*** New bill proposes jail time and BD10,000 fine for violating technical regulations | THE DAILY TRIBUNE | KINGDOM OF BAHRAIN

New bill proposes jail time and BD10,000 fine for violating technical regulations

TDT | Manama

Email: mail@newsofbahrain.com

Fines of up to BD10,000 and possible jail time await anyone caught misusing national standard specifications under a draft law the government has put before Parliament.

The bill aims to tidy up how technical regulations are published while cracking down on the unauthorised sale or distribution of these documents, as well as any wording, symbols or markings that might falsely suggest official approval.

The proposed law contains a preamble and two articles.

Definition

The first replaces the definition of “competent authority” in Article (1) of Law No. (1) of 2016 on Specifications and Standards and rewrites the texts of Articles (3) paragraphs (1, 2, 5), (4), (8), and (19) paragraph (5) of the same law. The second article deals with enforcement.

Under the new definition, the competent authority is the directorate within the Ministry responsible for overseeing specifications and standards.

The revised Article (3) tasks this authority with drafting, updating, and scrapping national standard specifications, submitting them for approval by a newly established National Committee.

Regulations

It will also be responsible for preparing and amending technical regulations and for issuing and selling publications covering regulations, specifications, and quality measures.

These documents must be made available for purchase on the Ministry’s website.

The revised Article (4) sets up the National Committee for Specifications and Standards, chaired by the Minister and including members from relevant ministries, agencies, and the private sector, with each government representative holding at least a Director-level post.

Formation

The Prime Minister, acting on the Minister’s proposal, will decree the committee’s formation, with members serving a four-year term, renewable twice.

The committee will elect a Vice-Chairperson at its first meeting to step in when the Chairperson is unavailable.

The Prime Minister will also set pay rates for committee members, sub-committees, and other groups supporting the competent authority.

Approval

Article (8) gives the Minister the power to approve and adopt national specifications, standards, and technical regulations, with each decision published in the Official Gazette, along with the number and name of the relevant regulation or specification.

Under the reworked Article (19) paragraph (5), anyone caught distributing, selling, or offering national standard specifications or technical regulations for sale — or using phrases, symbols, or designs that imply official status — will face a jail term of up to three years, a fine between 100 and 10,000 dinars, or both.

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