ASSESSMENT LOBBY RULES/ROMANIA

Romania

• Voluntary
• Broad definition
• Registering is voluntary in nature. Disclosure of lobby interactions by public authorities inconsistent
• Register of lobbyists
• Register Scope: Executive
• Register category: Identification, category, areas of interests, public contracts, public funding, lobby costs, turnover, identity of lobbyists, legislative acts pursued
• Key information provided
• Public access
• Code of Conduct
• Publication of interactions
• Interaction scope: Executive

Romania needs to introduce without further delay, rules on lobbying for members of Parliament.

Note

In 2010 the Romanian Lobbying Registry Association (RLRA) was established, setting up a voluntary system of registration coupled with an ethics code for all members of the association. In 2013, the Association took a further step and outsourced the Registry, transforming it into The Transparency Registry for Lobbying and Advocacy, supported by various organizations and supervised by a Commission led by civil society representatives. In 2015, the Code – mandatory for all registered lobbyists – has been revised by the Transparency Registry Supervisory Commission. Regarding the legal regulation of Lobbying Activities, between 2002 and 2011, six draft bills attempted to regulate lobbying. The latest draft law to regulate lobbying activities was discussed in 2014. In 2019, Romania was close to adopting a lobbying regulation based on the Austrian model, with a draft bill already approved by the Senate. Importantly, the project excludes several types of actions from being called lobbying, including those carried out by non-profits.