YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 27, NOYAN TAPAN. At the November 27 special session, the RA National Assembly adopted all the 11 bills and legislative packages discussed the day before, including the government-submitted package of bills (subjected to strong criticism), by which amendments will be made to the Law on Salaries of Leading Employees of the Legislative, Executive and Judicial Power in the RA and the Law on Prosecutor's Office. At the end of a long debate, the keynote speaker, minister of labor and social issues Arsen Hambartsumian assured the NA deputies that the government proposal on establishing the salaries of the general jurisdiction court judges and the prosecutor general (currently these salaries are stipulated by the above mentioned laws) by a separate article of the law on state budget will solve the problem temporarily, enabling to raise the salaries of judges in 2009. The minister said that in 2009 the government will submit the respective legislative package to the NA within the framework of the single strategy on payment of public servants. Prior to the vote, the NA speaker Hovik Abrahamian announced that the issue had been discussed with the prime minister the day before. The government promised to present the concept in March-April of next year, and after its adoption it is expected that "the government will raise the salaries of civil servants and leading employees of government bodies". It was additionally stipulated in the bill passed in the first reading that the salaries of the chairman and members of the Constitutional Court will make: in 2009 the salary of the CC chairman will make 680 thousand drams instead of the current 340 thousand drams, and that of a member of the CC will make 600 thousand drams instead of 300 thousand drams. This changes will be in force from January 1 to December 31 of 2009. The National Assembly passed in the second reading and completely the bills on making amendments and additions to the following laws: the Law on the Order of State Compensation for Losses of Revenues of Community Budgets as a Result of Application of the RA Laws that Reduce Revenues of Community Budgets, the Law on Payment of Civil Servants, the Rules of Procedure of the NA, the Law on State Service in the NA Staff, the Law on the Use of Cash Registers, the Law on Minimum Montly Salary and the Law on Income Tax. By the last two bills, starting from January 1, 2009, the minimum monthly salary and the personal deduction from the gross income will make 30 thousand drams (about 100 dollars) instead of current 25 thousand drams. The parliament passed in the third reading and completely the bill on general agricultural stock-taking, the bill on defence and the bill on refugees and asylum.

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