From Federal Law On Procedures for Examining Appeals and Addresses from Citizens of the Russian Federation
Unofficial translation
FROM FEDERAL LAW NO 59-FZ OF MAY 5, 2006, ON PROCEDURES FOR EXAMINING APPEALS AND ADDRESSES FROM CITIZENS OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
Passed by the State Duma on April 21, 2006
Approved by the Federation Council on April 26, 2006
Article 1. Sphere of application
1. This law shall govern the legal relations that arise when Russian Federation citizens (hereafter referred to as citizens) exercise their right under the Constitution of the Russian Federation to address state and local government bodies or officials, and shall set the procedures that state or local government bodies or officials shall follow when examining such appeals or addresses.
2. The procedures set forth herein for examining appeals or addresses from citizens shall apply to all appeals or addresses from citizens except for those subject for examination in accordance with procedures set forth by federal constitutional laws or other federal laws.
3. The procedures set forth herein for examining appeals or addresses from citizens shall also apply to the legal relations that arise in the course of examining appeals or addresses from foreign citizens or stateless persons, except for cases stipulated by international agreements to which the Russian Federation is a party, or by federal laws.
Article 2. Citizens’ right to address
1. Citizens have the right to address personally or to send individual and collective appeals or addresses to state and local government bodies or officials.
2. Citizens shall exercise their right to address on a free and voluntary basis. Exercise of citizens’ right to address shall not violate any rights and freedoms of other individuals.
3. Appeals and addressed from citizens shall be examined free of charge.
Article 3. Legal regulation of legal relations resulting from examination of citizens’ appeals or addresses
1. The legal relations arising as a result of examination of citizens’ appeals or addresses shall be regulated by the Russian Federation Constitution, the Russian Federation’s international agreements, federal constitutional laws, this law, and other federal laws.
2. Laws and other regulations passed by the Russian Federation’s regions can define provisions aimed at protecting citizens’ right to address, including establishing guarantees for citizens’ right to address in addition to the guarantees contained herein.
Article 4. Basic terms and definitions
The following basic terms shall be used herein:
1) an appeal/address from citizens (hereafter referred to as appeals or addresses) is a written proposal or a statement or a complaint addressed to state or local government bodies or officials, or an oral address by citizens to state or local government bodies;
2) a proposal is a recommendation made by citizens on improving laws or other regulations, the work of state or local government bodies, developing relations in society, addressing social, economic or other issues in which the state authorities and society are involved;
3) a statement is a request from a citizen asking for help in exercising his/her constitutional rights and freedoms, or the constitutional rights and freedoms of others, or informing on violations of laws or other regulations, shortcomings in the work of the state or local government bodies or officials, or criticism of these bodies’ or officials’ work;
4) a complaint is a request from a citizen to restore or protect his/her violated rights, freedoms or lawful interests, or the rights, freedoms and lawful interests of others;
5) an official is a person permanently, temporarily or specially authorized to carry out particular duties to represent the authorities, or carrying out organisational, executive, administrative and economic duties in state or local government bodies.
Article 5. Rights of citizens during examination
During the examination of appeals or addresses by state or local government bodies or officials, citizens shall have the right to:
1) submit additional documents or materials or submit a request that such documents or materials be provided;
2) review the documents or materials concerning examination of an appeal or an address in question, as long as this does not infringe on the rights, freedoms and lawful interests of others, and as long as the documents or materials in question do not contain classified information protected under the laws on state secrets or other secret protected by federal laws;
3) receive a written reply on the substance of the matters raised in the appeal or address, except for cases under Article 11 hereof, and be notified if a written appeal or address is redirected to state or local government bodies or officials responsible for dealing with the particular matters raised;
4) lodge complaints against decisions or action (inaction) taken on an appeal or address through administrative and (or) court procedures in accordance with Russian Federation legislation;
5) request an end to examination of an appeal or address.
Article 6. Guarantees of security of citizens with regard to their appeals and addresses
1. It is prohibited to prosecute citizens for addressing state or local government bodies or officials in order to criticise these bodies or officials, or to seek restoration or protection of their rights, freedoms and lawful interests, or the rights, freedoms and lawful interests of others.
2. In examining appeals or addresses, it is prohibited to disclose any information contained in such appeals or addresses, or any other personal information about a citizen, without a citizen’s prior consent. Redirecting written appeals or addresses from citizens to particular state or local government bodies or officials responsible for the issues such correspondence raises shall not be treated as a disclosure.
Article 7. Requirements for written appeals or addresses
1. A written appeal or an address from a citizen must include the name of the state or local government body to which it is addressed, or the last name, first name and patronymic of the official to whom it is sent, and also the sender’s own last name, name, and patronymic (if they have one), and the postal address to which the reply or notification of redirection are to be sent. In their correspondence, citizens shall set out the substance of their proposals, statements or complaints, and put their signature and the date.
2. If necessary, citizens can attach to their written appeal or address supporting documents or materials, or their copies.
3. Appeals or addresses sent to state or local government bodies or officials via public access information systems shall be examined in a manner provided for hereby.
Article 8. Dispatch and registration of written appeals or addresses
1. Citizens shall send their written appeals or addresses directly to the state or local government body or official responsible for addressing the matters raised in such correspondence.
2. Written appeals or addresses are subject for registration within three days from their receipt by a state or local government body or an official.
3. A written appeal or an address touching upon issues outside of area of competence of a state or local government body or an official to which it has been sent must be redirected to the appropriate body or official within seven days from the date of its registration, with notification to the sender, except in cases under Article 11.4 hereof.
4. If the issues raised in a written appeal or an address come under the responsibility of several different state or local government bodies or officials, copies of such appeals or addresses shall be sent within seven days from the date of their registration to the appropriate bodies or officials.
5. State or local government bodies or officials that redirect written correspondence to other state or local government bodies or officials can, if necessary, request documents or materials on the results of examination of a written appeal or an address from such other bodies and officials.
6. It is prohibited to send complaints for examination to the state or local government bodies or officials whose decisions or actions (inaction) are disputed or appealed against.
7. In cases when, in accordance with the prohibition set forth in Article 8.6 above, a complaint cannot be sent for examination to a state or local government body or an official responsible for addressing the issues raised in such correspondence, such complaint shall be returned to the sender together with an explanation of their rights to challenge the decision or action (inaction) in court in accordance with established procedures.
Article 9. Obligation to examine appeals and addresses
1. Appeals or addresses sent to state or local government bodies or officials in accordance with their responsibilities are subject for mandatory examination.
2. The state or local government bodies or officials examining the correspondence can travel to the location indicated in order to carry out the examination, if necessary.
Article 10. Examination of correspondence
1. State or local government bodies or officials shall:
1) make an objective, comprehensive and timely examination of appeals or addresses, engaging the sender if necessary;
2) request documents or materials needed for examining appeals or addresses from other state or local government bodies or officials, with the exception of courts and investigative agencies;
3) take measures to restore or protect citizens’ violated rights, freedoms and lawful interests;
4) provide written responses on the substance of the issues raised in appeals or addresses, except for cases under Article 11 hereof;
5) notify citizens in cases their appeals or addresses are redirected for examination to other state or local government bodies or officials with responsibility for the issues concerned.
2. State or local government bodies or officials, acting on request from state or local government bodies or officials examining appeals or addresses made in accordance with the established procedures, shall provide, within 15 days, documents or materials needed for examination of such appeals or addresses, except for documents or materials containing classified information protected under the laws on state secrets or other federal secrecy laws, for which special access rules apply.
3. Written responses to appeals or addresses shall be signed by the head of state or local government body, or by the relevant official or authorised individual.
4. Responses to appeals or addresses sent to state or local government bodies or officials through open access information systems shall be sent to the postal address given in such correspondence.
Article 11. Special cases
1. If a sender of a written appeal or an address does not give his/her last name or provides no postal address for replies, such correspondence shall not be examined. If such appeals or addresses contain information on preparation or execution of an unlawful act, or on individuals preparing or committing such acts, such appeals or addresses should be sent to the state body responsible for the given area.
2. Correspondence containing complaints about court decisions shall be returned to the sender along with an explanation of the judicial procedures for appealing the court decision in question.
3. State or local government bodies or officials receiving written appeals or addresses containing obscene or insulting language, or threats to officials’ lives, health and property, as well as those of their families, shall have the right not to respond in substance to the issues raised and to inform the sender that such abuse of the law is unacceptable.
4. If the text of a written appeal or an address is indecipherable, state or local government bodies or officials shall not be obligated to examine it in accordance with their powers and, if the sender’s last name and postal address can be deciphered, they are notified of this decision.
5. If an appeal or an address raises issues on which the citizen has already received numerous written replies on the points of substance in response to earlier appeals or addresses, and contains no new arguments or circumstances, the heads of state or local government body, officials, or authorised individuals shall have the right to decide that there are no grounds for responding to the latest appeal or address and can cease correspondence with the citizen on the issue in question, provided that the latest appeal or address and previous correspondence on the matter were sent to one and the same state or local government body or official. The sender shall be notified of this decision.
6. If it is impossible to respond in substance to the issues raised in an appeal or an address without disclosing information classified as confidential and protected under state secrecy or other federal secrecy laws, the sender shall be notified that they cannot receive a reply on the substance of the issues raised in their appeal or address due to the prohibition on classified information disclosure.
7. If the reasons making it impossible to give a reply on the substance of the issues raised are subsequently removed and no longer apply, the citizen can send an appeal or an address again to the relevant state or local government body or official.
Article 12. Examination deadlines
1. Appeals or addresses sent to state or local government bodies or officials in accordance with their powers shall be examined within 30 days from the date of their registration.
2. In exceptional cases, and in cases under Article 10.2 hereof, the heads of state or local government bodies, officials or authorised individuals shall be entitled to extend the 30-day examination period, but they must notify the sender of this decision.
Article 13. Receiving citizens in person
1. The heads of state or local government bodies and authorised individuals can receive citizens in person. The citizen shall be notified of the location, day and time of the appointment.
2. When being received in person citizens must present proof of identity.
3. Oral statements are taken down in the record of reception in person of a citizen. In cases when the facts and circumstances contained in the citizen’s oral statements are clear and require no additional checking, with the citizen’s agreement, a reply can be given orally during the reception, and this is registered in the record of the reception. In other cases, a written reply is given on the substance of the matters raised.
4. Written appeals or addresses handed over during the reception in person shall be subject for registration and examination in accordance with procedures provided for hereby.
5. In cases when an appeal or an address concerns issues outside the area of competence of a particular state or local body or a particular official, the citizen shall be informed about whom to address and how to go about it.
6. During reception in person a refusal can be given to further examine a citizen’s appeal or an address if they have already previously received a reply on the substance of the issues their correspondence raises.
Article 14. Examination procedures compliance control
State or local government bodies or officials shall exercise, within the limits of their competence, control over compliance with examination procedures, analyse the content of appeals or addresses received, and take measures to ensure timely detection of and remove the causes of violations of citizens’ rights, freedoms and lawful interests.
Article 15. Liability for violation of this law
Persons guilty of violating this law shall be liable in accordance with Russian Federation laws.
Article 16. Indemnity for losses and recovery of expenses incurred in the course of examination
1. Citizens shall be entitled under the court decision to indemnity for losses and compensation of moral injury caused by unlawful action (inaction) of state or local government bodies or officials in the course of correspondence examination.
2. In cases where a citizen has deliberately given false information in their appeal or address, costs related to examining their appeals or addresses by state or local government bodies or officials can be recovered from the citizen concerned under the court decision.