At the 6th session, the 13th National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam passed: the Law on Practicing Thrift and Combating Waste on November 26, 2013, and the Law on Petition Reception on November 25, 2013. These two laws take effect from July 1, 2014.
Article table of contents
* Law on Practicing Thrift and Combating Wastefulness 2013 is structured into 5 chapters consisting of 80 articles, which include provisions on practicing thrift in various fields concentrated in Chapter II, consisting of 8 sections and 56 articles. The Law on Practicing Thrift and Combating Wastefulness 2013 has many new contents compared to the 2005 Law:
Scope of regulation: (1) Practicing thrift and combating wastefulness in the management and use of the state budget, state capital, state assets, labor, and labor time in the state sector; (2) Practicing thrift and combating wastefulness in the management, exploitation, and use of resources; (3) Practicing thrift and combating wastefulness in production, business, and consumption activities of organizations, households, and individuals. Compared to the 2005 Law, the 2013 Law introduces new points regarding regulation of the non-state sector, including enterprises and the public, aimed at identifying social responsibility in practicing thrift and combating wastefulness by enterprises and citizens without necessarily applying sanctions as with the state sector.
Subjects of application corresponding to the scope of regulation include: (1) Agencies, organizations, and individuals managing and using the state budget, state capital, state assets, and labor in the state sector; (2) Agencies, organizations, and individuals managing, exploiting, and using resources; (3) Organizations, households, and individuals.
Principles of practicing thrift and combating wastefulness: The 2013 Law supplements and clarifies the principles of practicing thrift and combating wastefulness, making it a regular task from policies, mechanisms, and policies to implementation linked with inspection and supervision (Clause 1, Article 4); practicing thrift and combating wastefulness must be attached to administrative reform and ensure the completion of assigned tasks without affecting the normal operations of agencies and units (Clause 3, Article 4); supplementing the regulation on publicizing the results of practicing thrift and combating wastefulness and the results of handling wastefulness acts at Point g, Clause 2, Article 5.
Transparency on practicing thrift and combating wastefulness: The 2013 Law has added regulations defining transparency in managing the state budget, capital, assets, labor, labor time, and resources as a measure to ensure practicing thrift and combating wastefulness (Clause 1, Article 5).
The basis for considering and objectively evaluating the practice of thrift and combating wastefulness and enhancing effectiveness, the 2013 Law introduces new provisions on the system of norms, standards, and policies. The Law stipulates three groups of norms, standards, and policies; principles for issuing norms, standards, and policies; responsibility for issuing, implementing, and inspecting the implementation of norms, standards, and policies (Article 11). The 2013 Law also provides for violations in issuing, implementing, and inspecting norms, standards, and policies. These violations include: issuing norms, standards, and policies contrary to principles; implementing beyond norms, standards, and policies; not organizing inspections of implementing norms, standards, and policies; not handling or reporting to competent state agencies to promptly handle cases of non-compliance with norms, standards, and policies, and sanctions for such violations.
Detection of wastefulness and responsibility for handling information on wastefulness detection is an important new point of the 2013 Law, creating a mechanism to encourage organizations and individuals to participate in detecting and promptly providing information on wastefulness, contributing to preventing wastefulness and determining the responsibility of agencies, organizations, and individuals for occurrences of wastefulness. Information on wastefulness detection in any form must be considered, promptly handled, and remedied by the head of the agency or organization where wastefulness occurs, and explanations must be made about the occurrence of wastefulness (Article 9).
Regarding acts causing wastefulness: The 2013 Law adds relatively complete and comprehensive regulations on acts causing wastefulness. These acts are detailed in several fields such as: preparing, appraising, approving, allocating, and assigning estimates, finalizing, managing, and using state budget funds; funds originating from the state budget (Article 27); acts causing wastefulness in purchasing, equipping, managing, and using means of transport, working facilities, and telecommunication equipment (Article 32); acts causing wastefulness in investment in construction; managing and using working premises, official residences, and public welfare works (Article 45). These provisions help to identify acts causing wastefulness more conveniently, making anti-wastefulness efforts more substantial and effective.
Responsibility of heads of agencies, organizations, and officials and public employees: The 2013 Law supplements the responsibility for prior explanations on occurrences of wastefulness within their agencies or organizations (Clause 3, Article 7); explaining and assuming personal responsibility for occurrences of wastefulness within the management and use of officials and public employees (Clause 2, Article 8). Simultaneously, agencies, organizations, individuals, and heads with violations or occurrences of wastefulness, in addition to explanations, may also be subject to disciplinary action, administrative penalties, or criminal prosecution. Joint responsibility is also applicable to heads of superior agencies, organizations, and units if wastefulness occurs in subordinate agencies, organizations, and units, and in units directly managed by their deputies (Article 78).
To encourage agencies, organizations, and individuals to practice thrift, participate in detecting wastefulness, the 2013 Law stipulates rewards and reward sources for agencies, organizations, and individuals with achievements in practicing thrift, detecting wastefulness, and combating wastefulness (Clause 2, Article 77). Simultaneously, the Law also specifies cases subject to violations handling and damage compensation (Article 78).
* Law on Citizen Reception 2013 consists of 9 chapters and 36 articles. The Law prescribes responsibilities for citizen reception, rights, and obligations of complainants, denunciators, petitioners, and reporters; organization of citizen reception activities at Citizen Reception Offices and other locations designated for citizen reception by agencies, organizations, and units, and conditions to ensure citizen reception activities.
Chapter III clearly stipulates the citizen reception by officials such as the Government Inspector General, Chief of the Government Office, and Provincial People’s Committee Chairman directly receiving citizens at the Citizen Reception Office at their level at least one day per month, the District People’s Committee Chairman directly receiving citizens at the District Citizen Reception Office at least two days per month, the Commune People’s Committee Chairman directly receiving citizens at the Commune People’s Committee Office at least one day per week, etc., and all conducting unexpected citizen receptions in cases specified in Clause 3, Article 18 of this Law. For specialized agencies under the Provincial People’s Committee (for example, the Department of Finance), appointing officials from the agency’s Inspectorate to conduct citizen reception.
According to the provisions of Article 18, heads of agencies have responsibilities in citizen reception as follows: (1) Leading, directing, and organizing citizen reception work of their agencies: (a) Issuing internal rules and regulations on citizen reception; (b) Arranging convenient locations for citizen reception; ensuring material facilities for citizen reception; (c) Assigning officials to regularly conduct citizen reception; (d) Closely coordinating with related agencies, organizations, and units to receive citizens and handle cases where many people complain, denounce, petition, or report on one issue; (e) Inspecting and urging agencies, organizations, units, and responsible individuals under their management to comply with legal provisions in citizen reception; (f) Ensuring safety and order for citizen reception activities; (g) Reporting the situation and results of citizen reception work to competent agencies and organizations; (2) Directly receiving citizens at least one day per month at the citizen reception location of their agency; (3) Conducting unexpected citizen receptions in the following cases: (a) Urgent, complex cases involving many people, related to the responsibility of multiple agencies, organizations, and units or differing opinions among agencies, organizations, and units; (b) Cases that, if not promptly directed and considered, could cause serious consequences or may lead to the destruction of state or collective assets, harm to human life, property of the people, affecting national security, political stability, and social order and safety.
When receiving citizens, heads of agencies must respond to citizens on the resolution of cases. If immediate replies cannot be given, they must direct related agencies, organizations, units, officials, and public employees under their management to promptly consider and resolve the matter and inform citizens of the response time.
The Law on Citizen Reception has created a relatively complete legal framework for the organization and conduct of citizen reception, especially the responsibility of heads of state administrative agencies, thereby enhancing the responsibility of agencies, sectors, and other accountable individuals in citizen reception, contributing to tightly resolving citizens' issues and ensuring transparency and democracy.
Source: Quang Ngai Provincial Department of Finance
