Construction industry regulations to be simplified

2010-03-06

The government plans to simplify the regulatory norms in the construction industry. It has prepared a document of 52 measures which involve amendments to legislation, in addition to a number of bylaws and norms, which should come into force in 2011.
In particular, the plan suggests the abolition of the current division of land into seven categories (agricultural land, residential land, industrial land, etc). Government officials believe that the existing division results in sharp practice which takes place when land is being transferred between categories; the mere fact of zoning used for urban planning will be enough to define the purpose of a site.
The government proposes the taxation of the land to depend on its current use; unused land which is state or municipal property will be taxed at an increasing rate, and this should force state companies and municipal authorities to dispose of such sites and make them available to other companies for investments.
According to the plan, sites will be distributed only through auctions, with exceptions in special circumstances determined by law. The rules pertaining to the connection of the sites to engineering networks and the electric grid will also be simplified; the utility providers will not be allowed to charge additional fees, in excess of the approved tariffs, for connecting the networks.