Stuck with sidewalk fee collection, Ho Chi Minh City requests 2 ministries for guidance

On January 17, the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee sent an official dispatch to the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Finance requesting guidance on methods and developing an exploitation plan when collecting temporary use fees for roadways and sidewalks belonging to road infrastructure assets.

Accordingly, Pursuant to the Law on Management and Use of Public Assets dated June 21, 2017, Pursuant to the Law on Fees and Charges dated December 7, 2020, the regulation on temporary use fees for roadways and sidewalks is under the authority of the Provincial People's Council and Pursuant to Clause 1, Article 11 of Decree 33/2019 of the Government, which stipulates methods of exploiting road infrastructure assets.

The agency assigned to manage road infrastructure assets shall directly organize the exploitation of assets, lease the right to exploit road infrastructure assets, and transfer the right to exploit road infrastructure assets for a limited period of time.

Ho Chi Minh City requested the two ministries to provide guidance on methods and develop exploitation plans when collecting temporary use fees for roadways and sidewalks belonging to road infrastructure assets. (Illustration)

In case it is necessary to exploit road infrastructure assets in a manner other than the above-mentioned regulations, the Ministry of Transport shall preside over and coordinate with the Ministry of Finance and relevant agencies to develop an asset exploitation project and submit it to the Prime Minister for consideration and decision.

According to the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee, for the above exploitation methods, the Law on Management and Use of Public Assets and Decree 33/2019 both stipulate that the unit assigned to manage public assets must prepare a project to exploit road traffic infrastructure assets and submit it to the competent authority for approval before exploitation.

Currently, Ho Chi Minh City is implementing the collection of temporary road and sidewalk usage fees according to Resolution No. 15/2023/NQ-HDND dated September 19, 2023 of the City People's Council. In the process of implementing and studying related regulations, Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee encountered some difficulties regarding legal regulations. Specifically:

Roadways and sidewalks are part of road traffic infrastructure assets, however, the method of temporary exploitation and use of roadways and sidewalks is not yet regulated in the Law on Public Asset Management and Decree No. 33/2019/ND-CP of the Government.

Next, the subjects requesting permission to temporarily exploit and use the roadway and sidewalk are mainly individuals and households. Thus, the unit assigned to manage the roadway and sidewalk must prepare an exploitation plan and submit it to the competent authority for approval before granting permission and collecting fees for temporary use of the roadway and sidewalk.

In order to promptly collect fees for temporary use of roads and sidewalks, the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee requested the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Finance to soon provide guidance on the exploitation method and develop an exploitation plan when collecting fees for temporary use of roads and sidewalks.

Hoang Tho

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