Penalties to be tightened for officials violating fire safety rules

Uzbekistan will strengthen liability for officials who violate fire safety regulations. This is outlined in a law adopted on April 20 this year titled “On amendments and additions to certain legislative acts of the Republic of Uzbekistan aimed at improving the effectiveness of fire prevention.”

According to amendments to the Code of Administrative Responsibility, violations of fire safety rules at enterprises, institutions, organizations, public places, warehouses, dormitories, and residential buildings, as well as during the design, construction, and reconstruction of relevant facilities, will result in fines. Citizens may be fined between one and three times the base calculation amount, while officials may face fines ranging from three to ten times that amount.

Under the current version of the law, officials are subject to fines ranging from three to seven times the base calculation amount for such violations.

In addition, under the new amendments, the Chief State Inspector for Fire Supervision of the Republic of Uzbekistan and his deputies are authorized to review administrative offense cases on behalf of state fire supervision authorities and impose fines of up to 25 times the base calculation amount on officials. Under the existing rules, the maximum fine is set at 20 times the base calculation amount.

The law will enter into force three months after its official publication.