EU-Report Accession Bulgaria

The executive

Progress on public administration reform has continued since the last Regular Report with further revisions to the legislative framework and the adoption of a Strategy for Modernisation of the State Administration. There has been some improvement in access to information through the implementation of the Law on Access to Public Information, but further improvements are needed.

The main structural changes since the last Regular Report are the creation of a Ministry of Energy and Energy Resources, decided by the Council of Ministers in December 2001, and the appointment of a Minister for European Integration in May 2002.

Reform of public administration is a priority in the Government programme, which sets three main aims: modernisation in line with the principles of the rule of law, market economy and respect for human rights; further strengthening of the capacity to prepare for EU membership; and preparation for effective administration after EU accession. The Minister for State Administration leads work on this.

A Strategy for Modernisation of the State Administration was adopted in June 2002. It is built on five main principles: openness to citizens, participation of social and economic partners and civil society in policy design, accountability of the administration, effectiveness of national policies, and coherence of the political process. Concrete measures are planned: firstly, to strengthen the civil service through a range of improvements to administrative capacity and working methods, including measures to improve planning and policy-making, consultative mechanisms with economic and social partners, to prevent and combat corruption, to integrate minorities and vulnerable groups, and to improve the business climate; secondly, to strengthen the administrative capacity to implement the acquis communautaire; and thirdly, to strengthen Bulgaria's administrative capacity for managing structural funds. The time frame for the implementation of the strategy is 2002-2005.

The Laws on State Administration and the Civil Service remain the basic legal framework. Implementation of these has continued. By May 2002, the number of people with civil servant status had increased to about 22660 which represents about 33% of the total number of people employed in the central administration. For district and municipal administration, around 3460 people, about 18% of the 19 000 employees, have civil servant status.

When the Law on State Administration was amended in November 2001, provisions were introduced to regulate the distinction between the political and administrative responsibilities of heads of administrative structures. Whilst this is in general terms a positive change, it is important to ensure that transparent procedures are applied. The provisions permit the dismissal of certain senior officials and their deputies at the discretion of their appointing authority. The Civil Service Law and the Law on State Administration set the general values for public administration. These are legality, loyalty, responsibility, stability, political neutrality and hierarchical subordination. There is a non-binding Code of Conduct but this does not foresee any administrative sanctions for violations of the Code. People working in the public administration are also affected by other laws and regulations, which are not always harmonised, are sometimes difficult to understand and thus leave considerable scope for interpretation. Provisions on conflict of interest for civil servants are not sufficiently clear.

As mentioned last year, transparent and competitive schemes for recruitment and promotion are not mandatory and are the exception rather than the rule. The Civil Service Law defines the salary system. Currently this does not take sufficiently into account the jobs, skills and performance of individual civil servants. Civil service salaries were increased by 10% in 2002, but remain low. There remains a shortage of qualified staff to ensure sustainability of reforms. Human resource management in the state administration is generally very weak and inconsistent across institutions.

The legal framework for administrative decision-making and the numerous administrative procedures in place needs to be simplified and clarified to ensure legal certainty. Administrative justice continues to be regulated by a number of different laws and procedures that result in an overly complex system. The judicial reform strategy includes proposed legal amendments which, when implemented, could help improve the situation. The Supreme Administrative Court has continued to function and has seen an increase in its caseload since the last report.

The main piece of legislation regulating the openness and transparency of public information is the Law on Access to Public Information, in force since July 2000. This law has been amended twice, in January and April 2002, to align its provisions with the new Laws on Personal Data Protection and Classified Information. In the short time the Law on Access to Public Information has been in force, there has been a rise in the number of requests from citizens for access to public information and access has improved significantly. However, a considerable percentage of requests for information is not answered and there remain some imprecise provisions in the law, which leaves scope for discretion. Civil servants responsible for dealing with requests need more special training. There have been several court cases on the basis of the law, which have resulted in interpretations related to its implementation. These include the right of appeal when an administrative body does not reply to a request, and also acknowledgement that the definition of ``public information'' is imprecise in the law.

The current structure for co-ordination on European integration, of which most elements have been in place for over two years, is clear and works well, and is strengthened by the creation of a post of full Minister for European Integration. The Council of Ministers devotes at least one meeting a month to European integration, and a separate ministerial Council of European Integration, also chaired by the Prime Minister, meets once or twice a month. The two main units supporting this process, one in the Foreign Ministry and one in the Council of Ministers, have clear functions and good working relations. The working groups (one for each acquis chapter) work well. A further positive step is the creation of a new working group on administrative capacity to implement the acquis. However, further substantial strengthening of administrative structures is necessary to ensure that Bulgaria has the necessary capacity for fully effective use of EC funds.

As regards planning and policy-making capacity, the Council of Ministers administration has some capacity for providing policy advice, but capacity on strategic planning is still poor. On the framework for policy making, there are clear procedures for preparing draft laws and submitting them to the Council of Ministers. As mentioned in previous reports, the quality of draft legislation is often poor. There is a need to improve impact assessment. Efforts are being made to improve quality and offer training on this. When the EC acquis is transposed, insufficient consideration is often given to how this can be adapted to the situation in Bulgaria and to implementation and enforcement capacity. Also, as mentioned last year, after new laws enter into force, more attention needs to be paid to monitoring implementation and enforcement, in particular in the court system. Consultations with civil society and economic and social partners are improving and there is increasing recognition that this can be beneficial in helping prepare better quality drafts which will be easier to implement. Since the last Regular Report, there have been several good examples of co-operation with civil society, for instance on the development of action plans to implement the anti-corruption and judicial reform strategies.

There have been positive developments concerning training for civil servants. The Institute for Public Administration and European Integration is now operational. By the end of 2001, 1,159 civil servants had attended courses. In February 2002, the Council of Ministers adopted a Strategy for the Training of Civil Servants in the Bulgarian State Administration. This covers introductory, continuous and specialised training for civil servants. Training on the implementation of EC legislation is stressed. The first general training programme for newly appointed civil servants started at the beginning of 2002.

There have been no concrete developments as regards decentralisation of government functions or as regards strengthening the regional and local levels. In June 2002 the Government approved a programme for fiscal decentralisation which aims to achieve financial independence of municipalities and covers health, education and social support.

© EU Commission -- 2003-03-30