Constitutional Court declares unconstitutional clauses on legal status of NCER, appointment of its members
The Constitutional Court of Ukraine has declared unconstitutional the clauses of the law on the National Commission for Energy, Housing and Utilities Services Regulation (NCER) regarding the legal status of the regulator and the appointment of its members, a source in the court has told Interfax-Ukraine.
According to the report published on the website of the Constitutional Court, proceedings under a motion from 46 people's deputies were launched by a panel of judges in June 2017.
People's deputies stated that a state body that is not part of any branches of government had been created under law No. 1540-VIII. Unlike other similar bodies (not included in any branch of government, for example, the prosecutor's office, the National Bank of Ukraine), the existence of the NCER and its functions are not stipulated by the Constitution of Ukraine.
In addition, the principle of independence of the regulator and its right not to comply with any instructions of a state body violate the constitutional principle of balances and a counterbalance in power, according to the initiators of the motion.
The initiators of the appeal also drew attention to the unconstitutionality of the powers of the head of state regarding the appointment of members of the competition commission, approval of candidates for the posts of NCER members, as well as the possibility of early termination of the powers of members of the regulatory body.
According to the deputies, the law on the NCER also grants unconstitutional powers to the parliament and the government, which, in addition to the president, appoint members of the competition commission (two by the parliament and one by the Cabinet of Ministers).
According to the motion, violating the Constitution of Ukraine are also the clauses of the law on the NCER regarding the requirements for commission members, the formation by the regulator of its budget and articles of the law that, in the opinion of the initiators of the appeal to the Constitutional Court, help the regulator override the powers of other subjects of the state authorities.
Among the initiators of the appeal to the Constitutional Court are Yulia Tymoshenko, Valeriy Diubel, Serhiy Sobolev, Oleksandra Kuzhel, Viktoria Voitsitska, Serhiy Leschenko, Mustafa Nayyem, and others.