THE GOVERNMENT

DECREES:

Chapter I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1.- Scope of regulation

This Decree prescribes the contents of decentralization of the State management to the People�s Council and People�s Committee of Ho Chi Minh City in the following domains:

- Management of plannings, plans, investment and socio-economic development;

- Management of houses, land and urban technical infrastructure;

- Management of the State budget;

- Organization of apparatus and management of officials and public employees.

Article 2.- Decentralization objectives

The enhancement of management decentralization to Ho Chi Minh City (hereafter called City for short) is aimed to raise the sense of responsibility and create conditions for the promotion of activeness and creativeness of the municipal People�s Council and People�s Committee in promptly settling matters under their respective jurisdictions, fruitfully tapping the City�s potentials and strengths in socio-economic development, in commensuration to its position and role in the country and the region.

Article 3.- Decentralization principles

The management decentralization to the City shall be effected on the following principles:

1. It ensures the concentrated, unified and smooth leadership, direction as well as administration of the Government; at the same time, bringing into play the City�s autonomy, dynamism and creativeness in attaining the socio-economic development targets in the locality.

2. The management decentralization is associated to the enhancement of the ministries� and branches� responsibility for examination of activities of the municipal authorities.

3. The management decentralization couples with implementation of the administrative reform program at all administrative levels in order to raise the effectiveness and efficiency of the State management apparatus in the locality; create favorable conditions for enterprises� operations and the people�s life.

4. It conforms to the current legislation on competence of the Government and the Prime Minister.

5. The management decentralization goes in hand with the enhancement of responsibilities of the municipal People�s Council and People�s Committee and the expansion of democracy as well as publicity for subordinate bodies to participate in discussion and supervision of implementation.

Chapter II

MANAGEMENT OF PLANNINGS, PLANS, INVESTMENT AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Article 4.- Management of plannings and plans:

1. In the course of organizing the implementation of the overall planning on socio-economic development in the locality, the municipal People�s Council and People�s Committee have the responsibilities:

a/ To elaborate and approve the detailed planning and make partial adjustments thereof in order to ensure its completeness, harmony and conformity with each development stage without changing the ideas and orientations of the overall planning already approved by the Prime Minister.

b/ To act as the main bodies in coordination with the ministries, ministerial-level agencies, agencies attached to the Government and centrally-run units located in the City to work out branch plannings and deploy the implementation thereof in the locality.

c/ To coordinate and cooperate with and support localities in the southern key economic zone in elaborating and implementing the socio-economic development planning of the entire zone.

2. The ministries, ministerial-level agencies and agencies attached to the Government have the responsibilities:

a/ To work out strategies and develop branch plannings as well as planning of the southern key economic zone, which shall serve as basis for the municipal People�s Council and People�s Committee to elaborate socio-economic development plannings and plans as well as branch plannings for the City;

b/ To guide and coordinate with the municipal People�s Committee in elaborating socio-economic development plannings and plans and deploying the implementation thereof in the City;

c/ To settle according to their respective jurisdictions or propose the Prime Minister to settle in time problems arising in the course of deploying the implementation of the City�s plannings and plans.

Within 30 days after receiving a proposal from the municipal People�s Committee, the concerned ministries, ministerial-level agencies and/or agencies attached to the Government shall have to reply in writing. Past the above-said time limit, if they have no reply, such shall be considered their consent to the proposal of the municipal People�s Committee and the concerned agencies shall bear responsibility for the contents falling under their respective jurisdictions. The municipal People�s Committee shall have the right to decide and report to the Prime Minister thereon.

3. Provinces in the southern key economic zone:

The People�s Committees of the provinces and cities in the southern key economic zone shall have to coordinate with Ho Chi Minh City People�s Committee in implementing the overall planning and specialized plannings in the zone, ensuring the comprehensiveness and unanimity on the socio-economic development matters in the entire zone.

Article 5.- Management of investment

1. For a number of investment projects using domestic capital (except for the national security and defense projects of national confidentiality, projects on the establishment and construction of new industrial parks, production of toxic or hazardous substances and explosives, regardless of their sizes), which are managed by the municipal People�s Committee but decided by the Prime Minister, the Prime Minister now only ratifies their feasibility study reports and authorizes the president of the municipal People�s Committee to decide on the investment and deploy the subsequent steps of the process of executing those projects.

2. Pursuant to the Government�s Decree No. 52/1999/ND-CP of July 8, 1999 promulgating the Regulation on Investment and Construction Management and Decree No.12/2000/ND-CP of May 5, 2000 amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Regulation on Investment and Construction Management issued together with Decree No.52/1999/ND-CP, the president of the municipal People�s Committee shall be empowered to decide the investment projects using domestic capital sources according to the local socio-economic development plannings and plans managed by the City, except for ODA projects and projects using foreign credit capital with guarantee provided by the State Bank and Finance Ministry.

3. For projects mentioned in Clause 2 of this Article with investment to be decided by the president of the municipal People�s Committee as assigned by the Prime Minister, the president of the municipal People�s Committee may authorize the presidents of the district People�s Committees and directors of the municipal departments and services to deploy the investment therein. The president of the municipal People�s Committee shall be answerable to the Prime Minister for such authorization.

4. The president of the municipal People�s Committee shall be responsible for deciding and directing the implementation of investment projects under his/her competence in compliance with the City�s socio-economic development plannings and plans as well as the economic, technical and environmental criteria specified in the branch management regulations for each project.

The concerned ministries, ministerial-level agencies and agencies attached to the Government shall have to guide, urge and inspect the implementation of investment projects in the City strictly according to law provisions.

Article 6.- Competence in bidding work

The president of the municipal People�s Committee shall be competent to approve bidding plans, bid-consideration criteria, bidding results and appoint contractors for bidding packages of projects falling under the City�s management, strictly abiding by the specific conditions of the Bidding Regulation issued together with the Government�s Decree No.88/1999/ND-CP of September 1, 1999 and Decree No.14/2000/ND-CP of May 5, 2000 amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Bidding Regulation issued together with the Government�s Decree No.88/1999/ND-CP.

Article 7.- Restructuring and reorganization of State enterprises

The president of the municipal People�s Committee shall be competent to decide the equitization, assignment, sale, business contracting, lease and restructuring of State enterprises managed by the municipal People�s Committee. The implementation of the contents of this Article must accord with the relevant law provisions and documents guiding the implementation thereof.

Article 8.- Promulgation of regulations to encourage the socialization of public-utility services and social infrastructure

1. On the basis of the current law provisions, the municipal People�s Council and People�s Committee shall promulgate preferential treatment regimes and specific management mechanism, aiming to encourage all economic sectors to participate in urban public-utility services in the locality in form of contracting, bidding, price-subsidizing public-utility services provided by investors or signing contracts on the procurement of urban public-utility services.

2. Basing itself on the Government�s Resolution No.90/NQ-CP of August 21, 1997 and Decree No.73/1999/ND-CP of August 19, 1999 on policies to encourage the socialization of activities in the fields of education and training, health care, culture, physical training and sports, after consulting the concerned ministries and branches, the municipal People�s Council shall decide on undertakings and measures to encourage, promote and expand various forms of socialization of activities in the fields of science and technology, education and training, health care, culture, physical training and sports in the City.

3. Basing itself on the City�s plannings in the fields of education and training, health care, culture, physical training and sports, the municipal People�s Committee shall have the following powers:

a/ To decide on the setting up of semi-public and private general education establishments; the setting up or conversion of the City�s vocational secondary schools, job-training establishments, medical establishments, cultural establishments, physical training and sport establishments, into semi-public establishments.

b/ To decide on the setting up of hospitals of different types in the locality according to the Health Ministry�s regulations on the branch�s conditions and standards.

Article 9.- Management of population and social matters

Basing itself on the resolutions of the municipal People�s Council, the Municipal People�s Committee shall issue:

1. Regulations on migration management and measures to control and restrict spontaneous and illegal immigration; resettlement of population according to planning, ensuring their legitimate rights and interests;

2. Regulations on preferential treatment, creation of favorable conditions for skillful laborers and experts to reside and work in the locality;

3. Regulations on labor management and measures to generate jobs and reduce unemployment rate.

Chapter III

MANAGEMENT OF HOUSES, LAND AND URBAN TECHNICAL INFRASTRUCTURE

Article 10.- Management of houses and land for domestic organizations, households and individuals

Basing itself on the current Land Law and documents guiding the implementation thereof, the municipal People�s Committee shall issue regulations on:

1. Order and administrative procedures for changing land-use purposes, from land of other categories to residential land, in the areas where the detailed planning has already been approved;

2. Order and administrative procedures for the granting of land-use right certificates according to the current land use situation, to organizations, households and individuals;

3. Order and administrative procedures for the transfer of the right to use agricultural, aquacultural and salt-making land in rural and urban districts;

4. Order and administrative procedures for the assignment or lease of land to project investors;

5. Procedures for the lease, sublease and inheritance of land use right as well as the mortgage of and capital contribution with, the land use right value in the City.

Article 11.- Management of houses and land for foreign organizations and individuals as well as overseas Vietnamese

The municipal People�s Committee is authorized to stipulate procedures for the purchase of dwelling houses in association with land use right by overseas Vietnamese being subjects defined in Article 80 of the 2001 Law Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of the Land Law and guide the implementation of the Land Law and investment in the City.

Article 12.- Competence to determine land prices, damages and land recovery

The municipal People�s Committee shall:

1. Basing itself on the Government�s stipulations on price bracket and principles as well as methods for determining prices of land of different categories as authorized, set prices of land of different categories in the locality according to objectives of the urban development planning and practical conditions of the local real estate market.

2. Establish consultancy companies to determine land prices and land-related architectural projects, thus meeting the requirements of determining the value of compensation or support in cases where the land is recovered by the State; inventory and auction houses and/or manufactories together with the land use right, and other cases.

3. Take responsibility for organizing compensation payment and ground clearance according to the price-setting mechanism prescribed in Clauses 1 and 2 of this Article and directly recover the whole land areas already planned for construction of projects, irrespective of the projects� objectives, then assign or lease that land to investors for implementation of the projects.

Article 13.- Management of architecture and construction planning

The municipal People�s Committee shall have the following powers and responsibilities:

1. On the basis of Ho Chi Minh City�s overall planning already ratified by the Prime Minister and written consent of the Construction Ministry, to organize the elaboration, consideration and approval of detailed plannings; balance and rationally use budget capital according to the annual plan; and adopt policies to create capital for the formulation of projects on investigation, survey and designing of construction planning.

2. To issue the Regulation on management of architecture and construction planning in the City so as to concretize the State�s regulations and standards on planning, architecture and construction, making them suitable to the practical conditions of the City.

3. To work out and promulgate regulations on landscape architecture in accordance with current regulations, ensuring the preservation of cultural heritage and traditional architectural styles while developing new architectural styles of a modern City rich with national identities.

4. To make public the construction planning projects already ratified by competent authorities; to introduce locations and grant certificates of planning for organizations and individuals to comply with, and inspect the construction according to plannings.

Article 14.- Management of investment and construction

The municipal People�s Committee is authorized to promulgate:

1. Regulations on investment and construction management for projects and construction works in the City, ensuring their compliance with objectives, requirements and basic principles of investment and construction management prescribed by the Government and suitability with the practical conditions of the City.

2. Standards, regulations, processes and specific construction unit prices, which are suited to the City�s practical conditions, after reaching written agreement with the Construction Ministry.

Article 15.- Management of technical infrastructure

1. After getting written consents from the concerned ministries and branches, based on the resolutions of the municipal People�s Council, the municipal People�s Committee shall issue a Regulation on coordination with specialized agencies and units of the ministries, ministerial-level agencies and agencies attached to the Government in exercising the unified management over investment and construction as well as exploitation and use of technical infrastructure projects in the City.

2. Basing itself on the resolutions of the municipal People�s Council, the municipal People�s Committee shall issue:

a/ Regulations on promotion of technical infrastructure development in the new rural and urban districts of the City.

b/ Regulations on promotion of the development of mass transit in various forms.

Article 16.- Management and protection of the City�s environment

1. Basing itself on the resolutions of the municipal People�s Council, the municipal People�s Committee shall issue regulations on:

a/ Encouraging investment in the field of environmental protection and green park development in the City;

b/ Capital, land and technological supports as well as other supportive measures for the relocation or renovation of production and business establishments and other current sources of pollution in the inner City.

2. Basing him-/herself on the legislation on environmental protection, the Ordinance on Handling of Administrative Violations and relevant guiding documents, the president of the municipal People�s Committee shall specify levels and modes of financial contribution by organizations and individuals engaged in production and/or business that cause harms to the City�s environment.

Chapter IV

MANAGEMENT OF STATE BUDGET

Article 17.- Management of State budget revenues in the City

1. The Government shall annually assign norms of the State budget revenues in the City, including the central budget revenues and local budget revenues. Under the Finance Ministry�s guidance, the municipal People�s Committee shall have to direct and urge the collection of such revenues according to the assigned plan.

2. The municipal budget revenues include:

a/ The revenues of which the City may retain 100% under the provisions of the State Budget Law;

b/ The revenues divided in percentages (%) between the central budget and municipal budget under the provisions of the State Budget Law. The Government shall decide on the specific percentages of revenues divided between the State budget and the municipal budget in a stable manner for 5 years;

c/ The targeted additional allocations from the central budget for performance of contingent tasks assigned by the Government;

d/ Other revenues to be decided by the municipal People�s Council according to its competence prescribed by the current law and this Decree.

3. Basing itself on the State Budget Law and legal documents guiding the implementation thereof, the municipal People�s Council shall decide on the rational apportionment of the local budget revenues to the budgets of urban districts, rural districts, wards, communes and district townships.

Article 18.- Competence to mobilize investment capital sources

1. The municipal People�s Council and People�s Committee may mobilize domestic capital sources in forms of borrowing, issuance of project bonds and city bonds according to mechanism of self-borrowing and self-repayment with the municipal budget�s revenues.

2. The municipal People�s Committee may, in addition to the forms of borrowing prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article, borrow capital from the Development Assistance Fund and other financial sources for investment in socio-economic infrastructure construction.

3. The annual debit of investment capital sources mentioned in Clauses 1 and 2 of this Article must not exceed the annual total investment capital of the municipal budget.

4. The municipal People�s Council is competent to decide on surcharges, charges, fees and other collections under the provisions of the State Budget Law; the Ordinance on Charges and Fees and legal documents guiding the implementation thereof in order to meet the City�s socio-economic development requirements, suitable with the City population�s living standards.

5. The president of the municipal People�s Committee shall, after being authorized by the Prime Minister to decide the reception of non-refundable aids to the City (irrespective of the aid amounts), except for the fields of religion, defense and security, have to direct the reception, management and efficient use of aids, the full remittance thereof into the budget and the observance of reporting regime regarding revenues and expenditures of this capital source as prescribed by law.

6. The municipal People�s Committee shall have to consolidate and develop the existing "Urban Investment and Development Fund of the City"; make suggestions to and propose the Prime Minister to decide on the setting up of other financial investment funds of the City with capital contribution by the State, enterprises of different economic sectors and individuals, in order to further attract capital sources for investment and development.

Article 19.- Management of municipal budget�s expenditures

1. Basing itself on the annually-assigned State budget estimates and the Finance Ministry�s guidance, the municipal People�s Council shall apportion concrete expenditures and assign spending tasks and levels according to the City�s socio-economic development requirements.

2. Besides apportioning expenditures balanced by the State budget, the municipal People�s Council and People�s Committee may make additional allocations for development investment from mobilized capital sources prescribed in Article 18 of this Decree.

3. The municipal People�s Council and People�s Committee shall have to balance budget revenues and expenditures, ensuring the performance of the municipal budget�s spending tasks, including debt repayment and supplement to the financial reserve fund; and at the same time, implement the regime of reporting on and publicizing the public budget revenues and expenditures as prescribed by law.

Chapter V

ORGANIZATION OF APPARATUS AND MANAGEMENT OF OFFICIALS AND PUBLIC EMPLOYEES

Article 20.- Organization of apparatus and management of officials and public employees

1. Basing themselves on the current law provisions and State management requirements in the locality:

a/ The municipal People�s Council and People�s Committee are authorized by the Government to decide on the concrete number of specialized bodies under the municipal People�s Committee;

b/ The municipal People�s Committee shall decide on the restructuring, dissolution and establishment of public-service units managed by the City (particularly for vocational secondary schools and/or job-training schools of the ministries, ministerial-level agencies or agencies attached to the Government as well as colleges and universities, the provisions of the Education Law shall apply).

2. On the basis of the total payroll assigned by the Government and the socio-economic requirements in each period, after getting consent of the municipal People�s Council, the municipal People�s Committee shall determine and allocate payroll quotas to the City�s administrative and public-service units along the direction of streamlining the apparatus and socializing the public-service domains.

3. Pursuant to the Ordinance on Officials and Public Employees and legal documents guiding the implementation thereof, the municipal People�s Committee may prescribe the preferential treatment regime in the recruitment of officials and public employees for branches and trades where few people want to take recruitment examinations; and apply the contractual regime within the payroll limit to a number of positions pending recruitment examinations.

4. On the basis of the provisions on criteria for appointment, transfer and discipline of officials and public employees, the presidents of the municipal People�s Committee shall appoint, transfer and/or discipline the heads of specialized bodies under the municipal People�s Committee and report such to the concerned ministries and branches.

Article 21.- On incentives for officials and public employees

In addition to the State�s common regime and policies applicable to officials and public employees, the municipal People�s Committee may prescribe different levels of additional support within the municipal budget, aiming to:

1. Attract laborers with high technical and professional skills into a number of spearhead domains, branches and trades with high economic efficiency, which demand development priority.

2. Encourage officials and public employees to work in areas meeting with socio-economic difficulties and underdeveloped areas or to take complicated jobs which few people want to perform.

Chapter VI

IMPLEMENTATION PROVISIONS

Article 22.- Organization of implementation

1. The ministers, the heads of the ministerial-level agencies, the heads of the agencies attached to the Government, the chairman of the People�s Council and president of the People�s Committee of Ho Chi Minh City shall have to implement this Decree.

In the course of organizing the implementation, if any problem arises beyond his/her competence, the president of the People�s Committee of Ho Chi Minh City shall have to promptly report it to the Prime Minister for consideration and settlement.

2. The ministries, the ministerial-level agencies and the agencies attached to the Government shall, within the ambit of their respective tasks and powers, have to guide the City in organizing the implementation of this Decree.

3. To assign the Government Office the responsibility to monitor the implementation of this Decree and periodically report the implementation results to the Prime Minister.

4. The provinces in the southern key economic zone shall have to closely coordinate with the City in implementing this Decree.

Article 23.- Implementation effect

This Decree takes effect 15 days after its signing.

This Decree�s provisions on the decentralization of management of a number of domains shall apply only to Ho Chi Minh City.

On behalf of the Government
Prime Minister
PHAN VAN KHAI