The following issues are scheduled for discussion at the Government Presidium meeting on October 29, 2009

1. Measures for more effective regulation of the market of alcohol and alcohol-containing products and the production of ethylated alcohol.

The meeting of the Government Presidium of the Russian Federation will consider amendments to the legislation prepared by Rosalkogolregulirovaniye. The agency has carried out this work pursuant to the instructions issued after the meeting devoted to the situation in the alcohol market chaired by Prime Minister Vladimir Putin in June 2009.

The same meeting approved a package of measures towards more effective regulation of the alcohol market. The Presidium will consider the plan for its implementation.

Further work in this respect will be coordinated by a government commission headed by First Deputy Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov.

2. Draft Federal Law On Introducing Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of the Russian Federation

A draft federal law on the above issue has been submitted by the Minister of Justice of the Russian Federation.

The draft law would strike out from legislation, references to the old name, Code of Labour Laws, harmonize the terminology and content of the legal norms with the Labour Code of the Russian Federation, because some current legislative acts of the Russian Federation contain references to the Code of Labour Laws of the Russian Federation which has been null and void since February 1, 2002.

To rule out references to the outdated name, Code of Labour Laws (KZOT) and harmonize the terminology and content of the legal norms with the Labour Code of the Russian Federation the draft law introduces the relevant amendments to the Federal Law On Banks and Banking; the Law of the Russian Federation On Education; Provisional rules for the conduct of elections of deputies of representative bodies of local government and elected officials of local government in the entities of the Russian Federation who have not provided for ensuring the constitutional rights of citizens of the Russian Federation to elect and be elected to the local government bodies attached to the Federal Law On Ensuring the Constitutional Rights of the Citizens of the Russian Federation to Elect and Be Elected to Local Government Bodies; and the Federal Law On Fruit and Vegetable Gardening and Non-Commercial Dacha Associations of Citizens.

3. Draft Federal Law On Introducing Amendments to the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation Concerning Sentences of Compulsory Community Service

The Draft Federal Law has been submitted by the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation.

The adoption of the Federal Law is called upon to reduce the number of people sentenced to imprisonment.

Under Article 50 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation a convict is sentenced to correctional labour who has no permanent job and the sentence is served in locations determined by the local government body with the approval of the penal enforcement agency in the area where the convict resides.

Compulsory community service consists of performance by the convicted person of public works in the time free from his/her main work or studies. The type of compulsory community service and the facilities where it is carried out are determined by the local government bodies with the approval and agreement with the penal enforcement inspectorates.

However, compulsory community service is not envisaged as a type of punishment with regard to 48 categories of crimes. At the same time correctional labour as a type of punishment is mentioned among sanctions in the relevant articles.

Thus, if a person guilty of perpetrating such crimes held a permanent job at the time the sentence was passed, that person cannot be sentenced to such a type of punishment as correctional labour. The fact that the said articles do not mention such a type of punishment as compulsory community service in the list of relevant sanctions increases the chances that the offender may be sentenced to such a type of punishment as imprisonment.

The application of punishment in the form of correctional labour is limited because it applies to convicts who have no permanent job. This punishment cannot be applied to persons who hold a permanent job at the time the sentence is passed putting them at a disadvantage compared with unemployed people. In a number of cases a person who holds a permanent job is sentenced to imprisonment whereas a non-working person may be sentenced to correctional labour. The inclusion of punishment in the form of compulsory community service in the list of sanctions of the Criminal Code's articles would prevent people who for some reason cannot be sentenced to correctional labour from being imprisoned.

The sanctions in a number of articles in the Criminal Code envisage such types of punishment as restriction of freedom, arrest or only imprisonment. Because restriction of freedom and arrest are currently not applied, there is no alternative for the indicted person but imprisonment. The draft law would introduce punishment in the form of compulsory community service in Articles 119 and 259 of the Criminal Code.

Sanctions in certain articles of the Criminal Code also envisage such a form of punishment as a fine as an alternative to imprisonment. However, not all convicted people can afford to pay the fine imposed by a court of law. In such cases compulsory community service is proposed as an alternative punishment to imprisonment (Articles 176, 2282, 231, 238, 243, 245 and 311 of the Criminal Code).

4. Draft Federal Law On Introducing Amendments to the Penal Enforcement Code of the Russian Federation

The Draft Federal Law has been submitted by the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation.

The purpose of this Draft Law is to optimise the placement of convicts in penal colony-settlements, to differentiate and individualise the execution of sentences and to eliminate equivocation of the norms of the Penal Enforcement Code.

In accordance with Part 7, Article 97 of the Penal Enforcement Code the time the convict spent outside a correctional facility is counted towards the term for serving punishment.

The term "being outside a correctional facility", in addition to the convict actually leaving under the said article, may be interpreted as any other instance of a convict's stay outside the facility, including the time spent after escaping from custody as well as the failure of the convict permitted to leave to return to the correctional facility.

The Draft Federal Law proposes a more precise language for part 7 of Article 97 of the Penal Enforcement Code whereby the period of time during which the convict is allowed to leave and be outside a correctional facility is counted towards the term for serving punishment, which exclude equivocation of this provision.

One of the main principles of penal enforcement legislation in the Russian Federation is the differentiation and individualization of the execution of punishment (Article 8 of the Penal Enforcement Code).

The proposed changes to Article 128 of the Penal Enforcement Code envisage that in penal colony-settlements, persons who have not been previously imrisoned and have been convicted for crimes of negligence or premeditated minor or not serious crimes serve their sentences separately from the inmates who have been convicted of crimes of negligence who have served previous prison sentences and convicts transferred from general or high-security prisons for good behaviour.

Under Article 129 of the Penal Enforcement Code, convicts serving their sentence in a penal colony-settlement may be allowed to live with their families both inside and outside this facility.

The current language of this provision envisages that the convict can live in any community in the country regardless of where the penal colony-settlement is located, which contradicts the purpose and meaning of such a punishment as imprisonment. In this connection the draft law proposes amendments to Article 129 of the Penal Enforcement Code whereby convicts are allowed to live with their families outside a penal colony-settlement only within the municipal entity on whose territory this settlement is located.

5. Draft Federal Law On Introducing an Amendment to Article 20 of the Federal Law on the Procedures for Entrance and Exit from the Russian Federation

The Draft Federal Law has been introduced by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation.

The Draft Law is aimed at securing the rights of minors in orphanages and institutions for children left without parental care when they leave the Russian Federation and return within a fixed time period.

At present there are laws regulating the general procedure of the exit of minors from the Russian Federation. However, the procedure for organizing the exit from the Russian Federation of children who live in orphanages and institutions for children left without parental care gives rise to many questions in practice. There are some cases when instead of sightseeing tours the main aim of the trips organized is to introduce the children to foreign citizens who are potential adoptive parents as well as cases of untimely return (non-return) of this category of children from foreign states.

The Draft Law introduces the relevant amendments to Article 20 of the Federal Law On the Procedure of Exit from the Russian Federation and entry into the Russian Federation that determines the overall procedure of the exit of minors who are citizens of the Russian Federation out of the Russian Federation.

Under the draft law, travels of groups of children belonging to that category for rest or treatment outside the Russian Federation will be organized by legal entities on the basis of permits issued by the guardianship and trusteeship agencies for the exit of every child as well as a corresponding agreement between the said legal entities and the guardianship and trusteeship agency.

Guardianship and trusteeship agencies are obliged to register children belonging to this category who have left the Russian Federation for rest or medical treatment and to monitor their timely return.

Under the draft law the authority to determine the procedure of the issue by the guardianship and trusteeship agencies of permits for the exit of the said category of children are vested with the federal executive body which develops state policy and legal regulations in the sphere of guardianship and trusteeship of children, i.e. the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation.

6. Amendment and voiding of certain resolutions of the Government of the Russian Federation on the management of special economic zones

The Ministry of Economic Development has submitted a draft resolution on this issue in cooperation with the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Justice.

The draft resolution would introduce the relevant amendments to the Statute on the Ministry of Economic Development of Russian Federation vesting the Ministry with the function of managing special economic zones in accordance with the procedure and within the limits established by the Federal Law on Special Economic Zones in the Russian Federation.

7. Changing the amount of the issue of government securities in 2009

The Draft Executive Order on this issue has been submitted for discussion by the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation.

The Draft Executive Order would make it possible to issue government securities in 2009 for the purpose of exchanging federal loan bonds for preferred shares of banking credit organizations in order to increase bank capitalization.

Under the Executive Order of the Government of the Russian Federation No.1945-r of December 24, 2008 the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation is allowed to issue in 2009 government securities whose par value is denominated in the currency of the Russian Federation in the amount of up to 535.8 billion roubles in order to ensure a balanced federal budget and to redeem government debt.

Under Federal Law No.230-FZ of October 3, 2009 On Introducing Amendments to the Federal Law on the Federal Budget for 2009 and the Planning Period of 2010 and 2011, the amount of borrowing against government securities has been reduced as a result of which the volume of the issue of government securities to ensure a balanced federal budget and redeem government debt in 2009 will be 497.8 billion roubles.

Along with the amendments to the Programme of Government Internal Borrowing of the Russian Federation for 2009 the said Federal Law establishes that the Government of the Russian Federation in 2009, for the purpose of exchanging federal loan bonds for preferred shares of banking credit organizations may issue, without introducing amendments to the Programme of Government Internal Borrowing of the Russian Federation for 2009, federal loan bonds with a permanent coupon yield in the amount of 150 billion roubles at par value with the coupon yield paid once a year with maturity in 2019 and place them by concluding swap agreements for preferred shares of the banking credit organizations under the procedure and on terms established by Federal Law No.181-FZ of July 18, 2009 On the Use of Government Securities of the Russian Federation to Increase Bank Capitalization.

The flotation of the above mentioned federal loan bonds in exchange for preferred shares of banking credit organizations will comply with the Federal Law No.181-FZ of July 18, 2009 On the Use of Government Securities of the Russian Federation to Increase Bank Capitalization at the nominal value with a market interest rate of the coupon yield. By virtue of the above and considering the decreased borrowing in the government bond market in 2009 in connection with amendments introduced by the Federal Law No.230-FZ of October 3, 2009 On Introducing Amendments to the Federal Law on the Federal Budget for 2009 and the Planning Period of 2010 and 2011 into the Programme of Government Internal Borrowing in the Russian Federation for 2009, for government bonds to be issued for the purpose of exchanging federal loan bonds for preferred shares of banking credit institutions in the amount of 150 billion roubles, an amendment needs to be introduced in the Executive Order of the Government of the Russian Federation No.1945-r of December 24, 2008 that would increase the allowed amount of the issue of government securities of the Russian Federation in 2009 to 647.8 billion roubles.

8. Progress of the work to post information on the consolidated government services portal.

Moscow, October 28, 2009

* The press-releases by the Department of Press Service and Information contain the materials submitted by the executive federal bodies for discussion by the Presidium of the Government of the Russian Federation.