Public Officials
PUBLIC OFFICIAL
A public official is any person who was elected, appointed or nominated to a public authority, with the exception of persons who are representatives of private capital in managing bodies of companies that are public authorities.
According to the Authentic interpretation of Article 2. Paragraph 1. Point 3. („Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia“), this provision should be understood to refer to and apply to persons who are directly elected by the citizens and persons who are elected, appointed, or nominated by the National Assembly, President of the Republic, Supreme Court of Cassation, High Judicial Council, State Prosecutorial Council, Government of the Republic of Serbia, assembly of the Autonomous Province, Government of the Autonomous Province and authorities of the local self-government units.
BASIC RULES ON DISCHARGING PUBLIC OFFICE
A public official is prohibited from using information obtained while discharging public office for the purpose of acquiring a benefit or advantage for him/herself or another, or for harming others if such information is not available to the public.
A public official shall not subordinate the public interest to his/her private interests, shall comply with the regulations governing his/her rights and duties, and shall establish and maintain the trust of citizens concerning his/her conscientious and responsible discharge of public office.
A public official must not be dependent on persons who might be able to influence his/her impartiality or use public office to acquire any benefit or advantage for him/herself or any associated person.
THE NOTION OF CONFLICT OF INTEREST
A conflict of interest is a situation where a public official has a private interest that affects, may affect, or appears to affect the discharge of public office.
Private interest is any benefit or advantage in favor of a public official or an associated party.
It is clear from the notion of a conflict of interests that it is largely defined, since it is all situations in which the public official is in private interest and may affect or even appear to affect his performance in public office, in such a manner as to compromise and neglect the public interests.
ACCUMULATION OF PUBLIC OFFICES
Prohibition of Discharging Other Public Offices
Prohibition of Discharging Other Public Offices is prescribed by Article 56 of the Law, and this means that a public official may discharge only one public office, and a public official may discharge another public office with the consent of the Agency.
A public official who has been elected, appointed or nominated for another public office and who intends to discharge several public offices at the same time shall request the consent of the Agency within eight days from the day of election, appointment or nomination. Along with the request, the public official shall submit the obtained positive opinion of the authority that elected, appointed or nominated him/her for public office, while the public official who was elected to public office directly from the citizens shall submit a positive opinion of the competent working body of the authority in which s/he is serving as a public official.
Exceptions from these are the situation where the public official is obliged by the Constitution or other law to discharge two or more public offices (for example the president of the municipality is at the same time president of the municipal council). Other exceptions are the public officials elected to a public office directly by the citizens may discharge several public offices to which s/he was elected directly by the citizens without the consent of the Agency, except in cases of incompatibility specified in the Constitution. These are, a member of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia and a councilor in a municipality, a deputy in the Assembly of an Autonomous Province of Vojvodina and a councilor in a municipality, and then two councilors functions in two municipal assemblies, while in accordance with the Constitution, incompatible public offices are a member of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia and a deputy in the Assembly of an Autonomous Province of Vojvodina
If a public official discharges another public office without the consent of the Agency, or if he did not at all submit the request for consent of the Agency, or if he does not dismiss from the public office after the final decision of the Director of the Agency by which the request for the consent has been rejected, the Agency continues the proceedings against the public official because he discharges public offices against the provisions of the Law and makes the decision stating that the latter public office shall terminate by force of law.
INCOMPATIBILITY OF OTHER WORK WITH THE DISCHARGE OF PUBLIC OFFICE
Obligations and prohibitions of the public officials related to performing other work or business activity are:
A public official who performs other work or business activity at the time of assuming public office shall notify the Agency thereof within 15 days from the day of assuming public office.
A public official may not perform other work or business activity while discharging a public office that requires full-time or permanent work, except with the consent of the Agency.
A public official may not advise legal and natural persons on issues related to the public office s/he holds, unless obliged to do so.
A public official whose public office requires the establishment of an employment relationship in a public authority, may not, while discharging public office, establish a company and/or public service or start performing an independent business activity in the sense of the law governing entrepreneurship, and he may not be a representative or member of the body of a privately owned legal person or exercise management rights.
A public official may not be a member of the body of an association, or its representative if a relationship of dependence or other relationship that jeopardizes or could jeopardize his/her impartiality or the reputation of public office exists between the public office and membership in the body of the association, or representation of the association, or if or another law or regulation prohibits a public official from being a member of the body of a specific association.
A public official may not use public resources for the promotion of political parties and/or political entities and may not be gatherings in which s/he participates, and meetings that s/he has in the capacity of a public official, for the promotion of political parties and/or political entities.
A public official who possesses, at the time of election, appointment or nomination to public office, or acquires while discharging public office, a stake or shares in a company that entitles him to management rights in more than 3%, is obliged, within 30 days from the day of election, appointment or nomination and/or the acquisition of stake or shares, to transfer the management rights in the company to a legal or natural person, so that this person can exercise them until the termination of public office, in its own name but on behalf of the public official.
Two years after the termination of public office, a person whose public office has ceased may not establish an employment relationship and/or business cooperation with a legal person, entrepreneur or international organization performing activities related to the public office that had been discharged by the public official, except with the obtained consent of the Agency.
PUBLIC OFFICIALS - OBLIGATIONS TO THE AGENCY
Obligations related to conflict of interest
A very important obligation of public officials in relation to the prevention and solving the conflict of interest situations is the obligation of the public official to notify about the conflict of interest.
On taking office and while discharging public office, a public official shall notify in writing, without delay and no later than within a period of five days, his/her immediate superior and the Agency regarding any doubts concerning the existence of a conflict of interest, or his/her conflict of interest, or that of an associated person.
The Agency shall provide an opinion on the existence of a conflict of interest within 15 days from the day of receipt of the public official’s notification and if a public official requests an opinion on the existence of a conflict of interest in a public procurement procedure, the Agency shall provide the opinion thereon within a period of eight days.
Should the Agency establish that a conflict of interest exists, it shall notify the public official thereof as well as the body wherein such public official holds public office and propose measures to eliminate the conflict of interest, which shall not preclude the application of provisions on disqualification set forth in other laws.
REPORTING ASSETS AND INCOME
Regular Reporting of Assets and Income
Within 30 days from the day of his/her election, appointment or nomination, a public official shall submit to the Agency a report on his/her assets and income (hereinafter: the Report), assets and income of his/her spouse or common-law partner, as well as those of his/her underaged children if they live in the same family household, as at the day of election, appointment or nomination.
A public official who is re-elected, re-appointed or re-nominated immediately upon the termination of public office, shall not re-submit the Report if there have been no changes in the data from the previous Report but is obliged to inform the Agency thereof within 30 days from the day of re-election, re-appointment or re-nomination.
The Report shall also be submitted by the person whose public office has been terminated, within 30 days from the day of termination of public office, as at the day of termination of public office.
Extraordinary Assets and Income Report
If the assets or income of a public official have changed significantly in the course of the previous year, the public official shall submit a Report to the Agency as at 31 December of the preceding year, no later than by the time of the expiry of the time limit specified for submitting the annual tax return for determining personal income tax.
A significant change exists when there has been an increase or decrease in the assets or income which, according to the preceding Report, exceeds the average annual salary without taxes and contributions in the Republic of Serbia, or when there is a change to the structure of said assets.
A person whose public office has been terminated shall submit a Report as of 31 December of the preceding year, two years after the termination of the public office but no later than by the expiry of the time limit specified for submitting the annual tax return for determining personal income tax, provided that the assets and income have significantly changed in comparison with the preceding year.
Public Officials Who Submit Reports at the request of the Agency
Regular and extraordinary reporting of assets and income (Articles 68 and 69) does not apply to councilors, members of municipal and city councils, members of municipal and city election commissions, and members of bodies of public enterprises, companies, institutions, and other organizations whose founder or member is a municipality, city or a city municipality.
Regular and extraordinary reporting of assets and income does not apply to members of bodies of public enterprises, companies, institutions, and other organizations whose founder or member is the Republic of Serbia or the autonomous province, unless the law, other regulation, or enactment provides that the public official has the right to compensation based on membership.
GIFTS
A gift is an item, right or service, given or provided without appropriate compensation and/or a benefit or advantage afforded to a public official or his/her family member.
A public official and his/her family members may not accept gifts in connection with the discharge of public office, except for protocol gifts and appropriate gifts.
A protocol gift is a gift that a public official or his/her family member has received from a representative of a foreign state, international organization or foreign natural or legal person during an official visit or on another similar occasion.
An occasional gift is a gift that is received on occasions when gifts are traditionally exchanged.
Received occasional and protocol gifts shall become public property, in accordance with the law governing public property.
Within eight days from the day of receiving an occasional or protocol gift and/or returning to the country, the public official shall hand over the gift to the public authority in which s/he discharges public office, and the public authority shall hand over the gift to the authority in charge of dealing with items that constitute public property.
Exceptionally, a public official and his/her family member shall be entitled to retain a protocol or occasional gift whose value does not exceed 10% of the average monthly salary without taxes and contributions in the Republic of Serbia; the total value of gifts retained in the course of one calendar year cannot exceed the amount of one average monthly salary without taxes and contributions in the Republic of Serbia.
Gifts retained by family members shall be included in the total value of the gifts a public official has retained within one calendar year.
A public official shall notify, in writing, the public authority in which s/he discharges public office about any gifts received in connection with the discharge of public office, within ten days from the day of receiving the gift and/or from the day of returning to the country.
A public official shall submit a notice also when his/her family member receives a gift.
INFORMING THE AGENCY ABOUT PARTICIPATION IN PUBLIC PROCUREMENT, PRIVATISATION, OR OTHER PROCEDURES THE OUTCOME OF WHICH IS THE CONCLUSION OF A CONTRACT WITH A PUBLIC AUTHORITY
The notification about participation in public procurement, privatization, or other procedures the outcome of which is the conclusion of a contract with a public authority shall be submitted to the Agency.
If a legal person in which a public official or his/her family member possesses, during the public official’s discharge of public office and two years after its termination, a stake or shares and such legal person participate in a public procurement or privatization procedure or other procedure resulting in concluding a contract with a public authority, another budget user or another legal person, the autonomous province, a local self-government unit or a city municipality, shall submit to the Agency, within 15 days from the day of completion of the procedure.
