Transparency International urges President to veto lobbyism law

Sergejus Muravjovas
DELFI / Šarūnas Mažeika

The organization suggested narrowing the definition of lobbyism and only register cases when, for instance, efforts are made to influence laws and bills.

“I realize that the current law envisages that a representative of a homeowners’ community, aiming to acquire a permit from the municipality for a neighborhood picnic, should first of all register as a lobbyist with the Chief Official Ethics Commission. This is absurd,” Sergejus Muravjovas, the head of Transparency International Lithuania, said in a press release.

Under the law, lobbyist activities include actions of a physical entity in an effort to adopt or reject legal acts or administrative decisions in the interest of the entity ordering the lobbyist activities.

Transparency International Lithuania suggests that members of the parliament should be put under the obligation of reporting all meetings they have to discuss various laws. The organization noted that the law does not envisage supervision of lobbyist operations by the Chief Official Ethics Commission.

According to the press release, the law also features a possibility for businesses to fail to declare meetings with politicians under the disguise of public interest.

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