The Government has examined the draft law, which was submitted by State Duma Deputy Sergei Ivanov.

The Draft Law stipulates tougher administrative penalties for driving under the influence and for transferring control of motor vehicles to inebriated persons. This has been done by amending Article 12.8 of the Code of Administrative Offences of the Russian Federation (hereinafter referred to as COAO), "Driving under the influence and for transferring control of motor vehicles to inebriated persons." Article 12.8 stipulates confiscation of the motor vehicle as the applicable administrative penalty.

The provisions of Clause 4 of Part 1 of Article 3.2 "Types of Administrative Penalties," Part 2 of Article 3.3 "Main and Supplementary Administrative Penalties," Part 1 of Article 3.7 "Confiscation of the Instrument or Object Used in Commission of an Administrative Violation" of the COAP, the confiscation of the instrument or object in the commission of an administrative violation is stipulated as a type of main or supplementary administrative penalty being meted out by the judge. This penalty is defined as the forcible and gratis transfer of objects, which have not been removed from circulation, into federal property or the property of a Russian region. Confiscation is applied with regard to a violator who may own the object being confiscated or who can exercise separate ownership powers, such as the right to own and/or manage this specific object. At any rate, the object subject to confiscation should be owned by the violator in line with the above-mentioned legal foundations.

Consequently, the provisions of the draft law, in conjunction with Part 1 of Article 3.7 of COAO, make it possible to confiscate the instrument used in commission of an administrative violation from the owner, who has not been subjected to an administrative penalty, and who has not been found guilty by a court of law of committing this administrative violation. They therefore disproportionately restrict private property ownership rights, which are guaranteed by Parts 1 and 3 of Article 35 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, in violation of Part 3 of Article 55 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation.

This stance is reflected in Constitutional Court Resolution No 6-P, dated April 25, 2011, which expressly states that specific COAO provisions and clauses run counter to the Constitution by stipulating as an administrative penalty the possibility of confiscating the instrument used in the commission of an administrative violation from the owner, who has not been subjected to an administrative penalty, and who has not been found guilty by a court of law of committing this administrative violation.

Considering the above-mentioned issues, the Government does not support the draft law.