Ministry of Transport, Information Technology and Communications

The project provides for five members in the CRC, including a Chairman and a Vice Chairman with a mandate of up to five years.

The proposed amendments aim at the repairing of the broken model for work of the communications' regulator. Until May 2009, CRC always had five members, assisted by qualified administrative staff. This structure has proved its efficiency and effectiveness.

The number of the Commissioners was increased in the last days of the previous government without acceptable motives or financial grounds. It is common for most European countries to have five-member regulatory bodies. The main exceptions are noticed when the market is significantly bigger than the Bulgarian or the regulatory body covers the media sector as well.

The approved amendments in the Legislation on Electronic Messages also include the implementation of the Roaming Regulation approved by the European Parliament and Council on 18 June 2009. The document requires all Member States to implement the changes in their national legislation by 30 March 2010. The amendments plan for financial sanctions of mobile providers if they do not apply the common European tariffs or do not properly inform their users about possible savings for talks within the EU boundaries.

The amendments also remove the restrictions on the companies requiring compensation of their net losses when providing the universal electronic messaging system by obligation (required access to telephone services for the disabled regardless of geographic location).

For additional information:
Emilia Philcheva, Press Centre,
Ministry of Transport, Information Technology
and Communications
Phone: + 359 2  940 94 34
E-Mail: ephilcheva@mtitc.government.bg