Michał Bernaczyk, Wydawnictwo Sejmowe, Warszawa, s. 485.
Jest to monografia poświęcona istocie i stosowaniu, zarówno w Polsce, jak i na świe-cie, prawa do informacji publicznej. Pierwsza część jest analizą tego prawa w kontek-ście jego umiejscowienia we współczesnym prawie konstytucyjnym oraz w innych do-kumentach prawnych tworzonych przez organizacje międzynarodowe, takie jak ONZ czy Rada Europy. Część druga przedstawia praktyczne funkcjonowanie prawa do in-formacji w wybranych państwach demokratycznych położonych w różnych częściach świata. Ostatnia, trzecia część stanowi omówienie form obecności prawa do informacji publicznej w polskim systemie prawnym oraz praktycznych możliwościach korzysta-nia z niego przez obywateli i inne podmioty prawne.
Auditing 8
KRZYSZTOF KWIATKOWSKI: Role of the Supreme Audit Office in Improving the Functioning of the State – Lecture for Students
of the Jagiellonian University 8
the main part of the lecture that President of the Supreme audit Office Krzysztof Kwiatkowski gave at the Faculty of Management and Social Communication of the Jagiellonian University (Uniwersytet Jagielloński – UJ) was dedicated to the management of and the work at the supreme body of state auditing. President Kwiatkowski presented how NIK examines and evaluates the public performance process, and the role of NIK in improving the state’s functioning. the students also got acquainted with the broad scope of the audits that NIK carries out – the President discussed the proceedings conducted within planned and ad hoc audits, comprising the analysis of the key areas of the state’s functioning and issues of vital importance to the citizens. a large part of the lecture was dedicated to the de lege ferenda proposals – NIK’s proposals for changes in legal regulations.
ANNA OLESIEWICZ (ed.): Annual Work Plan of the Supreme Audit Office 24 the annual work plan of the Supreme audit Office for the year 2015, which was adopted by the Council of NIK (Kolegium NIK) on 29th October 2014, comprises 110 audits, including the following: the audit of the state budget execution in 2014; the audit of the execution of the monetary policy guidelines; four financial audits of the European Organisation for Nuclear Research (CERN) and the Council of Europe for the years 2014 and 2015, which stem from NIK’s international commitments; and other planned audits whose number stands at 104. the proposals for topics of these audits were developed on the basis of risk analyses conducted at individual departments and regional branches of NIK, as well as issues presented by members of parliament, and citizens in their complaints. the biggest number of audits have been planned in the following areas: public administration (19 audits), health (14 audits) and transportation
contents
(13 audits). audits in these three areas will constitute 42 percent of all audits comprised in the NIK work plan for the year 2015.
ELŻBIETA JARZĘCKA-SIWIK: Periodic Qualifying Evaluation of Nominated
NIK Auditors – Executing the Quality of Work 48
the objective of the qualifying evaluation is to confirm whether nominated auditors are still appropriate for doing their job. the evaluation also provides important information for auditors on how their supervisors perceive the way they perform their duties, and guides them on what should be improved, and on how to achieve a better quality of their work. However, there is no close connection between the qualifying evaluation and auditors’ career. the law only regulates the consequences in the case of two negative evaluation results in a row. a positive evaluation, even the best possible, does not guarantee any concrete benefits. It does not imply, though, that it has no influence on promotion, remuneration, or the volume of financial rewards granted.
JUSTYNA ŁACNY: Financial Corrections Imposed on the EU Member
States – New Legal Framework for the Years 2014–2020 64 the mechanisms provided for spending of the EU funds make it clear that interests realised within the European Union vary and are sometimes opposing. Still, the Member States want to provide the most appropriate and compliant with the law spending of the European funds. they are willing to provide, through regulations, rigorous requirements for spending of these funds, and to make the European Commission control their compliance with these regulations. If these regulations are breached, the European Commission is authorised to take supervisory actions, which include imposing financial corrections that ensure that money is returned to the common budget. In her article, the author presents and comments on the new regulations of the European Union adopted for the 2014-2020 programming period that set forth the rules for imposing financial corrections by the Commission on the EU Member States within the Common agricultural Policy and Cohesion Policy.
FINdINGS OF NIK AUdITS 98
WIESŁAWA SZYMAńSKA: Compliance with Taxpayers’ Rights by Selected Tax Authorities – Administration’s Services for the Citizens 98 Over the recent years, the percentage of decisions overruled by appeal bodies and administrative courts has been decreasing systematically. However, the quality of decisions is still unsatisfactory. the percentage has increased of decisions by the first instance against which taxpayers have appealed. NIK has examined whether tax bodies respect
the rights of taxpayers, whether they treat them in a friendly manner, and whether they do not abuse the law and their position of a state authority. the performance of tax bodies has been assessed in the following areas: tax controls, tax proceedings, the quality of decisions, the use of the right to make the decisions immediately implemented, as well as the application of the tax liabilities security procedure. the audit has also examined the performance of duties aimed at conducting business activity in an easier manner, providing effective and friendly services for taxpayers, and information activities.
TOMASZ BICZYK: Collection of Social Insurance Liabilities
– Cooperation with the Social Insurance Institution and Tax Offices 116 NIK has evaluated the activities of the Social Insurance Institution (ZUS) and tax offices with regard to collecting social insurance liabilities (and liabilities related to the labour Fund, the Fund for Employees’ Guaranteed Benefits, the Fund for Bridge Pensions and health insurance). the audit covered the years 2012–2013. NIK has observed that in the audited period the ZUS did not have instruments that would allow for a reliable current analysis of collection related activities, both at local branches and at the central office.
the main obstacle was the low functionality of the information technology tools used.
OTHER AUdITS OF NIK 132
Findings Published in december 2014 and January 2015 – ed. 132 In this section, we present information on audits completed by the Supreme audit Office in selected areas, which have been published in the form of pronouncements on audit results. In this issue of our bimonthly, we discuss the following audits: the functioning of municipal companies; therapeutic and medicinal programmes; medical rescue services; the financial situation of the Self-Government of the Mazowieckie Region; the use of the one-percent tax by public benefit organisations; the functioning of the blood donation system; the supervision of animal farms; handling of medical waste; the performance of the National Health Fund (NFZ); protection of air against pollution; treatment conditions in paediatric wards; sales of municipal flats; providing social flats by municipalities; flood protection in the Odra River basin.
State and Society 135
PAWEŁ WIECZOREK: Poland’s Position in the Changing European Union
– The Process of European Integration 135
the article attempts to define what Poland has achieved to date in the political arena of the European Union, as well as the challenges that the country will have to face in
relation to the new institutional and legal structure of the Union that is being formed.
the advantageous position in the EU, which our country has managed to achieved over the first years after the accession, has not been given for good, especially that the Union is now undergoing structural changes whose impact on the shape of the integration, especially in the EU’s cohesiveness, is at this point difficult to define clearly. Consequently, the European Union in the form that is being established now, soon will not be the same as the Union that Poland joined in 2004. this may, at least partially, ruin the effects of Poland’s efforts to be in the Union’s decision-making centre. the future position of Warsaw in the EU will depend on how long, and to what extent, the key states of the Eurozone will consider our country an important element of Europe’s political scene. and it depends, to a large extent, on our readiness to join the efforts related to the reconstruction of the institutional infrastructure of the integration (the banking union) and, first of all, on the perspective of Poland’s joining the Eurozone.
ANdRZEJ PANASIUK: Innovative Partnership – Assistance in the
development of Innovative Economy? 155
In the light of the provisions of the set of new directives of 2014 that regulate public procurement issues, public procurement is bound to boost the innovativeness of the Union’s economy. among the legal instruments set forth in directive No 2014/24, there is innovative partnership, which is a special procedure that allows contracting parties to establish a long term cooperation with contractors, based on partnership, and aimed at developing and purchasing a new innovative product, service or construction work.
In his article, the author analyses legal solutions provided for innovative partnership, comprised in the said directive. Simultaneously, he discusses potential dangers and interpretation doubts that may influence the understanding of this solution. and – which is clear – national legislation in this area is defined by the European regulations that, when changed, make it necessary to transpose new legal solutions to the national law, and therefore can affect the proper implementation of innovative partnership to the national law.
International cooperation 166
EWA MIĘKINA: Special Reports of the European Court of Auditors in 2015
– Work Programme of the Court 166
Every year, the European Court of auditors publishes its work programme that comprises a list of special reports to be adopted in the given year. In her article, the author presents a list of reports planned for adoption in the year 2015.
JACEK KOśCIELNIAK: Role of SAIs in the Improvement of Public Assets Governance – Activities of the INTOSAI Working Group on the Fight
against Corruption and Money Laundering 174
the mission of the INtOSaI Working Group on the Fight against Corruption and Money laundering is to promote international cooperation among Supreme audit Institutions (SaIs) and other international institutions in the area of the fight against corruption and money laundering. another objective of the Group’s activities is also to set policies and strategies on how to combat these phenomena within the mandates of SaIs. at present, one of priority tasks of the Group is to finalise works on the document comprising guidelines on good governance of public assets.
NIK in Brief 180
New Vice-President of NIK – ed. 180
On 2nd February 2015, Mieczysłwa Łuczak assumed the position of Vice-President of the Supreme audit Office. Before, he was the member of the Sejm – the lower chamber of the Polish Parliament. In his past professional engagements, he got acquainted with issues related to national defence, local self-governments and spending of the European Union funds.
96th Anniversary of the Establishment of NIK– ed. 181 this year we are celebrating the 96th anniversary of the establishment of the Supreme Office of State audit, upon the decree by Head of State Marshal Józef Piłsudski. On this occasion, a meeting was held at the NIK headquarters to commemorate the former heads of NIK: Józef Higersberger, Walerian Pańko and lech Kaczyński, and their immense contributions to the history of NIK.
External Audit at NIK – ed. 183
at the Supreme audit Office, an external audit was carried out, ordered by the Speaker of the Sejm (lower chamber of the Polish Parliament). the audit covered the years 2011–2013.
In the opinion of the external auditor, NIK used public money in an appropriate manner.
Letters, polemics 184
TOMASZ LUBAńSKI: Amendments to Article 76 of the Act on the Supreme Audit Office – Periodic Qualifying Evaluation of Nominated
Auditors 184
the act of 22nd January 2010, amending the act on the Supreme audit Office, limited the right of nominated auditors of the Supreme audit Office to appeal against periodic