Amending Act to the Access to Public Information Act
(Promulgated in The State Gazette, No. 55 of 7 July 2000)

Para 1. Art. 2, sub-art. 1 is hereby amended as follows:
"(1) Public information shall be any information created, received or kept by the persons having obligations under this Act, which has not been defined as state or another protected secret by law."

Para 2. Art. 3 is hereby amended as follows:
"Art. 3. (1) State bodies, their territorial units and local self-governance bodies shall provide access to the public information they create, receive or keep.
(2) Sub-art. 1 shall also apply to:
1. bodies, subject to the public law, other than those under sub-art. 1;
2. individuals and legal entities as far as only their activities financed with funds from the consolidiated state budget are concerned."

Para 3. In Art. 13, sub-art. 2, item 1, the words "pending the issuance of such acts" are added at the end.

Para 4. In Art. 14, sub-art. 2, item 3, a comma is inserted after the word "interests" and the following words are added: "including the cases where the access to it is restricted but the public interest in its disclosure is greater than the interests protected with such restriction".

Para 5. Art. 18 is hereby repealed.

Para 6. Art. 19 is hereby repealed.

Para 7. Art. 20 is hereby amended as follows:
1. Sub-art. 2 is hereby amended as follows:
"(2) The expenses incurred for granting access to public information in the format under Art. 26, sub-art. 1, items 3 and 4 shall be recovered in accordance with tariffs determined by the Minister of Finance, and shall not exceed the actual costs incurred. "
2. A new sub-art. 3 is hereby inserted:
"(Ç) The granting of access to public information in the format under Art. 26, sub-art. 1, items 1 and 2 shall be free of charge."
3. The existing sub-art. 3 becomes sub-art. 4.

Para 8. In Art. 31, sub-art. 4, the words "may disclose" are replaced with the words "shall disclose".

Para 9. In Section IV, a new Art. 39a is hereby inserted:
"Administrative appeal of decisions and refusals
Art. 39à. Decisions to grant access to public information or to refuse to grant access to public information, as well as implicit refusals may be appealed in an administrative procedure before the higher-ranking administrative body under the Administrative Procedure Act."

Para 10. In Art. 40, sub-art. 1:
1. A comma is inserted after the words "refusals to grant access to grant access to public information" and the words "as well as implicit refusals" are added;
2. The word "also" is inserted after the word "appealed".

Para 11. Art. 41, sub-art. 2 is hereby amended as follows:
"(2) In the cases described in sub-art. 1, access to public information shall be provided on the basis of the court judgement."

Para 12. Art.. 42 is hereby amended as follows:
1. In sub-art. 1, the words "between 20 and 50 leva" is replaced with the words "between 50 and 150 leva";
2. In sub-art. 2, the words "between 100 and 300 leva" is replaced with the words "between 200 and 500 leva";
3. In sub-art. 3, the words "between 50 and 100 leva" is replaced with the words "between 100 and 200 leva" and the words "between 100 and 200 leva" is replaced with the words "between 200 and 300 leva";
4. In sub-art. 4, the words "between 100 and 200 leva" is replaced with the words "between 500 and 1,000 leva".

Transitional and Final Provisions
Sole Paragraph. Within six months after the effective date of this Act, the persons under Art. 3, sub-art. 1 of the Access to Public Information Act shall designate officials from the respective administration to be directly responsible for granting access to public information, as well as establish appropriate premises for reading the information granted.
Presenters: Borislav Tsekov, Valentin Tserovski, Nikolai Buchkov, Rupen Krikoryan, Emil Koshlukov, Husein Chaush