Finanse Komunalne - Nr 3/2018

ARTICLES

Stanisław Witkowski

• Second instance authority in enforcement proceedings regarding non-cash obligations initiated by the President of the Offi ce for Competition and Consumer Protection

p. 5

Arkadiusz Cudak

• Subject matter of a complaint against enforcement activities of an enforcement authority or enforcer

p. 17

BUDGET

Mateusz Tomal

• Financial standing and socio-economic development of counties of the Małopolska Voivodship

p. 30 

LOCAL TAXES AND CHARGES

Leonard Etel, Rafał Dowgier

• Continuation of the problems with the taxation of storeys

p. 39 

PROPERTY AND PUBLIC PROCUREMENT

Grzegorz Lang

• Interest on the amounts arising from the indexation of the fee due to a contractor in public contracts

p. 44

SUPERVISION AND AUDIT

Elżbieta Jarzęcka-Siwik

• Activities of the administrative enforcement authorities in the light of audits conducted by the Supreme Audit Offi ce

p. 56 

CASE LAW

Tomasz Woźniak

• Restriction of the ability to provide public information about tax relief granted up to PLN 500. Commentary on the ruling of the Supreme Administrative Court of 21 July 2017, I OSK 246/17

p. 69

REVIEWS AND OVERVIEWS

Marlena Sakowska-Baryła
Book review: Maciej Kawecki, Reform of personal data protection. Administrative cooperation in the light of the general regulation on personal data protection, Warsaw 2017, p. 400

p. 75

Table of Contents & Abstracts
p. 79

Stanisław Witkowski
Second instance authority in enforcement proceedings regarding non-cash obligations initiated by the President of the Offi ce for Competition and Consumer Protection
The paper focuses on the activities of the second instance authority in administrative enforcement proceedings in which the decision of the President of the Offi ce for Competition and Consumer Protection regarding non-cash obligations is enforced. It analyses decisions issued on grounds other than the Act on Competition and Consumer Protection. Two models of conduct have arisen in practice, the fi rst assuming that the second instance authority is the President of the Offi ce for Competition and Consumer Protection, whereas, in the second case, this is the Competition and Consumer Protection Court. These two models are mutually exclusive, so the paper presents an analysis of the justifi cation of each of them. The results of the analysis show that neither of these models is in compliance with the applicable law, particularly the Polish Constitution. Consequently, the conclusion is that the second instance authority should be the Minister of Administration and Internal Affairs.

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Arkadiusz Cudak
Subject matter of a complaint against enforcement activities of an enforcement authority or enforcer
The paper discusses the subject matter of a complaint against enforcement activities. It describes enforcement activities. It identifi es the enforcement activities performed by individual entities with respect to which a complaint may be fi led. The case law of the administrative courts has also been analysed in terms of the admissibility to fi le a complaint against individual enforcement activities.

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Mateusz Tomal
Financial standing and socio-economic development of counties of the Małopolska Voivodship
The objective of the paper is to assess the fi nancial standing of counties from the Małopolska Voivodship in 2012–2014. For this purpose, multidimensional statistical methods were used to estimate a summary measure of development based on several diagnostic features characterizing the fi nancial status of the counties analysed. The analysis showed that the counties of the Małopolska Voivodship have substantial disparities in their fi nancial standing. Furthermore, the relationship was examined between socio-economic development of the local authority units analysed and their fi nancial standing. The examination revealed that the units analysed, which have a higher level of local development, also have a better fi nancial standing.

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Leonard Etel, Rafał Dowgier
Continuation of the problems with the taxation of storeys
The paper contains an analysis of the regulations of the Act on Local Taxes and Charges on the basis of which the tax base for property tax regarding buildings is determined. The principles of determining the usable fl oor space of such buildings only seemingly appear to be clear, which is confi rmed by the analysis of recent judgements of the administrative courts. However, irrational assumptions, which lead to unacceptable conclusions, must not be made from these regulations. In particular, one of the ceiling elements reducing the height of the premises cannot affect the overall usable fl oor space of a given storey of a building. The paper demonstrates that the correct survey of the usable fl oor space rules out the assumption that such an individual element affects the determination of the fl oor space of the whole of the storey.

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Grzegorz Lang
Interest on the amounts arising from the indexation of the fee due to a contractor in public contracts
The amendment of the Public Procurement Law of 29 August 2014 introduced the obligation to include indexation clauses in public contracts in the case of a change in the rates of VAT, minimum national salary, as well as social and health insurance contributions. A change in the contractor’s fee must be agreed upon by and between the contracting authority and the contractor, which usually means time-consuming negotiations, and takes place long after the new rates enter into force. Consequently, a doubt arises as to whether the contractor is entitled to interest on the amounts arising from the indexation clause and if so, for what period and at what amount. Given that the changes in these public law charges and the minimum salary take place virtually annually, the matter is of practical signifi cance and requires solutions that will ensure the effectiveness of the Act of 29 August 2014 amending the Public Procurement Law and will enable the provisions of contracts to be respected.

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Elżbieta Jarzęcka-Siwik
Activities of the administrative enforcement authorities in the light of audits conducted by the Supreme Audit Offi ce
The Supreme Audit Offi ce, as a guardian of public money, has the right and duty to audit, as well as assess the activities of the authorities responsible for the achievement of budget revenues. Notifi cation of the status of expired liabilities and overdue receivables, especially those arising from tax liabilities, is particularly important for all fi scal services to take remedial action. The Supreme Audit Offi ce also assesses the work of these services and indicates whether it is possible for them to take effective action in this respect. Reliable information has an impact on public perception and opinion about the activities of the enforcement authorities, as well as contributing to an increase in awareness and forming appropriate relationships between the public authorities and the citizens. The article is a detailed version of the paper presented at the scientifi c conference organized by the Faculty of Law and Administration of the University of Łódź, on 10-11 May 2017, on “Problems of administrative enforcement in the practice of the bodies of public administration, with particular emphasis on the enforcement of charges from the Act on the Maintenance of Cleanliness and Order in Municipalities.”

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Tomasz Woźniak
Restriction of the ability to provide public information about tax relief granted up to PLN 500. Commentary on the ruling of the Supreme Administrative Court of 21 July 2017, I OSK 246/17
No doubt, with respect to individual information about taxpayers who were granted relief, deferrals or forgiveness on taxes or charges or for whom payments were spread over instalments at an amount of more than a total of PLN 500, the Public Finance Act contains a holistic regulation in the provision of Article 37, para. 1, item 2, point f specifying the data to be disclosed and therefore this Act should be considered a special Act, which rules out the application of the Act on Access to Public Information. However, there are no grounds for interpreting the unambiguously worded provision more broadly and assume that it also applies to receivables of less than PLN 500.

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