Chamber of Architects: The amendment to the Building Act is a missed opportunity

Prague – The amendment to the building act along with the proposed law on a unified environmental assessment, according to the Czech Chamber of Architects (ČKA), will in many cases not significantly accelerate or simplify the building process and is a step backwards. The ČKA states in a press release that the amendment is a very sad result of many years of work and a wasted opportunity to support construction and investments in new job opportunities and infrastructure. On Thursday, the amendment to the building act is on the agenda of the Legislative Council of the Government.

"The proposal for a substantive amendment demonstrates that the government is unable to push through a genuine reform of building law. That is, changes that would replace today's fragmented and lengthy decision-making on land use and construction permits with a comprehensive assessment within a unified process, strengthen the powers of municipalities in spatial planning, and increase legal certainty for all participants, whether citizens or builders," said Jan Kasl, the chairman of the Czech Chamber of Architects (ČKA). The ČTK is seeking a reaction from the Ministry of Regional Development.

The new building law, prepared for years by the previous government of Andrej Babiš (ANO), was approved by the Chamber of Deputies last summer despite a Senate veto. Even last year, the ČKA was not enthusiastic about its form. "Unfortunately, the result is not an occasion for applause," it stated on its website at that time.

This year, the cabinet of Petr Fiala (ODS) managed to secure a one-year postponement of the effectiveness of the key provisions of the law. The amendment primarily abolishes the Supreme Building Authority and its subordinate new regional building authorities, while according to the Ministry of Regional Development, it retains part of the building authorities under municipalities, the number of which will be determined by the government.

From the middle of next year, only the Specialized and Appeals Building Authority will operate, which will be responsible for large infrastructure projects, such as highways, national railways, or power plants. Other constructions will be subject to permitting under the existing regulations until June 30, 2024. The digitization of the building process is expected to be launched on January 1, 2024, after a six-month delay.

The ČKA had comments on the amendment and now states that its adoption would fundamentally disrupt the integration principle. The main aim of the adopted law on the amendment is to accelerate the obtaining of building permits. However, the ČKA asserts that the amendment will not fulfill this goal. "Many documents are to be 'newly' issued separately, again mainly in the form of binding opinions, which practically eliminates the possibility of seeking consensus," states the ČKA.

Instead of solving problems, the amendment brings a deterioration in many respects, according to the ČKA. As an example, it points out that it removes from the text of the approved regulation several specifically defined procedural deadlines, particularly in the area of preparing spatial planning documentation. "The most logical solution, which is to transfer the preparation of documentation to the agenda of municipalities, is still being rejected by the Ministry of Regional Development, even though this step would best address the frequent inactivity of the document preparers," claims the chamber.

The ČKA also criticizes the fact that the amendment would abolish so-called Prague building regulations and large cities (Prague, Brno, and Ostrava) could have the right to establish "only" implementing regulations for the placement of buildings. The ČKA stated that "the harmful consequences would be far-reaching."

According to the ČKA, representatives of cities and municipalities and large builders also express disagreement with the amendment. "The Government of the Czech Republic should listen to these critical voices and ensure the preparation of a revised draft of the substantive amendment. Otherwise, it is likely that the Chamber of Deputies will adopt an unconsidered amendment," says Kasl, adding that the amendment might face the same fate as the adopted law, namely postponement and amendment.