OREANDA-NEWS. October 11, 2013. The Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS Russia) found that Murom Authority, the Committee of the Murom Authority for Municipal Property Management, the “Murom Municipal Centre for Housing and Utilities” Municipal Unitary Enterprise and the “District Housing Managing Company” Ltd. violated Article 16 of the Federal Law “On Protection of Competition”.

The case was initiated upon investigating a complaint from “Murom Human Rights Organization” NGO against actions undertaken by Murom Authority, the Vladimir region, to grant competitive advantages to “District Housing Managing Company” Ltd.

Investigating the case, FAS found that several dozens of managing companies operated on the market of the services for managing apartment houses in Murom. At the same time, local authorities granted advantageous conditions to only one market participant - “District Housing Managing Company” Ltd. It received premises for free use and the authorities tried to attract attention of Murom residents exclusively to the services provided by “District Housing Managing Company” Ltd.

The FAS Commissioned established that as a result of an oral agreement between Murom Authority, the Committee of the Murom Authority for Municipal Property Management, the “Murom Municipal Centre for Housing and Utilities” Municipal Unitary Enterprise and the “District Housing Managing Company” Ltd, the latter was given advantageous conditions for operating on the market of services for managing apartment houses within Murom boundaries, which restricted competition.

“Intervention of the authorities in competitive markets performance is prohibited by the antimonopoly law. Competition - restricting agreements between the authorities and economic entities are some of the most dangerous anticompetitive actions preventing development of a healthy entrepreneurial environment. The antimonopoly bodies will continue such actions and make sure that officials and unfair businessmen responsible for such actions “swallow their medicines” in accordance with the law” pointed out the Head of FAS Department for Control over the Authorities, Vladimir Mishelovin.

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Article 16 of the Federal Law “On Protection of Competition” prohibits agreements between federal executive bodies, the authorities of the constituent territories of the Russian Federation, local self-government bodies, other bodies or organizations exercising the functions of the above bodies and economic entities or concerted actions of these bodies and organizations if such agreements or such concerted actions lead pr can lead to preventing, restricting, eliminating competition.