Decree No. 84/2024/ND-CP on piloting decentralization of state management in certain fields to the Ho Chi Minh City People's Authority.

DECREE
On piloting decentralization of state management in certain areas to the Ho Chi Minh City People's Administration

||| Pursuant to the Law on Organization of the Government dated June 19, 2015;

Pursuant to the Law on Organization of Local Administration dated June 19, 2015;

Pursuant to the Law Amending and Supplementing Several Provisions of the Law on Organization of the Government and the Law on Organization of Local Administration dated November 22, 2019;

Pursuant to the Law on Legislative Regulatory Documents dated June 22, 2015; the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Law on Legislative Regulatory Documents dated June 18, 2020;

Pursuant to point d, Clause 1, Article 11 of Resolution No. 98/2023/QH15 dated June 24, 2023 of the National Assembly on piloting certain special mechanisms and policies for the development of Ho Chi Minh City;

||| Based on the proposal of the Minister of Home Affairs;

The Government promulgates this Decree on piloting decentralization of state management in certain areas to the Ho Chi Minh City People's Administration.

PART I
GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

This Decree stipulates the contents of piloting decentralization of state management between the Government and the Ho Chi Minh City People's Administration (Ho Chi Minh City People's Council and Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee) in the following areas:

1. State management over investment.

2. State management over economy, finance, and state budget.

3. State management over planning, construction, natural resources, and environment.

4. State management over transportation.

5. State management over health.

6. State management over education and training.

7. State management over labor, vocational training.

8. State management over internal affairs.

Article 2. Applicability

1. Ho Chi Minh City People's Council and People's Committee.

2. Other state agencies, political organizations, and political-social organizations.

3. Political-social-professional organizations, social organizations, and social-professional organizations.

4. Other organizations and individuals related to the matter.

Article 5. Principles of Delegation

The decentralization of state management to the Ho Chi Minh City People's Administration (hereinafter referred to as the City) shall be implemented in accordance with the provisions of Clause 2, Article 11 and Article 13 of the Law on Organization of Local Administration and the specific contents as follows:

1. Ensuring compliance with the Constitution, Laws, Resolutions of the National Assembly, the Standing Committee of the National Assembly, and the Party's guidelines and tasks for the development of the City.

2. Ensuring centralized and unified leadership, guidance, and administration by the Government; promoting the responsibility, autonomy, self-accountability, dynamism, and creativity of the City in organizing the implementation of economic and social development goals at the local level.

3. Linking the decentralization of state management with the strengthening of inspection, supervision, and oversight responsibilities for the activities of the City's administration.

4. Delegating state management in certain areas to enhance the responsibility of the City People's Committee and its specialized agencies, creating initiative and improving the delegation mechanism for the City's administration.

5. Delegating state management in conjunction with implementing administrative reform programs at all levels of government to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of the City's state management apparatus; promptly addressing difficulties to create favorable conditions for business operations and better serve organizational and citizen needs.

6. Regulations or adjustments to administrative procedures related to the delegation of management must ensure the following principles:

a) For delegated matters that have already established administrative procedures, adjust the subject implementing the administrative procedures based on existing files and procedures without generating additional administrative procedures;

b) For delegated matters without established administrative procedures, implement according to the administrative procedures prescribed by the City People's Council, ensuring simplicity, clarity, ease of implementation, saving time, costs, and effort for both the subjects and the agencies implementing the administrative procedures.

Chapter II
DECENTRALIZATION OF STATE MANAGEMENT IN CERTAIN AREAS

Article 4. State Management of Investment

The People's Committee of the City shall submit to the People's Council of the City

1. To decide on the list of industries and occupations eligible for new incentives arising from global trends in new technology development or from the practical development of the city’s socio-economic conditions, in accordance with the national orientation towards green economy, circular economy, sharing economy, digital economy, and sustainable development, to be applied in the city after the People's Committee of the City has consulted the Ministry of Planning and Investment.

2. Based on the local budget balance capacity and detailed regulations on investment support forms (as stipulated in Decree No. 31/2021/NĐ-CP dated March 26, 2021 of the Government detailing and guiding the implementation of certain provisions of the Investment Law), to issue support policies ensuring the special nature of the city for high-tech enterprises and scientific and technological organizations.

Article 5. State Management of Economy, Finance, and State Budget

1. The People's Committee of the City shall submit to the People's Council of the City:

a) To decide on budget expenditure regimes for certain specific tasks at the local level outside the regimes, standards, and expenditure quotas issued by the Government, Prime Minister, and Minister of Finance to implement socio-economic development tasks and ensure social order and safety within the area, in line with the local budget balance capacity, without central government support;

b) Based on actual conditions and the local budget balance capacity, to decide on additional special expenditure levels for: Training and upgrading officials, civil servants, and public employees; travel allowances; conference and reception expenses compared to current budget expenditure regimes, standards, and quotas after the People's Committee of the City has consulted the Ministry of Finance.

2. The People's Committee of the City has the authority:

a) To grant and adjust retail establishment permits to foreign investors and foreign economic organizations operating in the city for the following cases:

Retail establishment permit (including the first retail establishment, retail establishments outside the first retail establishment, and not belonging to convenience stores or mini supermarkets) established in shopping centers with an area under 500 square meters.

Retail establishment permit outside the first retail establishment (not belonging to convenience stores or mini supermarkets) with an area under 100 square meters, not located in shopping centers, and already approved uniformly by the Economic Needs Review Board for issuance; to increase the area of such retail establishments outside the first retail establishment satisfying the above two conditions.

First retail establishment permit (not belonging to convenience stores or mini supermarkets) with an area under 500 square meters and to increase the area up to under 500 square meters for the first retail establishment (not belonging to convenience stores or mini supermarkets) located outside shopping centers.

b) To assign and delegate management, operation tasks of water infrastructure assets providing public utility services within the city according to conditions, procedures, and formalities prescribed by the People's Council of the City.

Article 6. State Management of Planning, Construction, Natural Resources, and Environment

1. The People's Committee of the City shall have the authority:

a) To decide on the population scale for social housing projects to ensure compatibility and correspondence with land use coefficients or increased building density according to the provisions of the Law on Housing, standards, and technical regulations applicable when approving investment proposals; detailed planning must be approved or adjusted according to the law before preparing the Feasibility Study Report for Investment Construction, ensuring compliance with Point b, Clause 3, Article 6 of Resolution No. 98/2023/QH15;

b) To proactively determine the population scale, adjust planning land use indicators, and architectural requirements when organizing the preparation, adjustment, and approval of plans within the jurisdiction of the People's Committee of the City, ensuring consistency with the overall plan (for cases of preparing and adjusting district-level plans), consistency with the overall plan and district-level plans (for cases of preparing and adjusting detailed plans), and adherence to national technical standards for construction planning;

c) To organize public auctions for leasing production and business premises, facilities, and land under the objects regulated by Decree No. 167/2017/NĐ-CP dated December 31, 2017 of the Government on the reorganization and handling of state assets and Decree No. 67/2021/NĐ-CP dated July 15, 2021 of the Government amending Decree No. 167/2017/NĐ-CP, with the initial auction price determined by the Chairman of the People's Committee of the City after consulting the Ministry of Finance (except for the provisions in Clause 3 and Clause 4, Article 4 of Resolution No. 98/2023/QH15);

2. To assign specialized agencies under the People's Committee of the City in accordance with the Law on Construction:

a) To review Feasibility Study Reports for investment construction, design implementation following basic design for Class A projects with the highest level of construction from Level II downwards, and Class B projects with the highest level of construction being Level I civil works using non-governmental state capital as stipulated by the Law on Construction;

b) To inspect the acceptance work of Level I civil works using non-governmental state capital;

3. To assign the Department of Construction:

a) To issue, extend, reissue, and revoke Certificates of Eligibility for Technical Safety Inspection Activities within the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Construction as provided for in Clause 1, Article 6, Part III, Appendix Ib of Decree No. 44/2016/NĐ-CP dated May 15, 2016 of the Government detailing certain provisions of the Labor Safety and Health Law on technical safety inspection activities, labor safety training, and occupational environment monitoring which has been amended and supplemented by Decree No. 140/2018/NĐ-CP dated October 8, 2018, and Decree No. 04/2023/NĐ-CP dated February 13, 2023 (collectively referred to as Decree No. 44/2016/NĐ-CP as amended and supplemented). Conditions, documents, procedures, and formalities for issuing, extending, and reissuing Certificates of Eligibility for Technical Safety Inspection Activities; models of Certificates of Eligibility for Technical Safety Inspection Activities; validity period of Certificates of Eligibility for Technical Safety Inspection Activities; revocation of Certificates of Eligibility for Technical Safety Inspection Activities shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of Articles 4, 5, Clause 2, Article 6, Articles 7, 8 of Appendix Ia of Decree No. 44/2016/NĐ-CP as amended and supplemented;

b) To issue, reissue, and revoke Technical Inspector Certificates within the jurisdiction of specialized agencies under the Ministry of Construction as provided for in Clause 3, Article 10, Part III, Appendix Ib of Decree No. 44/2016/NĐ-CP as amended and supplemented. Technical Inspector Standards; documents, procedures, and formalities for issuing and reissuing Technical Inspector Certificates; models of Technical Inspector Certificates; validity period of Technical Inspector Certificates; revocation of Technical Inspector Certificates shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of Articles 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 of Appendix Ib of Decree No. 44/2016/NĐ-CP as amended and supplemented.

Article 7. State Management of Transportation

The People's Committee of the City shall have the authority:

1. To organize the implementation of state management over inland waterway transportation activities on national inland waterways within the administrative boundaries of the City. The management authority applies to:

a) Inland waterway ports, inland waterway wharfs, anchorage areas, anchorage water areas on national inland waterway routes, dedicated inland waterways connecting national inland waterways;

b) Ports, inland waterway wharfs, anchorage water areas belonging to port waters within the administrative boundaries of the City.

2. To decide on the location, scope, procedures for announcing, and announcing the operation of anchorage areas, anchorage water areas on local inland waterway routes, national inland waterway routes, dedicated inland waterways connecting national inland waterways (and anchorage water areas belonging to port waters) within the administrative boundaries of the City (without the need to establish planning for anchorage areas, anchorage water areas). Here, anchorage water areas refer to water areas adjacent to riverbanks, canals, streams at locations where land belongs to organizations or individuals for the mooring of inland waterway vessels; not engaged in cargo or passenger transport.

Article 8. State Management of Health

The People's Committee of the City shall have the authority:

1. To grant health-related professional agencies the authority to issue certificates confirming the content of advertisements for private hospital medical services within the City.

2. To decide on the issuance of permits for importing medicines to meet special treatment needs arising during the diagnosis and treatment process for certain groups of medicines specified in point b, Clause 1, Article 68 of Decree No. 54/2017/ND-CP dated May 8, 2017 of the Government detailing some provisions and measures to implement the Law on Medicines (amended and supplemented at point a, Clause 38, Article 5 of Decree No. 155/2018/ND-CP dated November 12, 2018) for healthcare facilities under the City’s jurisdiction. Report to the Ministry of Health to publish information according to Clause 6, Article 60 of the Law on Medicines.

Article 9. State Management of Education and Training

The People's Committee of the City shall have the authority:

1. To approve integrated education programs implemented in educational cooperation with foreign countries for educational institutions within the City, ensuring criteria, conditions, and standards as prescribed by the Government regarding foreign cooperation and investment in the field of education and guidance from the Ministry of Education and Training.

2. To approve teaching materials and learning materials used for introducing children to foreign languages, ensuring criteria, conditions, procedures, and formalities as prescribed by the Government and guidance from the Ministry of Education and Training.

3. To pilot the development of new operational mechanisms for some educational institutions under the City’s jurisdiction to enhance the quality of education in the City.

Article 10. State Management of Labor and Vocational Education

The People's Committee of the City shall have the authority:

1. To accept applications and issue, reissue, extend, and revoke certificates of qualification for organizations headquartered within the City (excluding training organizations established by central ministries, sectors, agencies, state-owned corporations, and total companies under central ministries, sectors, and agencies) that conduct Category C training for participants in safety and hygiene training courses as stipulated in Clause 5, Article 1 of Decree No. 140/2018/ND-CP dated October 8, 2018 of the Government amending and supplementing related decrees concerning investment conditions and administrative procedures within the purview of the Ministry of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs.

2. To issue certificates of registration for vocational education activities and supplementary certificates of registration for vocational education activities for colleges under the City’s jurisdiction, ensuring criteria and conditions as prescribed by the Government.

3. To implement approval of the need to employ foreign workers; confirmation of non-eligibility for work permits; issuance, reissuance, extension, and revocation of work permits for cases involving organizations, agencies, enterprises permitted by the Government, Prime Minister, ministries, agencies equivalent to ministries, and government agencies to be established with headquarters and operations within the City as specified in point a, Clause 11, Article 1 of Decree No. 70/2023/ND-CP dated September 18, 2023 of the Government amending and supplementing point a, Clause 1, Article 30 of Decree No. 152/2020/ND-CP dated December 30, 2020 of the Government regarding foreign workers working in Vietnam and recruitment, management of Vietnamese workers employed by foreign organizations and individuals in Vietnam.

Article 11. State Management of Administrative Affairs

1. The People's Committee of the City shall submit to the People's Council of the City:

a) Deciding on the establishment, division, merger, and consolidation of specialized agencies under the People's Committee of the City, ensuring compatibility with the characteristics of the City and not increasing the number of existing specialized agencies;

b) Based on conditions, actual circumstances, and the budget, the City decides on additional bonuses for collectives and individuals who achieve outstanding or exceptionally excellent results in the cause of building and defending the country and contributing to promoting economic and social development, national defense, and security of the City, beyond the current bonus regulations, in accordance with the City's budget balancing capacity.

2. The People's Committee of the City has the authority to decide on quotas and organize examinations to promote civil servants to the ranks of specialist, senior specialist, and equivalent positions as stipulated in Clause 2 and Clause 3 of Article 32 of Decree No. 138/2020/NĐ-CP dated November 27, 2020 of the Government regarding recruitment, utilization, and management of civil servants.

3. The People's Committee of the district shall submit to the same-level People's Council for decision on the establishment, division, merger, and consolidation of specialized agencies under the People's Committee of the district, ensuring compatibility with the characteristics of the City and not increasing the number of existing specialized agencies.

Chapter III

IMPLEMENTING PROVISIONS

Article 12. Transitional Provisions

1. The People's Committee of the City shall submit to the same-level People's Council for promulgation or adjustment of administrative procedures, ensuring compliance with the principles set forth in Clause 6 of Article 3 of this Decree.

2. For the contents prescribed in point a of Clause 2 of Article 5, Clause 2 and Clause 3 of Article 6, Clause 1 and Clause 2 of Article 7, Article 8, Clause 1 and Clause 2 of Article 9, and Article 10 of this Decree, organizations and individuals who have submitted applications before the effective date of this Decree shall continue to implement according to relevant laws.

Cases that have been appraised, approved, authorized, granted certificates, licenses, and certifications before the effective date of this Decree shall continue to be used according to the documents issued by competent state authorities, and if they have a term, they shall be implemented until the end of the term. In cases of amendment, supplementation, adjustment, extension, reissue, or revocation, they shall be implemented according to the provisions of this Decree.

Article 13. Effective Date

1. This Decree takes effect from July 10, 2024. Decree No. 93/2001/NĐ-CP dated December 12, 2001 of the Government on decentralization in managing certain fields for Ho Chi Minh City is hereby repealed. In cases where there are different provisions on authority between this Decree and other Decrees, the provisions of this Decree shall apply.

2. The People's Committee of the City shall be responsible for summarizing and evaluating the results of implementing pilot programs assigned by this Decree in conjunction with the summary and evaluation of the implementation of Resolution No. 98/2023/QH15 dated June 24, 2023 of the National Assembly on piloting special mechanisms and policies for the development of Ho Chi Minh City, and report to the Government for consideration and decision.

1. The Minister, Heads of Ministries equivalent to ministries, Heads of government agencies, Chairmen of provincial People's Committees under the central government, and related agencies, units, and individuals are responsible for implementing this Circular.

1. Ministries and sectors shall be responsible for inspecting the organization and implementation of delegated contents related to the functions and tasks of ministries and sectors as prescribed in this Decree.

2. Ministers, Heads of ministerial-level agencies, Heads of government agencies, the People's Council, the People's Committee of Ho Chi Minh City, and related agencies shall be responsible for enforcing this Decree.