New “rules of the game” for private security companies wishing to protect objects of a transport infrastructure. There are amendments in the law of transport security, that significantly transform the protection of transport facilities, including private security organizations.
The Federation Council approved the law “On amendments to certain legislative acts of the Russian Federation on the issues of transport security”, adopted by the State Duma on January 24th. Deputy Minister of Transport of the Russian Federation S.A.Aristov presented the report on this issue at the meeting of the Upper House of the Parliament. During the voting 133 senators approved the law, 9 abstained.
Now the document will be sent to the President of the Russian Federation for signature. Probably, V.Putin will sign it in the nearest days. The reason for such haste to adopt this law, probably, is approaching opening of the Winter Olympics. These provisions will effect during the implementation of security measures.
Express-analysis of changes shows that some of them directly concern the scope of private security. In particular, the amendments to the Federal Law № 16-FZ of February 9th, 2007 “On transport security” contain a lot of new regulations, due to which it is increased almost twice in comparison with the current version.
The adopted document significantly changes the whole configuration of the legislation, regulating the issues of security, and considers the protection of transport infrastructure objects as a separate category, which lives according to its own laws, poorly related to other regulations. Of course, this law will be detailed by Government Decrees and other normative acts. Only then it will be possible to understand in detail what it will give. Perhaps some of our assumptions will be modified by the certain provisions of laws, however, the contours of future changes are already visible.
So, what are the new “rules of the game” for PSCs, wishing to protect transport infrastructure objects?
1. Based on the definition of the “transport security units”, where “legal entities accredited for this purpose in the prescribed manner” are mentioned in addition to the departmental security, there are new players on the market, which have the right to protect these assets. By letter of the definition, they are not required to have a license for private security activities, accreditation is enough. Accreditation of such entities will be implemented by Federal agencies in the established sphere of activities (Rosavtodor, Roszheldor, Rosaviaciya, Rosmorrechflot), therefore, the law on private detective and security activities ie not applicable to them. It’s not clear yet, what kind of security phantoms they will be, but the fact that they will work without a strict control of the interior Ministry, will give them competitive advantages. PSCs unlike the departmental guard also need to be accredited and get into the register of accredited organizations.
2. Employees of organizations that were accredited and got the status of the “transport security unit”, are required to be trained and certified. No exceptions for private security guards, who have already been trained, received guard certificates and a personal card. Thus, they will have to be trained again (it’s not clear where and how) and pass certification.
Certification will deal with “organizations under the jurisdiction of the competent authorities in the field of transport security and authorized certification forces of transport security”. If accreditation can be presented as provision of public services (it’s not clear whether or not a duty), certification is a business, because “Functions…made…by certification organizations on the basis of a public contract”. Additional costs are paid by security organizations or guards themselves. It is planned to examine the “conformity of knowledge, skills, …, personal (psychophysiological) qualities, level of physical preparation”. Then a guard must obtain a Certificate of qualification, get into the register of the certified, undergo an annual medical examination (also costs) and take the test every year, but not the test which he takes as a security guard, and additional “periodic checks for the suitability to act in conditions connected with the use of physical force, special means and service firearms”. The law doesn’t provide details, how this physical force will be verified: by a method of pulling up on the bar or by taking tests.
3. There are no less interesting innovations concerning the rights of PSCs employees, which will receive the status of the “transport security unit”. According to this law, they will get the right for inspection, application of special means, service firearms and physical force in accordance with the law provisions “On the departmental security”, etc. Its ‘not clear how these actions will be evaluated by the licensing division of the Interior Ministry, and even more interesting, by the Prosecutor’s Office, because they do not conform to the law provisions on private security.
The considered law will come into force from the day of its official publication except for certain items, including provisions governing certification and accreditation – they will come into force 90 days after its official publication day.
Studying the adopted text of the law, it seems that it has no common points with the current legislation and was adopted without taking into account the existing law rules. Not to be accused of bias, we advise you to get personally acquainted with the text of the Federal Law “On transport security” taking into account changes/additions that will be added to it by the Law “On amendments to certain legislative acts of the Russian Federation on transport security”.