President Nicușor Dan promulgated the law repealing rules concerning incompatibilities and conflicts of interest for contractual staff

President Nicușor Dan promulgated on Wednesday the law repealing several provisions of Emergency Ordinance No. 57/2019 on the Administrative Code concerning situations of incompatibility and conflicts of interest that contractual staff in public institutions may face.

The legislation removes paragraphs (2)-(6) of Article 550 of the Administrative Code. These provisions treated contractual staff as equivalent to civil servants with regard to certain restrictions and established rules for identifying, resolving, and disciplining situations involving incompatibility or conflicts of interest.

The law was adopted by the Senate at the end of last month, in the form amended by the Chamber of Deputies, after the bill received a favorable report from the relevant committee. The initiators justified the repeal by the need to ensure a predictable legislative framework and prevent disruptions in the activity of public authorities and institutions.

One amendment provides that situations arising between the entry into force of Law No. 165/2026 and the entry into force of the new law will not be considered incompatibilities or conflicts of interest and will not entail the corresponding legal liability. Parliamentarians argued that the lack of a transition period could have led to staff losses, blockages, and difficulties in carrying out administrative activities.

Among the repealed rules was the obligation of contractual staff involved in a conflict of interest to refrain from resolving an application or making a decision and to inform their hierarchical superior. Violations of these provisions were considered disciplinary misconduct.