The sea transport is one of the most important logistical links in promoting Ukrainian agricultural products on world markets, competitiveness of Ukrainian grain and other products in the world, food security, domestic purchase prices and farm income depend on its work largely.   Employers of private ownership have created thousands of work places in the field of maritime transport and actively invest in the development of marine economy and related industries of real economy sector.   These companies have created modern sea (transshipment) terminals, in a legal way have received appropriate land plots in ownership and usage and successfully carry out stevedoring activities beyond the existing state-owned enterprises – seaports, playing an important role in local government budget and socio-economic development of local community of our city.   Having reviewed the law adopted on 17.05.2012, for us it is obvious that during preparation of the law adopted, the parliament has not fully taken into account proposals of the President of Ukraine to the previous version of the Law of Ukraine “On the sea ports of Ukraine” (registration number 0881).      1. The adopted version of the law has significant disadvantages, including limit of economic competition in the maritime industry, contrary to Article 22 of the Constitution of Ukraine significantly narrows the scope of existing rights of private marine business and is discriminatory to those economic entities that before the enactment of this law in a legitimate way have built own transshipment facilities (terminals) beyond the existing state sea ports.   Thus, the law provides for a regular state enterprise monopoly that is the Administration of sea ports of Ukraine, which has also features of a public authority and contrary to the Constitution of Ukraine will carry out control and supervision of private sector enterprises.   The law will have the negative impact primarily on the enterprise (facilities) of maritime transport, which are located outside the existing sea ports.Powerful transshipment (sea terminals) are located on own and leased land plots of economic entities outside the existing state sea ports, on those plots investors have already built berths, approach channel, and other hydraulic structures, objects of port infrastructure, transshipment capacities, etc., checkpoints on the State Border are opened, processing of large amounts of foreign goods is carried out.   These terminals do not use objects of ports infrastructure of public ownership and are separate maritime transport objects. Management of these companies’ activity is carried out by their owners, and total volume of handling system of such terminals is comparable with the corresponding indicators of public sea ports.   The adopted law stipulates that according to the decision of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine objects of maritime transport (transshipment / sea terminals) that exist separately from public sea ports will become a part of the sea port and become its parts (Article 1).   The owners of such terminals, contrary to applicable laws, will be deprived of the right to obtain an adjacent to their berth areas of water to service the berths and other hydraulic structures, as well as for loading/unloading work performance, servicing cargos, vessels and passengers.   In addition, they will be deprived of the right to determine navigational dimensions and operating conditions of berths, approach channel, and other hydraulic structures owned by them as private property.   These legal powers are transferred to only one unitary state enterprise – the Administration of sea ports of Ukraine by the taken law, which is likely to lead to monopolization of service market to ensure safety of navigation and place subjects of port activity of private ownership in a position of inequality with enterprises of public sector.     2. The adopted law is not fully consistent with the current Land Code of Ukraine regarding the definition and changing the boundaries of sea ports and sea terminals and restricts constitutionally enshrined rights of local authorities as to disposal of land of sea transport and water fund within the respective communities.   Stipulated in this law term “port boundaries” and the order of their definition is not consistent with the relevant provisions of the Land Code of Ukraine and other Laws of Ukraine, regulating land relations.   The position of local governments and interests of local communities is not taken into account in the process of determining the number, dimension, location and boundaries of a sea port.   Local governments will be limited in possibility to dispose of lands of state and municipal property for the needs of maritime transport enterprises.   The draft law does not permit the existence of sea (transshipment) terminals and other non-government objects of maritime transport outside existing sea ports – government enterprises and indeed prohibits the business activity on processing cargoes carried by sea transport, beyond the sea ports. This, in fact, leads to monopolization of loading/unloading work market in existing seaports and collapse of private business that operates outside their territory.     3. Section III of the law on state enterprise – the Administration of sea ports of Ukraine assigned unusual to business entities function of state regulation that will lead to violation of the constitutional principle of power separation and realization.   Article 17 of the law provides factual and legal subordination of business entities engaged in stevedoring activity outside the territory of sea ports, to a specified state enterprise by extending compulsory regulations on a port issued solely by the head of the Administration of sea ports of Ukraine, at sea (transshipment) terminals that are currently located outside the port.   The introduction of compulsory regulations on the port boundaries of “control area” is not consistent with the definition of the port water area and assigns state-owned legal entity with unusual to it functions of the state supervision (control).   The law envisages both legal and de facto usurpation of full powers as to control and maintenance of declared depths by the state enterprise, particularly at the sea terminal berths and approaches to them, which makes economic conditions at the sea terminals that are located outside the sea port territory, conditional on the state enterprise decisions and will lead to restriction of competition and discrimination against certain economic entities.   Contrary to enshrined in the Constitution of Ukraine principle of equality of all forms of ownership, the law completely deprives economic entities, who are owners of sea (transshipment) terminals located outside the sea ports, the right for use of operating areas water space adjacent to their berth for servicing berths and other hydraulic structures, as well as cargo operation performance, giving this right only to the one state-owned enterprise – the Administration of sea ports of Ukraine.   In connection with the fact that the law provides for the right of water area allotment for use only to the Administration of sea ports of Ukraine, owners of sea terminals located outside of sea ports will be deprived of the right to keep tonnage tax and other port charges for actual services rendered by them to ensure safety of navigation.   To remove these shortcomings of legal regulation during the draft Law of Ukraine “On the sea ports of Ukraine” preparation for the second reading to the profile committee of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine and subjects with the right of legislative initiative were proposed to provide for by this law that business entities, enterprises of maritime transport, which as of the date of enactment of this law come within the term “sea terminal” located outside the territory and water areas of the state enterprises – sea ports, and in which checkpoint on the State Border is opened, since the enactment of the law are recognized open sea ports and are open for the entry of foreign vessels and are automatically included in the Register of sea ports of Ukraine.   In such sea ports all functions and powers of the administration of sea ports of Ukraine provided by this law should be carried out by these business entities, which are enterprises of maritime transport.   Also it was asked to authorize the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine before the effective date of the law to ensure identification of the boundaries of such sea ports and allotment (granting for use) water area of the seaport to the business entities, i.e. enterprises of maritime transport.   Before the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine adopts the relevant decisions, mentioned business entities, i.e. enterprises of maritime transport, should continue port activities, including maintenance of vessels and passengers, carrying out freight, transport and forwarding works as well as others associated with that types of economic activity.   In the case of accepting our offer, sea terminals located outside the existing sea ports, including in matters of maritime safety and carrying out government supervision, could have operated on equal terms with the latest.   However, unfortunately, these offers were not considered by the Committee on Transport and Communications of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine and the Parliament as a whole and were not fixed in the adopted version of the law.     While enacting the law the Parliament ignored numerous comments of the Main Legal Department of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine regarding non-compliance of certain provisions of the law of the Constitution of Ukraine.   In particular, stating that the Administration of sea ports of Ukraine as a state enterprise is placed in a position of inequality with other business entities, that fact ignores the requirements of paragraph four of Article 13 of the Constitution of Ukraine, according to which all entities of property are equal before the law.   Given the provisions of the second part of the Article 85 of the Constitution of Ukraine authority for the creation of state enterprises are not included to the jurisdiction of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine.   Also Central Judicial Office of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine stressed that the legal nature of national commissions of regulating natural monopolies is inconsistent with the first part of Article 6 of the Constitution of Ukraine, according to which state authority in Ukraine is based on its division into legislative, executive and judicial. A comprehensive list of the state agencies that do not formally belong to any of government branches expressly established by the Constitution of Ukraine (Central Electoral Commission, National Council of Ukraine on Television and Radio, prosecution agencies, etc.). Given the provisions of the first part of Article 106 of the Constitution of Ukraine, General Legal Division of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine believes that the powers of the President of Ukraine do not include a formation of others, except for those provided in the Constitution of Ukraine, state authorities that are not formally assigned to the execution authority. Thus, as considered, Articles 13, 21 and 22 of the law do not take into account the requirements of Articles 6 and 106 of the Constitution of Ukraine.   Given the requirements of the first part of Article 67 of the Constitution of Ukraine to establish fees in the amounts specified by law, elements of the administrative fee, such as fee payers, object of tax collection, collection rate, order of calculation, payment terms and procedure for payment, payment terms and the procedure of reporting on fee calculation and payment are subject to this draft law. Therefore, the provision of Article 22 of the draft law requires the appropriate emendation.   One should pay attention to the provisions of the law relating to the characteristics of privatization of objects of port infrastructure. The list of objects that are of national importance and can not be privatized, listed in paragraph 14 of article 1 of the law differs from the corresponding list of objects specified in the amendments to Articles 3, 5 of the Law of Ukraine “On Privatization of State Property”.     Thus, enactment of this law in this edition may lead to negative consequences and worsening the existing situation of maritime transport enterprises which are currently located outside the existing sea ports, i.e. government enterprises, monopolization of loading-unloading work markets and related markets, as well as deterioration of the investment climate in the field of maritime transport and protection of private investment.   We are extremely concerned about these deficiencies of the law, which is extremely important for the stable development of Ukraine, as an agricultural and sea state.