Directive No. 14/2006/CT-TTg on the implementation of Decree No. 161/2005/NĐ-CP dated December 27, 2005 of the Government detailing and guiding the implementation of certain provisions of the Law on Issuing Legal Normative Documents and the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Law on Issuing Legal Normative Documents.

DIRECTIVE

Regarding the implementation of Decree No. 161/2005/NĐ-CP dated December 27, 2005 of the Government "Providing detailed regulations and guiding the implementation of certain provisions of the Law on Enacting Legal Documents and the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Law on Enacting Legal Documents" On December 27, 2005, the Government issued Decree No. 161/2005/NĐ-CP "Providing detailed regulations and guiding the implementation of certain provisions of the Law on Enacting Legal Documents and the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Law on Enacting Legal Documents" (hereinafter referred to as Decree 161/CP). This decree is of utmost importance in enhancing the role and responsibility of Ministers, Heads of ministerial-level agencies, Heads of government agencies, and Chairpersons of provincial People's Committees in the work of drafting legal documents. The decree reflects the Government's determination to reform the procedures and processes for drafting laws to improve quality and accelerate the development of legal documents, meeting the requirements of economic development and the current process of international economic integration. To effectively implement Decree 161/CP, the Prime Minister requests that all Ministries, ministerial-level agencies, government agencies (hereinafter collectively referred to as Ministries and sectors), provincial People's Committees, and municipal People's Committees directly under the central government (hereinafter collectively referred to as provincial People's Committees) promptly carry out the following tasks: 1. Organize the dissemination of the contents of Decree 161/CP to all cadres and civil servants within their Ministries, sectors, and areas of responsibility;

2. Strictly comply with the provisions of Articles 16, 17, 18, 19, and Article 20 of Decree 161/CP regarding the preparation of draft programs for law and ordinance enactment, and resolution and decree programs. At the same time, innovate the work of preparing programs for drafting legal documents in the direction of preparing three-month, six-month, and annual programs for legal document drafting of their Ministries and sectors; proactively propose to the Prime Minister to include in the program for drafting legal document projects and drafts of the Government and the Prime Minister the list of legal documents that need to be enacted. Draft programs for legal document drafting of Ministries and sectors and of the Government must be reviewed based on the summary of the objective movement of social relations regulated by legal document projects and drafts; forecast economic and social impacts; financial resources, human resources, and other resources ensuring enforcement when legal documents come into effect; resolutely remove from the program those projects and drafts that are unnecessary or fail to meet progress and quality standards; at the same time, timely supplement into the program for drafting legal documents those drafts and projects to address urgent management needs in sectors and fields;

3. Strengthen the work of review by the Ministry of Justice and legal departments of Ministries and sectors; and the review by the Government Office of legal document projects and drafts. The results of reviews by the Ministry of Justice and legal departments of Ministries and sectors; and the review by the Government Office must ensure objectivity, independence, scientific rigor, high persuasiveness, and be mandatory documents in the dossier for submitting legal document drafts;

Legal departments of Ministries and sectors are responsible for reviewing and bearing responsibility before Ministers, Heads of ministerial-level agencies, and Heads of government agencies for projects and drafts within their authority to issue;

4. Ministers, Heads of ministerial-level agencies, Heads of government agencies, Chairpersons of provincial People's Committees, and Heads of drafting committees must allocate appropriate time for directing and studying directly the legal document projects and drafts;

Ministers, Heads of ministerial-level agencies, and Chairpersons of provincial People's Committees are responsible for establishing Regulations on the procedures and processes for drafting, reviewing, and issuing legal documents of their Ministries, sectors, and localities;

5. Strictly implement the solicitation of opinions from scientists and managers on legal document projects and drafts, and the opinions of organizations and individuals directly subject to regulation by these projects and drafts, especially those related to the rights and obligations of citizens and businesses;

6. Develop regular training and capacity-building plans for staff involved in drafting laws in their respective sectors and fields;

7. For drafting committees: drafting committees must take responsibility seriously in building projects and drafts. Drafting committees and main drafting agencies must bear primary responsibility for ensuring the quality of content, progress, and drafting of legal document projects and drafts. Members of the Government who are Heads of drafting committees must personally bear responsibility before the Government and the Prime Minister for failing to ensure the quality and progress of drafting and submitting legal document projects and drafts to the Government;

Fully implement the provisions of Decree 161/CP regarding drafting committees for law and ordinance projects and draft resolutions submitted to the National Assembly and the Standing Committee of the National Assembly by the Government, which are also drafting committees for guiding decrees. For projects and drafts requiring detailed regulations, the Head of the project drafting committee must request the Prime Minister to assign relevant agencies to draft detailed implementing regulations. For laws and ordinances requiring detailed regulations by the Government, the drafting committee must submit draft detailed regulations together with the law and ordinance drafts for the Government's consideration.

6. Have a regular plan to train, enhance, and improve the skills of drafting and policy formulation for officials and civil servants involved in legislative work in their respective sectors and fields;

7. For Drafting Committees: Drafting Committees must emphasize their responsibility in the development of draft projects and proposals. The Drafting Committee and the leading agency must bear primary responsibility for ensuring the quality of content, progress in the development and drafting of draft regulatory documents. The member of the Government who is the Head of the Drafting Committee shall be personally responsible before the Government and the Prime Minister for failing to ensure the quality and progress in drafting and submitting draft projects and proposals to the Government;

Fully implement the provisions of Decree 161/CP regarding Drafting Committees for draft laws, ordinances, and draft resolutions submitted to the National Assembly and the Standing Committee of the National Assembly by the Government, which also serve as Drafting Committees for guiding decrees. For draft projects and proposals that require detailed regulations, the Head of the Drafting Committee must request the Prime Minister to assign relevant agencies to draft implementing regulations. For draft laws and ordinances that contain provisions requiring detailed regulations by the Government, the Drafting Committee must submit draft detailed regulations along with the draft laws and ordinances for the Government's consideration;

8. Strictly implement the provisions of Decree No. 161/CP regarding the effective date of regulatory legal documents; the deadline for reviewing regulatory legal documents by the Ministry of Justice, and preliminary examination by the Government Office; the dossier and procedures for seeking opinions from the Standing Committee of the National Assembly on draft Decrees that define extremely necessary issues but lack conditions to be developed into laws or ordinances;

9. Entrust the Ministry of Finance to take the lead, coordinate with the Government Office, the Ministry of Justice, and relevant agencies to develop a Joint Circular to detail the financial guarantee for preparing the proposed legislative program for laws, ordinances, resolutions, decrees; funding for drafting, reviewing, and preliminary examination of legislative projects and draft regulatory legal documents; and funding for reviewing and systematizing regulatory legal documents as stipulated in Article 40 of Decree No. 161/CP. This Circular must be issued before June 30, 2006, and replace Circular No. 15/2001/TT-BTC dated March 21, 2001, of the Ministry of Finance on "Guidelines for Managing and Settling Financial Support for Drafting Regulatory Legal Documents";

10. Entrust the Ministry of Justice to take the lead, coordinate with the Government Office and relevant agencies to develop the Regulation on Review and the Regulation on the Organization and Operation of the Drafting Board of Regulatory Legal Documents, to be submitted to the Prime Minister for issuance before May 30, 2006;

11. Entrust the Government Office to take the lead, coordinate with the Ministry of Justice and relevant agencies to develop the Regulation on Preliminary Examination of Regulatory Legal Documents, to be submitted to the Prime Minister for issuance before July 31, 2006; promptly report to the Prime Minister to take measures to correct the Drafting Board or remove from the government's work program legislative projects and draft documents of low quality, unfeasible, or failing to meet the drafting schedule; responsible for implementing and urging compliance with the provisions of Articles 8, 10, and 11 of Decree No. 161/CP regarding publication in the Official Gazette, sending, and disseminating regulatory legal documents;

12. Ministries, ministerial-level agencies, agencies under the Government, and provincial People's Committees are responsible for implementing this Directive;

The Government Office shall oversee, urge, and inspect the implementation of this Directive./.