OREANDA-NEWS. December 01, 2010. The First Arbitration Court pronounced legitimacy of the decision and determination issued by Nizhniy Novgorod Office of the Federal Antimonopoly Service (OFAS Russia) to local self-government bodies of Dzerzhinsk Town District of the Nizhniy Novgorod region (Town Duma [Legislature] and Administration) to abolish (change) the act regulating ceremonial services, reported the press-centre of FAS Russia.

On 11th March 2010, Nizhniy Novgorod OFAS Russia established that actions of the Town Duma and Administration led or could have led to preventing, eliminating or restricting competition on the market of burial services in Dzerzhinsk, of the Nizhniy Novgorod region, and assigning the functions and rights of the local-government bodies to an economic entity (“Ritualnie Uslugi” Municipal Unitary Enterprise) (in violation of Parts 1 and 3 Article 15 of the Federal Law “on Protection of Competition”).

The antimonopoly body challenged the following acts: No.309 Decree of Dzerzhinsk Town Duma “On Approving the Procedures for Work and Maintenance of the New Part of the Cemetery Located to the North-West of the Excising Boundaries of the City Cemetery” of 30th July 2002; and No.1773 Decree of the Dzerzhinsk Administration “On Activities of a Specialized Municipal Unitary Enterprise “Ritualnie Uslugi” on the Issues of Funeral Business” of 24th July 2002.

Nizhniy Novgorod OFAS Russia issued a determination to the municipal authorities that by 1st May 2010 they must abolish (change) the provisions on transferring the public cemetery in Dzerzhinsk, Nizhniy Novgorod, for economic control of “Ritualnie Uslugi” Municipal Unitary Enterprise, which exercised the functions of a specialized funeral business in Dzerzhinsk); as well as to abolish (change) the provisions on assigning the functions and rights of the local-government bodies in the field of ceremonial and funeral services in Dzerzhinsk, Nizhniy Novgorod, to an economic entity (“Ritualnie Uslugi” Municipal Unitary Enterprise).

Dzerzhinsk Town Duma and Administration disagreed with the non-legislative acts passed by Nizhniy Novgorod OFAS Russia and challenged them through Nizhniy Novgorod Arbitration Court.

The Court of the First Instance and then the Appeal Court supported the decision and determination of Nizhniy Novgorod OFAS Russia.

“Two years ago we started the work on bringing relations on the market of ceremonial services in the Nizhniy Novgorod region in line with the antimonopoly law and other legislation of the Russian Federation”, explains the situation Deputy Head of Nizhniy Novgorod OFAS Russia, Mr.Yuri Grebnev. “Already on 23rd September 2008 the Presidium of the Supreme Arbitration Court of the Russian Federation determined in its Ruling that the market of ceremonial services must be competitive, economic entities should have equal access to the market; and the functions of local self-government bodies cannot be delegated to economic entities. We undertook serious efforts to explain the ruling; however, following our inspections we were forced to initiate several dozens cases against local self-government bodies in the Nizhniy Novgorod region. In particular, Dzerzhinsk local self-government bodies did not consider that when “Ritualnie Uslugi” Municipal Unitary Enterprise combined the functions of the municipality (maintaining cemeteries, keeping documentation procedures, registering and reregistering burial grounds, etc.) with the functions of an economic entity it contravened the law of the Russian Federation and restricted competition on the market of ceremonial services”.

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In the first six months 2010, FAS Russia and its regional bodies initiated 1728 cases (Article 15 of No.135-FZ Federal Law “On Protection of Competition” of 26th July 2006). In particular, following the inspections findings, FAS Russia issued 1196 determinations to stop antimonopoly violations.