Senate flags contradictions in draft Housing Code, returns it for revision

The document was intended to replace the current Housing Code adopted in 1998, with the aim of addressing a number of long-standing issues in housing policy. The draft emphasized the need to reconsider governance in the sector and to introduce new mechanisms for regulating housing-related legal relations.

Lawmakers noted that certain provisions of the Housing Code and the Civil Code either duplicate or contradict one another, leading to conflicts in law enforcement practice. Adopting a revised code was expected to resolve these problems.

However, during its review of the draft, senators identified several issues requiring revision. Under Article 7, the Ministry of Construction and Housing and Communal Services is tasked with overseeing compliance with technical operation standards for apartment buildings.

At the same time, the Law on the Management of Apartment Buildings assigns these powers to the Inspectorate for Oversight of the Operation of the Multi-Apartment Housing Fund under the Ministry of Housing and Communal Services.

By a presidential decree issued in August 2023, an Inspectorate for Oversight in the Field of Construction and Housing and Communal Services was established under the Cabinet of Ministers, based on the former Housing Fund Inspectorate and two other agencies. The Senate considered it necessary to revisit the powers of the Ministry of Construction in the revised code.

Article 30 sets out procedures for demolishing residential premises and constructing a new building in their place under an agreement with property owners. Article 36 also provides for the demolition of housing and the construction of new facilities. Senators noted that these articles should be harmonized to eliminate duplication.

In addition, Article 40 of the draft code lists five categories of individuals recognized as needing improved housing conditions. However, the regulation governing their registration, adopted in 2019 and serving as the basis for these criteria, has since been repealed.

The regulation that replaced it, governing the use and disposal of the state housing fund, introduces an additional category: individuals who have lived for at least three years and are registered in the locality where housing is allocated. Senators stressed the need to reflect this category in the revised code.

Lawmakers also pointed to other inconsistencies in the draft and questions regarding the powers of inspectorates that were reorganized as part of administrative reforms. As a result, the bill was sent back for further revision.