Continue to research and amend regulations on the authority to issue legal documents at the commune level.

Leaders of Binh Xuyen Commune People's Committee (Ninh Giang) and Justice - Civil Status officials of the commune study legal documents of the commune.

Practical

From April 1, the Law on Promulgation of Legal Documents 2025 comes into effect with many new regulations.

In particular, Article 4 of this law stipulates that the system of legal documents no longer includes resolutions of the People's Council at the commune level and decisions of the People's Committee at the commune level.

Thus, the Law on Promulgation of Legal Documents 2025 has removed the authority to promulgate legal documents of commune-level authorities.

According to the current practical activities and functions and tasks of the commune level, this is considered a reasonable regulation.

In the past, the commune level in Hai Duong only issued normative documents, which were decisions to promulgate regulations on implementing democracy in new communes, wards and towns according to regulations. In the photo: The National Assembly Delegation of Hai Duong province solicited opinions to participate in the drafting of the Law on Implementing Democracy at the Grassroots Level (documentary photo)

For many years, the People's Committee of the former Dong Xuyen commune (now Binh Xuyen commune, Ninh Giang district) only issued a single legal document, which was the decision to promulgate the regulations on implementing democracy in Dong Xuyen commune on October 18, 2024.

According to Mr. Vu Van Kien, Chairman of Binh Xuyen Commune People's Committee, removing the authority to issue legal documents at the commune level is reasonable.

"Up to now, the commune level has mainly been the implementing level, making it difficult to issue legal documents specifically for its locality. Furthermore, the quality of cadres and civil servants is still limited, making it difficult to develop, evaluate, and ensure the issuance of legal documents in accordance with regulations and of high quality. Removing the authority to issue legal documents from the current commune level will ensure consistency in policy implementation and state management in the locality," Mr. Kien assessed.

This is also the general situation of the issuance of legal documents of communes, wards and towns in the province in recent times.

Need to amend when removing district level

According to the current regulations on decentralization and organization of local government at three levels: province, district, and commune, and the reality of promulgating legal documents at the commune level in the past, removing the promulgation authority of the commune level is reasonable.

However, when the local government is reorganized to have two levels, this regulation needs to be further studied and revised.

The 9th session of the 15th National Assembly , scheduled to open next May, will consider amending the 2013 Constitution and the Law on Organization of Local Government (amended).

In particular, some regulations on local government are amended and supplemented, and it is expected that the district-level administrative unit will be abolished. Local government will only be organized into two levels: provincial level and lower-provincial level (grassroots level, or commune level).

The commune level may assume the tasks and powers of the commune-level local government and the tasks and powers of the current district-level local government.

The Department of Law Enforcement and Monitoring, Hai Duong Department of Justice is reviewing legal documents that need to be amended, supplemented, abolished or issued when implementing the organizational restructuring.

Thus, the provisions on the authority to issue legal documents of local authorities at the provincial and district levels will have contents that are no longer suitable and need to be promptly amended and supplemented to be consistent with the provisions of the Constitution and the Law on Organization of Local Government (amended).

Currently, the drafting agency is drafting the Law on Amendments and Supplements to a number of articles of the Law on Promulgation of Legal Documents. In particular, it is studying amendments to the authority to promulgate legal documents at the commune level.

Ms. Vu Thi Nga, Head of the Department of Law Enforcement and Monitoring, Hai Duong Department of Justice, assessed that it is necessary to continue researching and supplementing the authority to issue legal documents at the commune level to suit the new local government organization.

"In the future, when the district level is abolished and the commune-level administrative units are rearranged, the commune, ward and town authorities may perform many of the current district-level tasks. At that time, the commune level needs to have the authority to issue legal documents to have tools and powers to serve management and administration, in accordance with decentralization and delegation of power, and especially to have policies for socio-economic development in their localities, reducing the burden on the provincial level when the district level no longer exists," Ms. Nga assessed.

At the same time, according to the draft Law on Organization of Local Government (amended), the commune level can have specialized departments, including departments in charge of judicial functions and tasks. When the district level is abolished, the commune level will be assigned more cadres, civil servants, and public employees with high capacity, expertise, and qualifications.

With these conditions, the commune level will have more resources to develop, appraise, promulgate and improve the quality of legal documents, serving socio-economic development according to practical and specific conditions in the locality.

According to the review data of the Hai Duong Department of Justice, 207 communes, wards and towns in the province currently have 162 legal documents in effect. Notably, these documents are all decisions to promulgate regulations on implementing democracy in communes, wards and towns that have been newly issued under the provisions of the Law on Implementing Democracy at Grassroots Level.

SNOW WIND - SUCCESS

Source: https://baohaiduong.vn/tiep-tuc-nghien-cuu-sua-doi-quy-dinh-ve-tham-quyen-ban-hanh-van-ban-quy-pham-phap-luat-cua-cap-xa-409118.html