The Association of Traders of Non-Food Goods (ATNS) has come out with a sharp position against the bill amending the Euro Adoption Act, which is being considered at the last minute without public discussion. The organization, which unites leading chains such as Aiko, Mömax, Mr. Bricolage, Praktis, Sport Depot and others with over 3,000 employees, warns of serious damage to the Bulgarian economy and the creation of huge uncertainty in the market.
Freezing prices for 18 months threatens business
The most serious concern is the proposed ban on traders increasing prices during the period of dual labelling - about a year and a half. "This is unacceptable state intervention in the market economy, which is being introduced without public discussion and impact assessment", says ATNS Executive Director Galin Popov.
The draconian sanctions reach 1% of annual turnover in the event of a repeated violation, which for large traders means fines in the millions. In addition, traders must prove themselves that any price increase is "justified by objective economic factors" - a practically impossible task in the conditions of inflation and changing costs of suppliers from international markets.
Latest changes days before entry into force
"It is scandalous that the Bulgarian parliament is considering changes to a law adopted a year ago after months of public discussion, literally days before it enters into force," commented Adv. Popov. Businesses have already invested significant resources to comply with the requirements, and the new changes require urgent relabeling of goods.
The changes in labeling also create problems - the requirement that the currency be written in the same font size as the price may make the information illegible on small labels and, instead of preventing deception, will mislead consumers, especially with prices in euro cents.
Regulatory authorities will control prices on the market as before 1989
The bill gives unprecedented powers to the Consumer Protection Commission to control all prices in the country for 17 months. "This is an attempt to return the economy to state planning before 1989", the ATNS warns. The CPC will be able to unilaterally decide whether a price increase is "justified" for any company in Bulgaria. The survival of practically every business will depend on the subjective judgment of the commission, which is granted the right to access all commercial information. This is unacceptable state intervention in business activities in a market economy. The new obligation for large retailers to publish their prices on the Internet adds an additional bureaucratic burden for operating businesses.
The bill gives the CPC and the NRA unlimited powers to request any information from businesses, without judicial control or protection of trade secrets. This violates fundamental constitutional rights and contradicts European standards for fundamental freedoms.
Call for rejection of the bill
"We appeal for the bill to be rejected, and if additional measures are necessary, they should be carefully considered and submitted to public discussion with the operating business within a reasonable time frame", the association calls.
The organization unites companies with 105 retail outlets in 13 regional cities and over 3,000 employees in sectors such as furniture, building materials, sporting goods and books.