Constitutionality of the Law on SBI, an updated procedure for dismissing SBI Director, and early elections in local communities

The SBI is now a center of media attention thanks to scandalous MPs from the Servant of the People faction: first Oleksandr Trukhin tried to run away from the scene of a traffic accident to the forest, now Serhii Kuzminykh was caught while allegedly receiving a bribe. Now, some MPs are trying to restore the “legitimacy” of the SBI why others are proposing to simplify the procedure for dismissing the SBI Director.

Amendments to the Law on SBI making it compliant with the Constitution

Draft bill #7022 of February 4, 2022

Cosponsors: 9 MPs from Holos faction — members of Justice group, with Oleksandra Ustinova as the first signatory.

Who is affected: the President, MPs, the Cabinet, employees of the SBI, top officials, service members, and civil servants.

Summary of the bill: the bill proposes amendments to the Law on the SBI similar to those adopted for the Law on NABU:

• the SBI will be transformed from a law enforcement agency into a central executive body
• the authority to influence the appointment of the SBI Director will be taken away from the President and Parliament, instead this authority will be granted to the Cabinet
• committee for the selection of the SBI Head will be formed by the Cabinet: it will propose three members itself and the other three will be nominated by international and foreign organizations
• at the same time, the SBI will be independent from the Cabinet in its work:
  • it will decide on the structure of its apparatus
  • approve its statute
  • decide on state registration of acts
  • the Cabinet will not have the authority to give any orders to the SBI.

Why this is important:

• in 2019-2020, the Constitutional Court adopted several decisions recognizing state regulators, the NABU and SBI as central executive bodies that have to be subordinate to the Cabinet, not the President or the Parliament (decisions on the National Commission for State Regulation of Energy and Public Utilities, constitutional amendments, appointment of the NABU Director, and President’s influence over the NABU). Thus, current Law on SBI violates the Constitution
• in December of 2019, the Verkhovna Rada “re-launched” the SBI by transforming it into a state law enforcement agency and making it subordinate to the President.

What is right: amendments proposed by the bill will make the Law on SBI compliant with the Constitution. This will prevent the Constitutional Court from repealing provisions of the law as unconstitutional and ruling “illegal” SBI’s work.

Updated procedure for dismissing SBI Director

Draft bill #7022 of February 4, 2022

Cosponsors: 14 MPs from the European Solidarity faction, with Iryna Herashchenko as the first signatory.

Who is affected: the President, MPs, the Cabinet, employees of the SBI, top officials, service members, and civil servants.

Summary of the bill:

• provisions that the Verkhovna Rada can at any time initiate a vote of no confidence to dismiss the SBI Director and needs 150 MPs to pass such a vote
• the President will be obliged to dismiss the SBI Director if the Parliament votes no confidence.

What is wrong:

• the bill violates the Constitution by extending the authority of the Verkhovna Rada. According to the Constitution, the Parliament does not have a power to take a no confidence vote in heads of central executive bodies
• the bill violates the Constitution by extending the authority of the President. The Constitutional Court has already repealed the law granting the President a power to influence the appointment of the NABU Director.

Early elections in local communities

Draft bill #7007 of February 3, 2022

Cosponsors: members of the Committee on State Building, Local Governance, Regional and Urban Development.

Who is affected: government bodies, local governments, and members of Zaporizhzhia, Svaliava, Berdiansk, Zolotyi potik, Sedniv, Tsebrykove, and Korovyntsi communities.

Summary of the bill: schedules early elections of community heads for the following local councils:

• Zaporizhzhia, Svaliava, and Berdiansk city communities
• Zolotyi potik, Sedniv, and Tsebrykove urban-type settlement communities
• Korovyntsi village community.

Why this is important: heads of the communities in question were dismissed because of voluntary resignation or death, so now these communities are governed by acting heads — secretaries of the respective local councils.

What is right:

• the Parliament exercises its constitutional authority. Only the Verkhovna Rada can schedule regular and early elections to local councils
• the Parliament protects the right of community members for local self-governance. Voters have to decide for themselves who will govern them.