"From March 1 new directives will come into force regarding the acquirement of land by individuals and legal entities, and the passing of land from federal hands to the municipal level," Pavel Korolev, Deputy Minister for Economic Development said in an interview with Rossiyskaya Gazeta, adding the new rules foresee the use of survey maps to determine the appropriate function of tracts of land. "In turn, a large number of new plots will be made available for purchase by municipal authorities if people wish to make a claim to the land," he said.
In addition to the new powers, authorities will be provided with a formal list of instances in which they are allowed to refuse to sell land to a prospective buyer, and legal procedure for the sale of land. Korolev criticized the current system as a "vicious circle" of refusal to sell land on arbitrary grounds. "Somebody comes to the local authority — they refuse him, he contests the matter in court," Korolev said. "Then, after the first objection has been solved, another is found," he said, adding that the new reforms will tighten regulations thus preventing such a situation from occurring.
The legislative project has come in for criticism from the agricultural sector, which has expressed concern that the abolition of an agricultural land category will lead to the mass turnover of land from agricultural purposes to that of construction. However, Korolev sought to allay concerns, promising that the reforms foresee the provision of priority status for agricultural land under the protection of federal powers.
The new package of laws also includes an initiative to increase the fines for those who have helped themselves to land without the approval of authorities. Currently on the table is a proposition to fine the landowner between 1.5 and 2 percent of the land's value, to an amount no less than 100,000 rubles.
