The Constitutional Court of the Republic of Belarus, comprising of the Presiding Officer - Chairman of the Constitutional Court G.A. Vasilevich, Deputy Chairman A.V. Maryskin, judges T.S. Boiko, G.A. Vorobei, K.I. Kenik, V.V. Podgrusha, A.A. Sarkisova, A.G. Tikovenko, R.I. Filipchik, G.B. Shishko, V.Z. Shuklin, has examined on the basis of Article 40 and part four of Article 122 of the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus complaint of members of Brest branch of Belarusian society of hunters and fishers on verification of lawfulness of collection of local hunting due in addition to the pay of state duty for granting the right to hunt .

The Constitutional Court, having analyzed the relevant provisions of the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus, Laws "On budget of the Republic of Belarus 2001", "On taxes and dues collected into budget of the Republic of Belarus", "On local government and self-government in the Republic of Belarus", "On conservation and use of animal world", "On state duty", other enforceable legal acts, found the following. The procedure of legal regulation in the field of conservation and use of animal world shall be specified in the Law "On conservation and use of animal world" under Article 37 of which objects of animal world are available for being used in accordance with the requirements of the given Law and of other legislation of the Republic of Belarus.

Objects of animal world are available for being used for the pay on the ground of special permissions (licences) issued by specially authorized state body of the Republic of Belarus on natural resources and environmental protection, except for the instances specified in the Law "On conservation and use of animal world" and in other acts of legislation. Article 25 of the given Law shall stipulate that the right to hunting in the territory of the Republic of Belarus with hunting guns, with other permitted instruments for hunting, as well as with gun-dogs and hunting birds shall have all legally capable (competent) citizens who reached the age of 18th, who passed special hunting exam, who paid state duty at the fixed rate and who have state certificate for the right to hunting which is issued by specially authorized state body of the Republic of Belarus on forestry and which is effective in the whole territory of the Republic of Belarus, as well as permission of the bodies of internal affairs to storage and carrying a hunting gun. Granting the right to hunting shall presuppose according to point 8 of Article 2 of the Law "On state duty" the collection of state duty the rate of which under resolution of the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Belarus of 26 February 1993 No. 105 (with alterations and addenda) shall be 20 per cent of minimum wage. Payment of state duty shall be made in accordance with point 9 of resolution of the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Belarus of 30 December 1997 No. 1750 "On hunting and management of hunting farming in the territory of the Republic of Belarus" (in wording of 6 October 1999 No. 1552) once a calendar year at the rate fixed by legislation under the condition of direct realization by a citizen of that right. The specified due should be paid before taking out hunting voucher or single permit to bag certain species of animals - objects of hunting.

Hunting voucher and (or) single permit to bag certain species of wild animals - objects of hunting under point 15 of Provision on hunting and management of hunting farming in the territory of the Republic of Belarus, approved by resolution of the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Belarus of 30 December 1997 No. 1750, shall be issued by hunting landholders at the pay the rate of which they shall fix on the ground of recommendations on determination of the value of hunting voucher and of single permits which shall be approved in the established procedure (at present, applicable are Recommendations on determination of the value of hunting voucher and of single permits to bag certain species of wild animals - objects of hunting, approved by orders of the Ministry of natural resources and environmental protection of the Republic of Belarus of 17 March 1998 No. 77, Ministry of finance of the Republic of Belarus of 18 March 1998 No. 84, Ministry of economy of the Republic of Belarus of 24 March 1998 No. 24). According to points 17, 20-22 of the Procedure of issue of state certificates for the right to hunting in the Republic of Belarus, approved by the Ministry of forestry of the Republic of Belarus of 2 June 1997, hunting certificate shall give the right to hunting with the presence of the card of record of violations of the rules of hunting and of pay of state duty with a mark about pay of state duty for a current year.

Card of record of violations of the rules of hunting and of pay of state duty is an obligatory addendum to hunting certificate. In accordance with Article 9 of the Law "On conservation and use of animal world" the competence of local Councils of deputies, executive and administrative bodies in the sphere of conservation and use of animal world shall be to determine the frontiers of hunting and fishing lands and conclusion of lease contracts, co-ordination of the limits for use of animal world, organization of collection of payments for use of animal world, setting and collection of local taxes and dues for certain types of use of animal world.

Legal position of the Constitutional Court on the constitutionality of setting in accordance with the law of local taxes and dues by local Councils of deputies had been previously stated in decision of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Belarus of 16 November 2001 "On local due for use of car parks and parking in specially equipped places". Exhaustive list of local taxes and dues, which shall be imposed by oblasts, Minsk city Council of deputies, Councils of deputies of basic territorial level in the territory of relevant administrative territorial units specified in Article 10 of the Law "On budget of the Republic of Belarus 2001", shall include fishing and hunting dues as one of the dues from a user (sub-item 1.1 of point 1). In the opinion of the Constitutional Court collection, in accordance with the Law "On state duty", of state duty for granting the right to hunting shall not effect the stipulated in the legislation right of local Councils of deputies to impose local hunting due in the territory of relevant administrative territorial units.

Brest region Council of deputies in its decision of 21 December 2000 No. 107 "On budget of region 2001" has imposed local hunting due, approved the Provision on local hunting due (hereafter - Provision), where there is a specification of the due-payers, the rate of due - one minimum wage, periodicity of payment of due (once a year), privileges for certain categories of citizens, the procedure of collection of due, responsibility. The Constitutional Court emphasizes that the Provision shall contain internal contradiction in part of specification of due-payers. Thus, if paragraph two of the Provision specifies that due-payers shall be all natural persons who shall realize the right to hunting in hunting farmings and in the farmings of Brest region irrespective of the place of employment and of place of residence, then on the basis of the norms specified in paragraphs eight, nine, eleven due-payers shall be also hunting farmings which are entrusted with collection of a due while initial issuing of the voucher for the right to hunting.

There has been envisaged the obligation of those organizations to issue credit slip, to submit to a taxation body calculations of due and to transfer due on 22nd day of the month following the accounting one at the latest. There is a specification that due-payers shall be responsible under the Law "On taxes and dues collected into the budget of the Republic of Belarus" for non-submission, untimely submission to a taxation body of accounts, concealment (underrating) of due and for other violations.

The Constitutional Court pays attention that the norms of paragraphs eight, nine, eleven of the Provision are not in conformity with preamble, Articles 1, 8, 9, of the Law "On taxes and dues collected into the budget of the Republic of Belarus" under which taxes and dues collected into the budget of the Republic of Belarus shall be obligatory deductions of money resources from payers at the rates specified in law; payers shall be considered to be persons obliged to pay taxes and dues into the budget in instances specified in the legislation of the Republic of Belarus; payers are entrusted with the obligation to pay in proper time and in full the due sums to the budget; tax-payers shall be responsible under the legislation, except for the instances, specified in the legislation when responsibility is entrusted with third persons - sources of income for a tax-payer. The Constitutional Court emphasizes that the payment of state duty for granting the right to hunting shall be made yearly.

By setting of state duty, first of all, one shall bear in mind covering expenses of specially authorized bodies connected with the services of public legal nature, commitment of juridically significant actions or issue of documents of legal significance. Due to that, the Constitutional Court deems that for the authorized state bodies it is necessary to consider the issue on the improvement of the norms of effective legislation in part of conditions and regularity of collection of state duty. In the opinion of the Constitutional Court that duty shall not be paid yearly, as at the present moment, since in such a case that duty shall have the nature of a due.

Materials of session of Brest region Council of deputies on social and economic development and budget of the region 2001 have been published in a regional newspaper "Zarya nad Bugom" of 27 and of 30 December 2000. Provision on local hunting due approved by decision of Brest region Council of deputies of 21 December 2000 No. 107 has not been published.

Under Article 34 of the Constitution citizens of the Republic of Belarus shall be guaranteed the right to receive complete, reliable and timely information of the activities of state bodies. State bodies, public associations and officials shall afford a citizen of the Republic of Belarus an opportunity to familiarize themselves with material that affect their rights and legitimate interests.

The Constitutional Court deems that, by setting of local taxes and dues, both decisions of local Councils of deputies on imposition of those taxes and dues and the provisions thereon, which are enforceable legal acts regulating issues of calculation and pay of local taxes and dues and affecting directly the rights and lawful interests of citizens and organizations, shall be subject to publication.

Guided by Article 40, part one of Article 116, Articles 120, 121, 122 of the Constitution, Articles 7, 36, 38 of the Law "On the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Belarus" the Constitutional Court

RULED:

1. To find decision of Brest region Council of deputies of 21 December 2000 No. 107 "On budget of region 2001" in part of imposing local due to be in conformity with the Constitution, with the Laws "On budget of the Republic of Belarus 2001", "On taxes and dues raised into budget of the Republic of Belarus", "On local government and self-government in the Republic of Belarus", "On conservation and use of animal world".

To note that the norms of paragraphs eight, nine, eleven of the Provision on local hunting due, approved by decision of Brest region Council of deputies of 21 December 2000 No. 107, are not in conformity with the specified in the present Decison provisions of the Law of the Republic of Belarus "On taxes and dues collected into the budget of the Republic of Belarus".

2. For Brest region Council of deputies to bring Provision on local hunting due, approved by decision of Brest region Council of deputies of 21 December 2000 No. 107, into line with the Law of the Republic of Belarus "On taxes and dues collected into the budget of the Republic of Belarus", as well as with the present Decision and in the established procedure to publish the given Provision.

3. To pay attention of local Councils of deputies to the necessity of unconditional observance of the requirements of Articles 7 and 34 of the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus on guarantee of the right of citizens to receive complete, reliable and timely information of the activities of state bodies affecting directly their rights and legitimate interests, including by means of publication of decisions of local Councils on imposition of local taxes and dues and the provisions thereon.

4. To propose the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus to consider the issue on improvement of the norms of the Provision on hunting and on management of hunting farming in the territory of the Republic of Belarus approved by resolution of the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Belarus of 30 December 1997 No. 1750 in part of conditions and regularity of collection of state duty bearing in mind that state duty shall be usually collected as a result of rendering services of legal nature or committing juridically significant acts or issue of documents of a legal significance.

5. The present Decision shall come into legal force from the date of its adoption.

6. To publish the present Decision in accordance with legislation.

Presiding Officer —

Chairman of the Constitutional Court

of the Republic of Belarus                                                                                               G.A. Vasilevich