As of yesterday, the rules for the disposal of agricultural land acquired or to be acquired from the state free of charge by municipalities and regions have been relaxed. The change, brought about by an amendment to the Act on the State Land Office, is intended to simplify the development of municipalities and reduce bureaucracy, according to the drafters of the draft. For example, it halves the time period for which municipalities and regions have to comply with conditions, especially for the use of these lands under transfer agreements.
For example, municipalities and counties can acquire from the authority land located in built-up or developable areas and designated for public utility buildings or public green spaces. So far, local governments have had to comply with the conditions for ten years from the date of transfer, at least until the end of October 2029, which is regularly monitored by the Land Office. If they breached the conditions, they had to return the land or give monetary compensation. The amendment reduces the ten-year period to five years, also retroactively. In the case of older transfers, it will therefore cease to exist completely with the entry into force of the draft.
Moreover, according to the draft, municipalities and regions will not violate the conditions of the transfer even if they change their zoning plans. It would also be sufficient if the purpose for which the land was acquired was its main use.
“The primary aim is to reduce possible obstacles that would hinder the development of municipalities and regions,” the drafters of the proposed amendments wrote in the explanatory memorandum. They pointed out that the current trend in land-use planning is to move away from single-use areas to multiple-use areas that better suit the lives of residents. “Another non-negligible benefit of the proposed amendment is the reduction of the administrative burden on the State Land Office in carrying out regular annual inspections,” the authors said in the justification of the amendment.
Source: CTK
