The Deputy Prosecutor General of Russia held a meeting in the Altai Territory on the problems of SEZ development

On April 7, 2022, Deputy Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation Dmitry Demeshin held an interdepartmental meeting in Biysk, which was attended by employees of the Prosecutor General’s Office of Russia, prosecutors of constituent entities of the Russian Federation in the district, Governor of the Altai Territory Viktor Tomenko, deputy governors, authorized to protect the rights of entrepreneurs in subjects of the Russian Federation, representatives of business entities. At the meeting, the issue of the state of legality and the problem of developing territories with preferential regimes for doing business was considered.

Opening the meeting, Dmitry Demeshin stressed that in the face of unfavorable foreign policy factors imposed against the Russian Federation by sanctions, it is necessary to prevent a slowdown in the development of the domestic economy and especially preferential territories, and invited the participants to a constructive exchange of views.

Prosecutors of the Altai Territory, the Republic of Khakassia and the Tomsk Region, the Governor of the Altai Territory, ministers of economic development of the regions, including the Minister of Economy of the Omsk Region Anna Negoduiko, and other officials made presentations at the meeting. The speakers spoke about the experience of organizing the activities of territories with preferential regimes for doing business, reported on the measures taken to create conditions for their development, support residents.

In the Siberian Federal District, there are 5 special economic zones in the Altai and Krasnoyarsk Territories, Irkutsk, Omsk and Tomsk Regions, as well as 15 TASEDs in the Republic of Khakassia, Altai and Krasnoyarsk Territories, Irkutsk, Kemerovo, Novosibirsk, Omsk and Tomsk Regions.

In his speech, Dmitry Demeshin noted that “the planned performance indicators in terms of the number of attracted residents, the volume of investments made and revenue received, the number of jobs created have not been achieved. One of the serious obstacles to the effective development of SEZs and TASEDs is the publication by authorities and local governments of legal acts that infringe on the rights of residents.”

Thus, the prosecutors of the Kemerovo region – Kuzbass, the Republic of Khakassia challenged illegal regulatory legal acts on the issues of preferential taxation of residents, the implementation of municipal land control and regional state supervision in relation to them, the extension of the requirements of urban planning regulations to the land plots used by residents.

Demeshin D.V. drew the attention of the authorities and local self-government of certain regions, improperly exercising the authority to equip the infrastructure of the territories of the SEZ and TASED. Thus, the intervention of the prosecutors of the Krasnoyarsk and Altai Territories was required to compel the authorities, local governments and management companies to provide the territories of the SEZ “Krasnoyarsk Technological Valley” and “Turquoise Katun” with the necessary infrastructure, to increase the efficiency of the functioning of the TASED “Zheleznogorsk”.

Summing up the results of the discussion, Demeshin D.V. stopped at a few points. In particular, he stressed that the problems of developing SEZ and TASED, taking into account the current situation, require the activation and strengthening of interagency cooperation. The subject of close attention of prosecutors should remain the issues of observance of the rights of residents of preferential territories to receive state-guaranteed measures of financial and tax support, state and municipal services, the absence of any pressure on business from the authorities and law enforcement agencies, control and supervisory authorities.

He drew attention to the need for systematic monitoring of the media and other sources, obtaining data from the Commissioners for the Protection of the Rights of Entrepreneurs on the appeals of business entities, holding personal receptions of residents. He demanded a fundamental assessment of the activities of control and supervisory bodies in terms of administrative pressure on entrepreneurs, including taking into account the current restrictions in control activities.

As a result of the discussion, a set of measures was adopted aimed at solving the tasks set.