved for the operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted.

The postal operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted receives the corresponding consideration, in accordance with the provisions of Chapter IV of Title III.

B) Services not included in the scope of the universal postal service.

2. The services referred to in point (A) of the preceding paragraph shall be provided in accordance with the provisions of Title III. The services referred to in point (B) of the preceding number shall be provided under free competition in accordance with the provisions of Title II.

Article 5. Dispute resolution.

1. Postal operators and users may submit any disputes arising, in relation to the provision of postal services, to the knowledge of the Arbitration Boards of Consumption, pursuant to Law 26/1984 of 19 July, General for The Defense of Consumers and Users.

2. When disputes arise between the postal service operators and the users who have not submitted to the Arbitaltas Boards, they will be competent to resolve them by the body of the Ministry of Public Works that is regulated. The regulatory standard shall also lay down the requirements for the formulation of the complaint by the user and the procedure to be followed for processing, which shall be based on the principles of speed and gratuity. The decision to be delivered may be challenged in the case of administrative or administrative jurisdiction.

3. It shall be for the body of the Ministry of Public Works to be determined, the resolution of disputes arising between the operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service and other postal operators are entrusted. services included in the scope of that, in relation to the existence or not of the exclusive rights, the sufficiency or insufficiency of the guarantees offered to the users and the possibility of access to the public postal network. Similarly, the said body will decide on the possible production of damage to the operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted, resulting from the action of other operators. The decision to be taken in these cases may be contested in the administrative-administrative procedure.

4. Regulations shall determine the liability of postal operators in the event of the destruction or loss of shipments or non-compliance with the conditions for the provision of services, recognising any user, where appropriate, the right to obtain the appropriate compensation.

Article 6. Applicable principles.

The provision of postal services to third parties, whether or not carried out under free competition, shall be carried out in accordance with the principles of objectivity, transparency, neutrality and non-discrimination and guaranteeing, in all (a) the fulfilment of the obligations of the operator to whom the universal service is entrusted, in accordance with the provisions of Title III.

TITLE II

The provision of postal services under free competition

CHAPTER I

General provisions

Article 7. Enabling titles.

For the provision of postal services, it will be necessary to obtain the corresponding enabling title which, depending on the type of service to be provided, may consist of a general administrative authorisation or a singular administrative authorization, as set out in this Title.

Article 8. General Register of Postal Service Companies.

The General Register of Postal Service Companies is created in the Ministry of Public Works.

This registration will be of a public nature and its regulation will be made by Royal Decree. The data relating to beneficiaries of general authorisations and unique administrative authorisations and their alterations shall be entered in the register.

In any event, the registration in the Registry shall be prior and necessary for the provision of the corresponding service, without prejudice to the provisions of Article 10 (2).

CHAPTER II

General administrative authorities

Article 9. Scope and conditions of the general authorisations.

1. General authorisation shall be required for the provision of postal services which do not require other types of administrative authorisation, in accordance with Article 11, because they are not covered by the universal postal service.

2. The granting of general authorisations shall be carried out on a regulated and automatic basis, provided that the person concerned assumes the obligation to comply with the essential requirements for the provision of the postal service. It must also be committed to the full compliance with the provisions governing the essential requirements laid down in the sectoral and development regulations of this Law.

3. For the purposes of this Law, it is considered essential requirements for the provision of the postal service, respect, in accordance with Article 18.3 of the Spanish Constitution, the right to the inviolability of correspondence, the obligation to protect the data and those established by the sectoral rules on the safety of the operation of the network in the field of transport of dangerous substances, environmental protection and spatial planning.

The obligation to protect data shall include the duty of confidentiality of personal data, the confidentiality of information transmitted or stored and the protection of privacy.

To these effects, to all shipments that, for any cause, cannot, once exhausted all possibilities to the effect, be delivered to the recipient or redispatched to the sender, will be applied the rules that regulations ensure the formalities to be followed and the requirements to be observed in order to ascertain their origin or destination and, where appropriate, those laying down the conditions for their claim, their deposit and their eventual destruction by the operator.

Article 10. Procedure for obtaining general authorizations.

1. Those interested in providing a postal service not included in the scope of the universal postal service, must inform the Ministry of Public Works, subject, expressly, to the conditions referred to in the previous article and providing all the information required to clearly delimit the relevant service.

2. The data relating to the holder of the general authorisation shall be entered in the General Register referred to in Article 8. The provision of the service may not be commenced until the time when the registration has been carried out on its own initiative, within three months of receipt of the communication. In the absence of registration within the prescribed period, the person concerned may commence the service. The registration certificate shall certify the existence of the general authorisation.

3. For the purposes of this Law and for the provision of postal services not included in the scope of the universal postal service, it shall have the equivalent value of the registration in the Register referred to in Article 8, the registration on the Article 53 of Law 16/1987 of 30 July on the Management of Land Transport, provided that the person concerned provides the General Secretariat of Communications with the registration of the registration certificate in the General Secretariat and without prejudice to the fact that the latter may request additional data.

CHAPTER III

Unique administrative authorities

Article 11. Scope of the singular administrative authorities.

A singular administrative authorisation shall be required for the provision of the postal services included, in accordance with Article 15.2, in the field of the universal postal service and not reserved, in accordance with the provisions of the Title III, to the operator to whom it is entrusted.

Article 12. Conditions which may be imposed on holders of singular administrative authorisations.

The individual administrative authorisations shall be granted on a regulated basis, subject to accreditation of the applicant's compliance with the requirements for the provision of the postal service and the assumption by the applicant of the the conditions referred to in Article 9 and those of other non-economic content which may be established by Order of the Ministry of Public Works.

These last conditions may be required exclusively for reasons of general interest.

Equally, the applicant must assume the following obligations:

(a) The public service which, in accordance with Article 22, is required to do so.

(b) The universal postal service that is voluntarily assumed by the universal postal service and which must be included in the offers of the services to the users.

(c) Not to disturb, in the provision of services, special or exclusive rights and the reservation system established for the benefit of the operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted.

Article 13. Procedure for granting singular administrative authorizations.

1. Those interested in carrying out a postal service included in the scope of the universal postal service, but not reserved for the operator to whom the provision of the postal service is entrusted, shall direct their applications, with the documents required, to the Ministry of Promotion. In the application, the persons concerned shall record their commitment to assume compliance with the conditions referred to in the previous Article and to credit the payment of the fees for the financing of the universal postal service.

2. Applications shall contain the particulars referred to in Article 70.1 of Law No 30/1992 of 26 November 1992, of the Legal Regime of the General Administration and the Common Administrative Procedure, and shall be processed in accordance with the procedure laid down in this Article. for the granting of administrative authorisations, as laid down in that Law and in its implementing rules.

3. After the period of three months without any express resolution, the application may be deemed to be estimated.

4. Data relating to the individual administrative authorisations granted by express or presumed act, in the Register referred to in Article 8 of this Law, shall be entered, ex officio or at the request of a party as appropriate.

TITLE III

Public service obligations: the universal postal service and other public rights and obligations in the provision of postal services

CHAPTER I

Delimiting public service obligations

Article 14. Delimitation of public service obligations.

1. Postal service providers for which special administrative authorisation is required, in accordance with the provisions of Title II of this Law, and the operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted shall be subject to public service obligations, in accordance with the provisions of this Title.

2. Compliance with public service obligations in the provision of postal services for which they are required shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of this Title. In any case, it is up to the Ministry of Public Works to monitor compliance with these obligations.

3. For the purposes of this Law, the following categories of public service obligations are established:

(a) Obligations for the provision of the universal postal service which shall have the consideration provided for in Chapter IV of this Title.

(b) Other public service obligations imposed for reasons of general interest, in the terms of the provisions of Chapter III of this Title.

CHAPTER II

Universal Postal Service

Article 15. Concept and scope of the universal postal service.

1. Universal service means the set of quality postal services as determined by the Law and its development regulations, provided on a permanent basis throughout the national territory and at an affordable price for all users.

2. The following services are included in the scope of the universal postal service, the provision of which must be ensured in the manner determined by regulation:

A) Turning service.

B) The ordinary provision of national and cross-border postal services for postal items incorporating an address indicated by the sender on the object itself or on its packaging, which may be:

a) Cards and postcards containing written communications in any type of support, up to 2 Kg of weight.

b) Postal packages, with or without commercial value, up to 10 Kg of weight.

3. National and cross-border consignments of direct advertising, books, catalogues, periodicals and other publications, the circulation of which is not prohibited, shall be admitted for remission under the universal postal service provided that it is carried out in accordance with any of the procedures provided for in this paragraph.

It is understood by direct advertising, for the purposes of this Law, that the following circumstances are present:

(a) It consists of any communication consisting solely of advertisements, market studies or advertising, (b) containing a similar message, even if the name, address and identification number assigned to its recipients are different in each case, (c) It is referred to a significant number of recipients.

d) To be directed to the signs indicated by the sender in the object itself or in its envelope, e) That its distribution be made in open, to facilitate the postal inspection.

Receipts, invoices, financial statements and other non-identical messages will not be considered as direct advertising. Neither shall this character be the communications accompanying direct advertising with other objects, within the same envelope.

4. The universal postal service shall also include the provision of certified and value-declared ancillary services. Certified and declared value services allow, in the postal items referred to in the previous paragraph, greater protection for the user against the risks of deterioration, theft or loss, by means of payment to the operator of a the default amount, in the first case, or of a proportional amount to the value that is unilaterally attributed by the sender, in the second case.

5. Each service integrated into the universal postal service shall include at least the following benefits:

(a) The collection, admission, classification, treatment, course, transport, distribution and delivery of letters and postcards up to 2 Kg of weight.

(b) The collection, admission, classification, processing, course, transport, distribution and delivery of postal packages the weight of which does not exceed 10 Kg.

c) Certified shipping services and declared value shipments, accessories of those set out in points (a) and (b) of this section.

6. The Government, by means of a Royal Decree, may amend the definition of the universal postal service on the basis of technological developments, the demand for services on the market, the needs of the postal services, and the provision of services on the market. users or social policy considerations, in accordance with the limits laid down in the Community rules applicable to them.

Article 16. Conditions for the provision of the universal postal service to the operator to whom his or her benefit is entrusted.

1. The operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted shall comply with the obligations referred to in Article 12 in the provision of services falling within the scope of that provision, in addition to the obligations referred to in Article 12. admission and delivery of the consignments referred to in paragraph 2y3 of this Article.

2. The admission by the operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted with the consignments which are carried out in the field of the postal service shall be subject to the following conditions:

(a) The delivery that is made by deposit of the shipments in the form that is regulated shall not be refused, provided that the corresponding fee or price is satisfied.

(b) Postal shipments, as long as they do not reach their consignee, are the property of the sender who may, by payment of the corresponding surcharge, recover them or modify the postal address indicated for the destination, provided that the operations required for their location do not disturb the normal provision of the universal postal service.

(c) The maximum and minimum dimensions of the postal service eligible for postal services shall be those laid down in the rules transposing into Spanish law those adopted by the Universal Postal Union.

(d) In no case may the items in which the traffic be constituted as a crime or be prohibited, in accordance with the rules in force, be part of postal items.

3. In respect of the delivery of the consignments that are made within the universal postal service, the operator, to whom his or her benefit is entrusted, shall comply with the following conditions:

(a) It shall be carried out in the postal address indicated on the deck, except in the case of exceptional circumstances which are determined in accordance with the provisions of Directive 97 /67/EC. Address, for postal purposes, the identification of the addressees by their first and last names, if they are natural persons or by their name or social reason in the case of legal persons, as well as the address of a registered office or data that are regulated for delivery of the shipments in the offices of the postal public network.

Postal items to be delivered at an address may be deposited in the lockers installed for the purpose, under the conditions laid down in regulation. These conditions may include those relating to the way in which the reservation of one of them, at each postal address, is to be made for returns to the operator entrusted with the provision of the universal postal service.

(b) Shipments shall be delivered to the addressperson who is authorized or shall be deposited in the postal lockers or in the mailboxes, individual or collective. They shall be deemed to be authorised by the consignee to receive the consignments, if not expressly prohibited, the elderly persons present in their home who are family members or maintain a dependency relationship.

4. In any event, the operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted shall comply with the following principles in the provision of the services covered by the universal postal service:

a) Offer users and customers who are in comparable conditions the same treatment and identical capabilities.

b) Provide the service, without any discrimination between users who are in similar conditions.

c) Do not interrupt or suspend the service, except in cases of force majeure.

d) Adapting to technical, economic and social requirements.

Article 17. Obligations of the operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted in the performance of the postal service.

1. The operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted shall be carried out in accordance with the quality standards provided for in this Article.

2. The Government shall, by means of Royal Decree, fix the quality parameters for the provision of the universal postal service. These parameters, which may be updated and revised periodically, shall cover, in particular, the extension of the network, access facilities, distribution and delivery rules, the time limits for the course of correspondence, the regularity and the reliability of the services. In any event, at least one collection shall be required at the points of access to be determined and a delivery at the postal address of each natural or legal person, every working day and at least five days a week, in compliance with the paragraph 3 (a) of the previous Article. This Royal Decree shall establish the consequences of non-compliance with the quality parameters for the purposes of Article 26.1.

3. They shall have value equivalent to the parameters set by the Government, the rules approved at European Union level for intra-Community cross-border services.

4. In addition, the operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted must inform users of the characteristics of the services covered by the universal postal service and, in particular, of the conditions of access, the prices, the level of quality, the guarantees required, the procedure for complaints and the technical rules on the matter which have been published in the Official Journal of the European Communities. The minimum content of this right of information shall be established by Order of the Ministry of Public Works.

Article 18. Services reserved for the operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted.

1. The operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted, under Article 128.2 of the Constitution and in the terms laid down in the following chapter, shall be reserved exclusively for the following services: included in the scope of that:

A) The spin service.

B) The collection, admission, classification, delivery, processing, course, transport and distribution of inter-city shipments, certificates or non-certificates, letters and postcards, provided their weight is equal or less than 350 grams, in order for any other operator to be able to carry out such activities, in respect of objects which integrate intercity shipments, the price to be required of users must be at least five times higher than that of the amount of the corresponding public tariff for the ordinary consignments of objects of the first weight scale of the fastest normalized category.

Domestic or cross-border shipments of direct advertising, books, catalogues, and periodicals, without prejudice to Article 15.2.B), shall not be part of the reserved services.

C) The cross-border postal service for the entry and exit of letters and postcards, with the weight and price limits set out in paragraph B). It is understood by cross-border postal service, for the purposes of this Law, that it comes from other States or that it is intended for them.

D) The receipt, as a postal service, of the applications, the letters and the communications which the citizens direct to the organs of the Public Administrations, in accordance with Article 38.4.c) of Law 30/1992, of 26 of November, the Legal Regime of Public Administrations and the Common Administrative Procedure.

2. The list of reserved services, as determined in the previous paragraph, will be reviewed by the Government in order to adapt it to the requirements of the liberalising process, contained in Directive 97 /67/EC on the common rules for the development of the Internal market for postal services in the Community and improvement of the quality of the service, within the time limits laid down for the harmonization of the reserve system.

Article 19. Special and exclusive rights attributed to the operator entrusted with the provision of the universal postal service.

1. In order to ensure the provision of the universal postal service, the following special rights are granted to the operator providing the universal postal service:

(a) The condition of the beneficiary in the procedure of the compulsory expropriation for public utility, which will be subject to the special urgency procedure laid down in Article 52 of the Compulsory Expropriation Act, of 16 December 1954, for the completion of all the works and facilities necessary for the provision of the universal postal service, corresponding to duly authorized projects.

(b) The exemption of any taxes on their activity linked to the reserved services.

(c) The right to provide notifications of administrative and judicial bodies, with strong evidence at their receipt, without prejudice to the application, to the different cases of notification, of the provisions of Law 30/1992, of 26 November, of the Legal Regime of Public Administrations and of the Common Administrative Procedure.

Other operators will be able to make such notifications in the unreserved area and their effects will be governed by the rules of private law.

Reglamentarily, the conditions of such deliveries will be established, as well as the obligation to perform them by the operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted.

(d) The entities managing the rail network and the national ports and airports must give up spaces for the routing activities of the postal items included in the universal postal service and reserved for the operator to whom his/her benefit is entrusted.

2. In order to ensure the provision of the universal postal service, the operator shall also be granted the following exclusive rights:

(a) The right to the establishment of postal items intended for the delivery of correspondence, provided that they do not incorporate liberalised services, in terms that are established in a regulated manner.

b) The dispatch preference in the customs control of shipments included in the scope of the universal postal service.

(c) The distribution of the stamps of the Correos or other means of postage to which the following letter of this paragraph refers, and the retail sale may be carried out, through the public postal network or through third parties, in the terms to be determined regulatively.

(d) The right to the exclusive use of the name "Correos", of the term "Spain" or any other sign identifying the operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted or the character of the services which, within its scope, it provides. The exclusive regime shall be governed by regulation.

Article 20. Universal postal service planning.

1. The provision of the universal postal service shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions legally established and those determined by the Government in the Universal Postal Service Delivery Plan.

In any case, the Plan should include, inter alia, the procedure for the assessment of the cost of the universal postal service and its form of financing and the criteria to be taken into account in determining the contribution to it by the State, in accordance with what is determined in Article 28.

In addition, the Plan will take into consideration the Universal Postal Service Compensation Fund, referred to in Article 26, to which the various operators will contribute, according to equitable and equitable criteria. rationality.

2. The Universal Postal Service's Delivery Plan shall contain the provisions on its financing referred to in the second subparagraph of the previous paragraph.

These same forecasts must be included in the contract-programme to be held, for successive five-year periods, between the State and the operator to whom the provision of that service is entrusted and in which it will be determined the rights and obligations attributed to the parties.

Article 21. Responsibility for the provision of the universal postal service.

1. The operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted shall be economically liable, except for force majeure, for the proper provision of the services which make up the postal service, where the consignments are delivered under a certificate or a declared value.

2. The Government shall fix the maximum amount of compensation for the loss or deterioration of the certified consignments, as well as the minimum and maximum amounts for which the declared value shipments may be secured.

CHAPTER III

Other public obligations and rights in the provision of postal services

Article 22. Other public service obligations.

The Government may impose, as a rule, the operator entrusted with the provision of the universal postal service, other public service obligations other than those laid down in Chapter II of this Title for ensure the proper provision of the universal postal service, and where this is required for reasons of general interest, social or territorial cohesion, improvement of the quality of education and civil protection, or where necessary to safeguard normal development of the electoral processes, in accordance with the provisions of the regulations that regulates the general election regime.

Likewise, by regulation, it may impose on the said operator and the operators providing postal services, under a singular administrative authorisation, public service obligations under extraordinary circumstances. to ensure public security or national defense.

Article 23. Public postal network.

1. Without prejudice to the ownership of the assets belonging to the public postal network, the right to manage it corresponds to the operator entrusted with the provision of the universal postal service. This right of management of the public postal network shall have the effect of separating income and expenditure, which generates the provision of the universal postal service, from the other revenue and expenditure incurred.

2. For this purpose, the public postal network means the whole of the means of all order, used by the operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted, enabling:

(a) The collection, admission and classification of postal items covered by a universal service obligation, from the access points throughout the territory of the State.

(b) The processing, course and transport of such consignments from the point of access to the postal network to the distribution centre, and (c) The distribution and delivery at the address indicated in the consignment.

3. The goods belonging to the public postal network shall be considered to be affected by the administration, to the universal postal service and must be maintained and maintained, in accordance with the rules in force.

4. It is also attributed to the operator, which is entrusted with the provision of the universal postal service for the establishment of the public postal network, the right to the occupation of the public domain, by the installation of mailboxes intended to deposit postal consignments, subject to the authorisation of the competent authority of the managing authority of the latter. The holders of the public domain may not, for this purpose, treat the operator concerned as discriminatory, in respect of that granted to other operators.

5. Access to the public postal network is ensured for all users and, where appropriate, postal operators who are subject to universal service obligations, under conditions of transparency, objectivity and non-discrimination.

Postal operators other than those referred to in the preceding paragraph must negotiate with the operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted with the conditions of access to the public postal network, compliance with the principles of transparency, non-discrimination and objectivity.

CHAPTER IV

Contra-benefits due to the financial burden arising from the obligations to provide universal postal service Article 24. Rights recognised to the operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted in compensation for the financial burden of the derivative.

1. For the maintenance of the universal postal service and in the terms set out in this Chapter, the operator shall be granted the following rights:

(a) The performance of the reserved services as determined in Article 18.

b) The financing, through the Universal Postal Service Compensation Fund, of the financial burdens arising from the provision of this.

2. Furthermore, without prejudice to the provisions of point 1 of this Article, that operator shall have the special and exclusive rights as determined in Article 19.

Article 25.

Attribution of performing services to the operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted.

According to the provisions of point 1 of the previous article, the operator is initially credited with the provision of the universal postal service, exclusively for the reserved services. set out in Article 18.

Article 26. Universal Postal Service Compensation Fund.

1. The Universal Postal Service Compensation Fund is created, the purpose of which is to guarantee its financing. Cash assets from the contributions provided for in Article 27 shall be integrated into this Fund and shall be deposited in an account to that effect.

Account management expenses will be in charge of the account.

In the account referred to in the preceding paragraph, any contributions made by any natural or legal person wishing to contribute, selflessly, to the financing of the postal service may be entered. universal.

The Ministry of Development will appoint, among its organs, the task of managing this Fund. The designated body must transfer to the operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted with the amount resulting from the calculation of the net cost arising from it, in accordance with the provisions laid down in the Universal Postal Service, referred to in Article 20.

For these purposes, the criteria to be taken into consideration for the fixing of the public contribution to the Fund, including prices and prices, will be determined in the Universal Postal Service's Delivery Plan. rates to be met by the users of the services, compliance with the quality parameters referred to in Article 17.2, the efficiency in the management of the operator and the charges imposed on the operator.

The Ministry of Public Works shall determine the net cost of the provision of the universal service, after audit of the accounts of the operator to which it is entrusted, by the competent authority of the Administration or by the institution to be designated.

Both the result of the calculation of the net cost of the provision of the universal postal service and the conclusions of the audit will be made available to postal operators who contribute to the financing of the service universal postal, upon request, in terms that are established in a regulated manner and, in any case, guaranteeing commercial and industrial secrecy.

The structure, organization and control mechanisms of the Universal Postal Service Compensation Fund will be determined, as well as the form and time limits on which contributions will be made.

The Ministry of Development will produce an annual report on the revenue and expenditure of the Compensation Fund to be raised to the Government's Delegation for Economic Affairs. For these purposes, the Ministry may require the postal operators to provide all the information it deems necessary.

2. The contributions for the financing of the net cost shall be made by postal operators who are obliged to pay the fees which are set out in Chapter V of this Title, in accordance with the principles of equality, transparency and discrimination, without prejudice to the provisions of Article 28.

Article 27. Funding from the Universal Postal Service Compensation Fund.

The Universal Postal Service Compensation Fund, which is created in the previous article, will be nourished by the following contributions:

(a) The income derived from the fees set out in Section III of Chapter V of this Title.

(b) The income derived from financing from the General Budget of the State, in the terms set out in the following Article.

(c) Ordinary donations made by any natural or legal person who wishes to contribute to the financing of the universal postal service.

Article 28. Complementary funding by the State.

In accordance with the provisions of point (b) of the previous Article, the Universal Postal Service Delivery Plan, referred to in Article 20, shall determine a public financing procedure for the assumption that the the provision of the universal postal service means a financial burden on the operator, which is not compensated by the compensatory measures set out in Articles 25 and 27.a) of this Chapter.

For these purposes, the Universal Postal Service's Delivery Plan will determine the annual consignment to be collected in the General Budget of the State for the amount of the uncompensated financial burden through the compensatory measures referred to in the preceding paragraph. This consignment must also be included in the contract-programme which is concluded between the State and the operator.

CHAPTER V

Obligations of an economic nature

Section 1

Article 29. Obligation to separate accounts.

The operator entrusted with the provision of the universal postal service shall be required to keep an analytical accounting, duly audited. There will be separate accounts, at least, for each reserved service and for non-reserved services. The non-reserved services accounts shall establish a clear distinction between the services that are part of the universal service and those that are not included within the universal service.

By Order of the Ministry of Public Works the terms, scope and conditions under which the separation of accounts must occur and the assumptions in which that person may require the holders of authorisations shall be established. (i) administrative information on financial activity, including audits. The form and assumptions on which third parties may be provided, including the Commission of the European Union, shall be established, ensuring the confidentiality of data and commercial and industrial secrecy.

Section 2. Fees and Prices

Article 30. Rates.

1. The fees referred to in this Article have the legal nature of fees and shall be intended directly to cover the management needs of the operator providing the universal postal service. The management and collection of these fees shall be the responsibility of the authorised entity.

It constitutes the taxable fact of the fee for the provision of the reserved postal services listed in paragraph 4 of this article.

The accrual of the fee will occur when the service is initiated or the activity takes place, without prejudice to the possibility of requiring the prior deposit of its total or partial amount, when the payment is not made by timbrated effects.

You will be required to pay the fee for the persons to whom the services listed in the rates are to be provided.

2. Only by law can the parameters, the elements of quantification and the maximum percentage of bonuses indicated in this article be modified and coefficients of updating of the rates of the rates are established. The modification of the fixed amounts resulting from the application of the parameters and quantification elements referred to in this Article may be carried out by Ministerial Order.

the Ministerial Orders which, in accordance with the provisions of the preceding paragraph of this Article, modify the fixed amounts of the fee shall be accompanied by an economic-financial memory on the cost or value of the the action or activity concerned and the justification for the amount of the proposed fee.

The amount shall be in accordance with the principle of equivalence laid down in Article 7 of Law 8/1989 of 13 April of Public Fees and Prices. The lack of this requirement will determine the full nullity of the provision.

3. Allowances up to a maximum of 50 per 100 of the amount of the charges may be applied to users, provided that the amount actually met sufficiently covers the cost of the services concerned. These allowances will be granted on the basis of the volume of the consignments delivered by the same user and the savings to be made by the Post and Telegraph Business Entity for the composition of the destinations, or the one which, prior to its transport or distribution, the latter classifies and orders them, or deposits them in certain places of admission.

4. For the purposes of the above paragraph, the following shall be considered as parameters and quantification elements for each of the following:

A) For the first rate, relating to postal services that have for object letters and postcards, in the reserved area:

a) Weight.

b) The dimensions.

c) The delivery time.

d) The form of transport.

e) The scope of circulation.

B) For the second rate, on services relating to the modalities of ordinary course and delivery of the consignments referred to in the preceding tariff:

a) The circumstance of being the certified shipment.

b) Shipments by declared value.

c) Treat home delivery.

d) The circumstance of being a list delivery.

e) The shipment with acknowledgment.

f) The shipment with receipt notice.

g) Delivery for storage.

h) The delivery in sections.

i) The return request.

j) Reexpedition or change of sign.

k) The accounting for the return of the paid postage, not used for reasons attributable to the person concerned.

l) Franking failure, according to the cost of each mode.

C) For the third rate, which affects the postal spin:

National Spins: in addition to a fixed amount, a percentage of the amount rotated, according to payment, admission and delivery, form of expedition and number of words of the text or message.

International spins: in addition to a fixed amount, a percentage on the amount rotated, according to the country of destination.

D) For the fourth rate, on certifications relating to the provision of services included in the reserved universal postal service, the issue of certification shall be taken into account.

5. They shall be exempt from payment of fees for the provision of the reserved universal postal service:

a) Cecogram senders.

(b) Submitters of shipments to which the Universal Postal Union confers such right, with the scope established in international instruments that have been ratified by Spain.

Article 31. Prices of postal services not reserved.

The prices of the non-reserved postal services, carried out by the operator to which the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted and any other competing operator, will be freely fixed in accordance with the market rules.

However, the provisions of the preceding paragraph, for services falling within the scope of the universal postal service provided by the operator entrusted to it, may be set at maximum prices by the Ministry of Public Works which, In any event, they will have to comply with the principles of affordable price, cost orientation and non-discrimination and will be unique for the entire national territory. The Government may also lay down the criteria for determining the prices of the services included in the universal postal service. These criteria must ensure that the prices that are established are affordable.

Discounts and allowances to be paid in relation to the prices of services covered by the universal postal service must respect the accessible character of those which are fixed, in general, for all users. The fixing shall be made on the basis of objective conditions, both technical and economic, and non-discriminatory, without prejudice to the provisions of Articles 15 et seq. of this Law.

The operators referred to in this article must notify the Ministry of Public Works of any change in prices 15 days in advance of their application. They shall also communicate it to the legally constituted consumer and user associations.

Article 32. Payment systems.

1. Postage is one of the forms of payment for postal services to the universal postal service provider, consisting of the payment of fares or prices by means of postage stamps.

The franking systems shall be established and other alternative means of payment may be provided, such as mechanical postage, stamps, paid postage or any other agreed payment system.

2. The postal services provided by the operator referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article which are not included in those reserved within the universal postal service may be paid, in addition to the postage stamps, according to the provisions of the appropriate contract, by any other means of payment admitted in law.

Section 3. Postal Rates

Article 33. Contribution rate to the financing of the universal postal service.

The holders of special administrative authorisations for the provision of postal services shall be obliged to satisfy the General Administration of the State at an annual fee which is intended to finance expenditure which cause the universal postal service to be provided.

The rate of such rate shall be between 1 per 1,000 and 1 per 100 of the gross annual operating income obtained by the holder, depending on the amount of such gross annual income and according to the scale to be determined, provided that the amount of the revenue collected by the Administration does not exceed 20 per 100 of the annual deficit which the operator entrusted with carrying out the universal postal service shall provide for the provision of that service. In the event that the above limit for financing the deficit is exceeded, the government shall, in proportion, reduce the rates for the calculation of the fee to avoid excess.

For the purposes of the preceding paragraph, the General Budget Law of the State for each financial year shall establish, in the event that the revenue obtained by the Administration in the previous year has been more than 20 per 100 of the deficit of the operator to which the universal postal service is entrusted, the corresponding reduction of the rate set out in the preceding paragraph. In such a case, the difference between the expected revenue and the revenue actually obtained shall be taken into account for the purpose of reducing the percentage to be fixed for the following year.

Gross operating income means the set of income earned by the holder of the administrative authorization, derived from the provision of the postal services included in the scope of the postal service universal.

The fee will be payable on an annual basis. The procedure for their levy shall be established by regulatory standard.

In any event, this fee will be governed by the provisions of Law 8/1989, of April 13, of Public Fees and Prices.

Article 34. Rate for the granting of singular administrative authorizations.

1. The rate is created by granting singular administrative authorizations. The fee will be applicable throughout the Spanish territory.

2. The rate regulated in this article will be governed by the provisions of this Law, in Law 8/1989, of April 13, of Public Fees and Prices, and, failing that, by the General Tax Law and other applicable provisions.

3. The taxable fact of the fee is the granting of special administrative authorizations for the provision of postal services. The procedure for the levy of the levy shall be determined in accordance with the rules.

4. The natural or legal person applying for the singular administrative authorisation referred to in Article 11 shall be liable for the fee.

5. The fee to be entered as a fee will be 100,000 pesetas for each type of service if the scope of its benefit is urban and 200,000 pesetas if the scope is interurban or international. Without prejudice to this, the General Budget Law of the State of each financial year shall update that amount.

6. The accrual shall be produced on the date of submission of the application for the obtaining of a singular administrative authorisation for the provision of postal services.

Article 35. Rate by issue of registration certificates.

The issuance of registration certificates will entitle you to the perception of a compensatory fee for the cost of the necessary paperwork and administrative actions.

The amount of this fee will be 10,000 pesetas, and you will be obliged to apply for the certification. The General Budget Law of the State for each financial year will update that amount.

Article 36. Powers of the State.

In accordance with the provisions of Article 149.1.21. of the Constitution, the General Administration of the State exercises the powers of postal services established in this Law and its provisions Development regulations.

Article 37. Powers of the Government and the Ministry of Public Works.

1. It is up to the Government to draw up the forecasts for the management and development of the postal sector and, in particular, the approval of the Universal Postal Service Provision Plan referred to in Article 20.

2. The Minister of Public Works will propose to the Government the development policy of the universal postal service and ensure its implementation.

Likewise, the Ministry of Public Works, in coordination with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, will propose the policy to be followed in the international postal organizations and in the relations maintained with the organizations and the national entities, in the field of international postal communications.

It is also the responsibility of the Ministry of Public Works, in the terms of this Law, to grant the securities for the provision of postal services.

Article 38. Postal Advisory Board.

1. The Postal Advisory Board is established, which, chaired by the Minister of Public Works or the person to whom the delegation is appointed, is the Government's top advisory body on postal services.

2. The functions of the Council shall be for study, deliberation and proposal in matters relating to postal services and shall be exercised either on their own initiative or at the request of the Government.

The Council shall, in any event and on a prior basis, report on the modification of the amount of the fees provided for in this Law.

3. The Government shall establish the composition and operating arrangements of the Postal Advisory Board, the members of which shall represent the public administrations, the universal postal service provider, the users, the associations the business of the sector and the most representative trade unions of the workers in this sector.

Article 39. Inspection duties and sanctioning regime.

1. The Ministry of Public Works, through the General Secretariat of Communications, shall be responsible for the inspection of the postal services that are regulated in this Law and the application of the sanctioning regime.

2. Officials of the Ministry of Public Works in charge of postal inspection shall, in the exercise of their powers, have the consideration of public authority and may, through the appropriate governmental authority, request the necessary support. of the State Security Corps and Forces.

The holders or persons responsible for the services or activities referred to in this Law shall be obliged to provide the staff of the inspection in the exercise of their functions with access to their facilities, to the elements affect their services or activities and how many documents they are required to keep.

Article 40. Responsible persons.

1. Administrative responsibility for the failure to comply with the rules for the management of postal services shall be enforceable:

(a) In offences committed on the occasion of the provision of services under the relevant enabling title, the natural or legal person who holds the service.

b) in offences committed on the occasion of the provision of services without the corresponding enabling title, where this is legally enforceable, to the natural or legal person who carries out the activity and, in the alternative, to the availability of the equipment or facilities or is in possession of the postal items.

(c) In other cases, natural or legal persons who incur the facts established as an infringement.

2. Infringements committed in the provision of postal services using a given trade mark shall, in solidarity, be liable to the owner if a concerted action is taken between him and the infringer.

Article 41. Classes of violations.

1. Infringements of the rules on the management of postal services are classified as very serious, serious and minor.

2. Very serious violations are considered:

(a) Failure to comply with the conditions laid down for the provision of the universal postal service which makes it seriously compromised.

(b) The provision of postal services reserved to the universal postal service provider without their authorisation, jeopardising the provision of such services.

(c) The provision of postal services under free competition without the legally enforceable enabling title or the provision of services other than those authorised, with serious prejudice to the postal service universal.

(d) failure to comply with the obligations set out in the budget for the granting of the enabling securities of postal services, where it seriously affects the essential requirements referred to in the Articles 9.3 and 12 or substantially prejudice the provision of the universal postal service.

e) The serious violation of the special or exclusive rights regime granted to the operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted.

(f) the receipt of correspondence within the scope of the reservation referred to in Article 18, followed by the delivery to persons or entities outside the entity entrusted with the provision of the universal postal service; when it can seriously damage the latter.

g) The refusal to be inspected and the obstruction or resistance to the inspection activity of the Administration.

(h) The use of identifying signs that lead to confusion with those whose use is reserved for the operator to whom the provision of the universal service is entrusted, by operators other than the universal service. This includes the use of labels, advertisements, emblems, stamps or imprints which may lead to confusion with those used by the operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted.

(i) Action aimed at causing fraud in the franking, when it seriously harms the provision of the universal postal service.

(j) The commission, within one year, of two or more serious infringements.

3. Serious violations are considered:

(a) Those set out in points (a) to (i) of paragraph 2 of this Article, where the circumstances allowing the offence to be classified as very serious are not given.

b) The mere offer to the public of the provision of reserved postal services.

(c) The commission, within one year, of two or more minor infractions.

4. Minor infractions are considered:

(a) The refusal to provide or to communicate, in a manner and within the period granted to the effect, the data required by the Administration, when they are to be displayed or provided, as provided for by the regulatory regulations of the postal services.

(b) The failure of the operator to comply with the rules laid down in the rules on consumers and users in the treatment of consumers and users.

c) Any other non-compliance with the obligations imposed on operators or users by the postal regulations in force to ensure the correct provision of postal services to operators or users, except for which must be regarded as a very serious or serious infringement, in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 2and 3 of this Article.

Article 42. Penalties.

1. Minor infractions will be punished with a fine of 25,000 to 1,000,000 pesetas, the serious ones with a fine of 1,000,001 up to 10,000,000 pesetas and the very serious ones with a fine of 10,000,001 up to 50,000,000 pesetas.

In any event, the amount of the penalty imposed, within the limits indicated, shall be graduated in accordance with the criteria laid down in Article 131 (3) of Law 30/1992, of 26 November, of Legal Regime of the General Administration and the Common Administrative Procedure, taking into account the peculiar characteristics of the activity concerned and its social or economic impact. However, the provisions of Article 131.3 (c) shall not apply where the cases referred to in point (j) of paragraph 3 (c) of the preceding Article are provided.

2. Penalties imposed for any of the offences referred to in Article 41, where the activity constituting the offence requires administrative authorisation for the exercise of the offence, may be carried out as ancillary penalties. sealed, the seizure of equipment or vehicles or the decommissioning of installations, until the appropriate enabling title is available.

3. Very serious infringements, in the light of the circumstances in their committee, may lead to the revocation of the administrative authorisation for the provision of the service by the infringer.

4. The Government is empowered to update, by means of Royal Decree, the amount of the penalties provided for, depending on the changes in the consumer price index.

5. The final penalty for the offence referred to in Article 41.2 (b) shall, from the date of its occurrence, be removed from the offence of the offender for the exercise of the postal activity for a period of two years.

Article 43. Precautionary measures.

1. The infringements referred to in the previous Article may result in the adoption of provisional measures. In accordance with Articles 72 and 136 of Law No 30/1992 of 26 November 1992 on the Legal Regime of Public Administrations and the Common Administrative Procedure, the competent body to be resolved may, in any case, time and by means of a reasoned agreement, the measures of a provisional nature which are necessary to ensure the effectiveness of the decision which may be placed on it, to prevent the effects of the infringement from being maintained and to safeguard the interests of the general.

Where required for reasons of urgent urgency, the body responsible for initiating the procedure or the instructor may take the necessary interim measures.

2. Measures of a provisional nature may consist in the detention of postal items for examination, at the closure of the premises in which the activities are carried out or in the sealing of the means used, during the period maximum of one year.

When the subject is in charge of the corresponding enabling title, the provisional measures relating to the closure and sealing of facilities and means until the termination of the procedure shall be maintained. In any case, measures of a provisional nature must be in line with the objectives to be achieved by their adoption.

Article 44. Compensation for damages.

The sanctioning power regulated in this Title shall be exercised without prejudice to the rights to be indemnified that may correspond to the operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted.

Article 45. Procedure for the imposition of sanctions.

The procedure for the exercise of sanctioning power will be governed by the provisions of Law 30/1992, of November 26, of the Legal Regime of Public Administrations and of the Common Administrative Procedure. It shall also apply to the regulation which, in its development, regulates the procedure.

Article 46. Prescription.

The violations regulated in this Law will prescribe, the very serious, at three years; the serious ones, at two years, and the mild ones, at six months.

The limitation period for infringements will begin to be counted from the day the infringement was committed. The prescription of the initiation, with the knowledge of the person concerned, of the sanctioning procedure shall be interrupted, the limitation period being resumed if the sanctioning file has been paralyzed for more than one month for reasons not attributable to the alleged responsible.

In the case of continued infringement, the limitation period shall begin to run from the moment of the completion of the activity or from the last act with which the infringement is consumed.

The penalties imposed for very serious misconduct will be prescribed at three years; those imposed for serious misconduct, at two years, and those imposed for minor faults, per year.

The limitation period for penalties shall begin to be counted from the day following that in which the decision on which they are imposed becomes final.

Interrupt the prescription, the initiation, with knowledge of the person concerned, of the execution procedure, returning to elapse the period if the person is paralyzed for more than one month for cause not imputable to the infringer.

Article 47. Sanctioning competition.

Competition for the imposition of sanctions will be:

To the Secretary General of Communications for serious and very serious infractions.

to the Deputy Director-General for Coordination and Management of Communications or to the rank organ similar to the one attributed to postal matters within the General Secretariat of Communications, for infringements mild.

Against your resolutions will proceed with administrative-administrative appeal.

Additional disposition first. Operator enabled for universal postal service delivery.

The obligation to provide the universal postal service, in the terms, conditions and with the benefits set out in Title III of this Law, is attributed to the public company Empresa and Telegrafos. For these purposes, the services provided for in Article 18 are reserved for that entity and the special and exclusive rights set out in Article 19 are also assigned to it.

Additional provision second. The issue and distribution of seals and other signs of postage.

The issue of postage stamps and other signs of postage will be proposed by the operator that provides the universal postal service and is authorized jointly by the Ministries of Development and Economy and Finance.

To this end, the emissions will be accommodated to what they have, by joint resolution, the Secretary General of Communications and the Undersecretary of Economy and Finance.

Additional provision third. Appointment of Fees of the Business Public Entity Post and Telegraph.

The Director-General of the Post and Telegraphic Business Entity may appoint Fees between those persons who have stood out in support of the postal service.

The appointment as an Honorary Postmaster will be treated and considerations to be determined in a regulated manner.

Additional provision fourth. Contribution of the operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted to its financing.

In the provision of services not reserved for the operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted, the latter shall be obliged to pay the amount of the fee referred to in Article 33 of this Law in respect of the same terms as the holders of the individual administrative authorisations referred to in that Article.

Payment of the amount of this fee by the operator, which is entrusted with the provision of universal postal service, may be replaced by its compensation, if applicable.

Additional provision fifth. Internal arrangements applicable to the Post and Telegraph business public entity.

1. The business public entity has autonomy for the management of its staff, the determination of its organisational structure and the fixing of its remuneration regime, leaving aside the powers conferred on the Ministries of Public Administration and the Economy and Finance by the general legislation of the Civil Service and administrative organization.

2. The procurement of the Entity shall be subject to private law and shall be carried out in accordance with the principles of publicity, competition and the safeguarding of its interests. This is without prejudice to the coordination functions which, in the field of computer supplies, may correspond to the organs of the State Administration.

First transient disposition. Existing rights to the entry into force of this Law.

1. The Post and Telegraph business entity may, for one year after the entry into force of this Law, continue to provide postal services not included in the scope of the universal postal service which it is carrying out with prior. Within that period, you must apply for the corresponding enabling titles which, where appropriate, are necessary for the provision of services, in accordance with the provisions of this Law.

For the charges that the public authority charged for the services of telegrams, radio-telegrams, telex, fonotelex and telex-public cabin will continue in force its current regulatory regime, as long as the regulation is not approved Article 40.3 of Law 11/1998 of 24 April, General of Telecommunications.

2. Entities with an enabling title for the provision of postal services or operations, under the regulations prior to the entry into force of this Law, are guaranteed the possibility of continuing to provide them during the period of time. of one year after the date of production, and in the first three months of that period, the competent authority shall request the processing of its title in which it is required to do so, in accordance with the new rules.

It is understood that the circumstances for the conversion are produced, when, in accordance with the provisions of Title II, the precise ones are given for the granting of the appropriate enabling title in which it is desired to transform the existing.

With regard to the other services that may be developed under this Law and, where appropriate, those that are released in the future, pursuant to Article 18.2, they will have to obtain the corresponding enabling title to be awarded to them. if they demonstrate compliance with the rules that apply to them.

3. Entities which, prior to the entry into force of this Law, have provided non-reserved postal services, without having obtained the corresponding enabling title, may continue to carry out this activity in the terms established in the present transitional arrangement.

To demonstrate that they are effectively providing these services, the interested parties must request an inspection from the Ministry of Public Works within thirty days of the entry into force of this Law.

Within three months of the entry into force of this Law, the holders of the services referred to in this paragraph shall request from the competent authority of the Ministry of Public Works the corresponding enabling title, in accordance with the provisions laid down therein, accompanying the application for the accreditation of having applied for the inspection of the service.

Within six months of the submission of the application, as referred to in the preceding paragraph, the competent authority of the Ministry of Public Works shall issue a decision granting, where appropriate, the corresponding enabling title. for the performance of the non-reserved services included in the scope of the universal postal service and for that of the services not included in the universal postal service.

If, within the time limit set for the resolution of the decision, the person concerned may apply for the certification of an alleged act, in accordance with Article 44 of Law No 30/1992 of the Legal Regime of Public Administrations and of the Common Administrative Procedure.

The failure to submit, in time, to the Ministry of Promotion of the said application, the non-accreditation of being effectively providing the service or the non-obtaining of the corresponding title will leave without legal protection to the one who performs postal activities and, in the face of it, sanctioning files may be initiated for the absence of an enabling title, in accordance with the provisions of this Law.

4. The qualifying titles obtained under this transitional provision and which are granted prior to the adoption of the implementing rules of this Law shall be provisional until three months after the approval of the (a) in the terms set out in them and their procurement does not presuppose the right to obtain a definitive title. If it is granted, it must, in any event, comply with the obligations laid down in those implementing rules.

Second transient disposition. Accounting of the operator responsible for the provision of the universal postal service and other postal operators.

1. In accordance with Article 29, within two years of the entry into force of this Law, the operator to whom the provision of the universal postal service is entrusted shall have an analytical accounting, duly audited, which makes it possible to know the cost of the latter and, where appropriate, the compulsory services referred to in the second provision. Analytical accounting shall be in accordance with the rules laid down in accordance with Article 14 of Directive 67 /97/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 December 1997 on the common rules for the the development of the Internal Market for the Community's Postal Services and the improvement of the quality of service.

2. Until the deadline for the adoption of the analytical accounts, as referred to in the previous paragraph, is met, users who are entitled to the award of the allowances provided for in Article 30 may be subject to the following conditions: applying the same without complying with the requirements that are set out in this Law on cost adaptation.

3. Operators who, in addition to other activities, provide postal services, must keep separate accounts in respect of the revenue and expenditure incurred by them within the maximum period of two years from the date of entry into force. of this Law.

Transitional provision third. Distribution of postage stamps by "Tabacalera, Sociedad Anonima".

The wholesale distribution of the postage stamps will continue to be made by "Tabacalera, Sociedad Anonima", for the period of four years from the date of the entry into force of this Law.

After that period, the said distribution may be carried out without any need for any formality by any person or entity empowered to do so.

Until the end of the period laid down in the previous paragraph, the direct sale of stamps in the offices of the business public company Post and Telegraph will not become an accrual commission in favor of " Tabacalera, Sociedad Anonymous ".

In any case, whoever is successful in the contract of wholesale distribution of the stamps will be obliged to guarantee their supply to the authorized ones for sale to the public.

Transitional disposition fourth. Franking systems.

1. The franking systems in force at the date of publication of this Law may continue to be used until the approval of the regulation provided for in Article 32.

2. Authorisations for the use of existing franking systems shall remain valid for a period of one year after the adoption of the said Regulation. After that period, the holders shall apply for the corresponding enabling title.

The Government will determine by Royal Decree the postage systems.

Transient disposition fifth. Transitional arrangements for post stamps.

As long as the regulation referred to in Article 19.2 (d) is not adopted, the specific rules governing the system of post stamps and distinctive signs shall remain in force in so far as they do not object to the provisions of this Regulation. Law.

Transitional disposition sixth. Validity of the rate regime established prior to the entry into force of the Act.

As long as the changes in the fixed amounts of the fees do not occur, in accordance with the provisions of Article 30 (2), those which are in accordance with the rules in force prior to the date of the entry into force of this Act.

Single repeal provision. Regulatory repeal.

1. The following provisions are repealed:

The Law of June 1, 1909, of Reorganization of Post and Telegraph Services.

The Law of December 22, 1953, of Post Office.

2. All other provisions of equal or lower rank to this Law are also repealed to be contrary to the provisions of this Law.

Final disposition first. Competence of the State.

This Law is dictated by the exclusive competence of the State, in accordance with Article 149.1.21. of the Constitution.

Final disposition second. Universal Postal Service Delivery Plan.

Within six months of the entry into force of this Law, the Minister of Public Works, prior to the report of the Postal Advisory Council, will propose to the Council of Ministers, for approval, the Postal Service's Delivery Plan. Universal, as referred to in Article 20.

Final disposition third. Enabling the Government.

1. The Government is authorised to make the necessary arrangements for the development and implementation of this Law.

2. Within one year of the entry into force of this Law, the Minister of Public Works will raise to the Council of Ministers, for approval by Royal Decree, the draft of the Regulation of the Postal Services. That Regulation shall contain the rules of a regulatory nature in force until the entry into force of this Law in so far as they do not object to it.

Final disposition fourth. Entry into force.

This Law shall enter into force on the day following that of its publication in the "Official Gazette of the State".

Therefore,

I command all Spaniards, individuals and authorities, to keep and keep this Law.

Madrid, July 13, 1998.

JOHN CARLOS R.

The President of the Government,

JOSÉ MARÍA AZNAR LÓPEZ