Global Integrity Report

Facts

Integrity Scorecard

2007 Assessment

Georgia: Integrity Indicators Scorecard

Georgia: Integrity Scorecard Report > Sub-Category: Political Financing
Indicators		Score
20	Are there regulations governing political financing?	86
21	Are the regulations governing political financing effective?	29
22	Can citizens access records related to political financing?	58

Indicator and sub-Indicator Details

20

Are there regulations governing political financing?

20a: In law, there are regulations governing private contributions to political parties.

Score:

YES

NO

score

Comments: By law, private contributions are regulated as to annual contribution from private persons or legal entities. The same regulations are relevant for party members.

References: Law of Georgia on Political Parties Election Code of Georgia

20b: In law, there are limits on individual donations to candidates and political parties.

Score:

YES

NO

score

Comments: Individual contributions are limited to 30.000 lari, (US$18,325) annually for either political party or candidate. Anonimous contributions are prohibited. A party or candidate is obliged to publish lists of contributors.

References: Georgian Law on Political Parties Election Code

20c: In law, there are limits on corporate donations to candidates and political parties.

Score:

YES

NO

score

Comments: There is an annual 100,000 lari-(US$61,083) limit for contributions by legal persons. There is a request of disclosure.

References: Georgian Law on Political Parties Election Code

20d: In law, there are limits on total political party expenditures.

Score:

YES

NO

score

Comments: The expenditure is not regulated by law.

References: Georgian Law on Political Parties Election Code

20e: In law, there are requirements for disclosure of donations to political candidates and parties.

Score:

YES

NO

$Scoring Criteria :: <strong>YES:</strong> A YES score is earned if there are any requirements mandating the disclosure of financial contributions to political parties or candidates. <p> <strong>NO:</strong> A NO score is earned if there are no requirements mandating the disclosure of contributions to political parties or candidates, existing regulations do not require a donor\'s name or amount given, or the regulations allow for anonymous donations.$

Comments: All financial contributions are to be disclosed. Anonimous contributions are prohibited.

References: Georgian Law on Political Parties Election Code

20f: In law, there are requirements for the independent auditing of the finances of political parties and candidates.

Score:

YES

NO

score

Comments: Audit is performed by the company invited by the party itself. Audit of the election funds is performed by the Special Audit Commission established with the Central Election Commission.

References: Georgian Law on Political Parties Election Code

20g: In law, there is an agency or entity that monitors the political financing process.

Score:

YES

NO

score

Comments: This task is performed by the Ministry of Justice.

References: Georgian Law on Political Parties Election Code

21

Are the regulations governing political financing effective?

21a: In practice, the limits on individual donations to candidates and political parties are effective in regulating an individual's ability to financially support a candidate or political party.

Score:

100

75

50

25

0

score

Comments: The problem is that regulation concerns only direct financial contribution or contributions with moveable/imoveable property. In kind contributions are not regulated at all, neither is the use of administrative resource. The use of public resources, i.e. government offices, cars, means of communication, as well as finances, is normal for any Georgian ruling party.

References: Political Party Financing; Report of the Georgian Young Lawyers' Association, 2007: www.gyla.ge

21b: In practice, the limits on corporate donations to candidates and political parties are effective in regulating a company's ability to financially support a candidate or political party.

Score:

100

75

50

25

0

score

Comments: Limits and regulations are not enough, as they do not include in kind contributions. As the notion of market prize is rather abstract and irrelevant for Georgia, parties have a full discretion to value costs of any event organized for them. The government can always manipulate with the same notion, if they are willing to punish a party. As there is no independant judiciary in Georgia, the government might always be right.

References: See reports of the OSCE, ISFED and GYLA after 2006 Local Elections in Georgia: www.gyla.ge www.osce.org www.isfed.ge

21c: In practice, the limits on total party expenditures are effective in regulating a political party's ability to fund campaigns or politically-related activities.

Score:

100

75

50

25

0

score

Comments:

References: No media reports exist. There are no legal limits to the expenditures.

21d: In practice, when necessary, an agency or entity monitoring political financing independently initiates investigations.

Score:

100

75

50

25

0

score

Comments: No investigation has been initiated or requested ever, in spiteof the fact that all domestic and international observers at the last national electeions, in October 2006, identified grave violations in campaign financing by the ruling party by massive misuse of administrative resources and state budget.

References: There have been no reports of any investigation.

21e: In practice, when necessary, an agency or entity monitoring political financing imposes penalties on offenders.

Score:

100

75

50

25

0

score

Comments: After the 2006 local elections, the Audit Comission of the Central Election Comission found minor problems in the financail declarations of practically every party participating in the elections. There was an administrative procedure initiated against the Republican Party of Georgia. However, after a court appeal, the Ministry of Justice withdrew its lawsuit technically using the argument of delay in procedure. The real reason was the fact that punishment of the Republican Party (RP) would have set a precedent. No party has ever been financially sanctioned in Georgia. The precedent would have cause the RP to start a lawsuit againt the ruling party for the same violation of the law, but on a larger scale, and would have lead to cutting state funding from the ruling national movement for two years.

References: Nespaper Rezonansi, 2006 November report of the CEC audit commission June 2007, newspaper "Alia"

21f: In practice, contributions to political parties and candidates are audited.

Score:

100

75

50

25

0

score

Comments: In practice, audit firms in Georgia are not well organized and not highly professional. The costs of the internationally recognized audit fims are too high. All political parties in Georgia use services of one-man run audit firms. That practise is based on some kind of kinship.

References: Georgia election monitoing report, by OSCE Georgia election monitoing report, by ISFED Party financing monitoring, Georgian Young Lawyers' Association

Peer Review Comments: There are audit firms that are professional and well organized. The problem is that these parties audit their friends or relatives and so give them preferential treatment.

22

Can citizens access records related to political financing?

22a: In practice, political parties and candidates disclose data relating to financial support and expenditures within a reasonable time period.

Score:

100

75

50

25

0

score

Comments: It is usually done by the leading or parliamentary parties. We almost never get all parties to fulfill this legal requirement.

References: By law, political parties publish their income/ expenditure statements and independent audit evaluation in newspapers. This is done annually, every February.

22b: In practice, citizens can access the financial records of political parties and candidates within a reasonable time period.

Score:

100

75

50

25

0

score

Comments: Normally such information is available annually or after elections.

References: There is no requirment on political parties to disclose information. Freedom of information laws do not apply. This is up to the good will of a party. However, informatiom submitted either to the Central Election Commission or the Ministry of Justie is public and theoretically available for immediate disclosure.

22c: In practice, citizens can access the financial records of political parties and candidates at a reasonable cost.

Score:

100

75

50

25

0

score

Comments:

References: If information is available, is is free. Citizens only pay the fotocopying costs.

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