Government gazettes to come under new regulation

The State Council will regulate government gazettes to promote administrative services, said a notice released by the State Council on Wednesday.

As a legal carrier of administrative rules and regulations, the government gazette is an official channel for government organs to issue decrees.

However, given some government gazettes are not published punctually, a systematic mechanism should be established to improve government work on gazettes, according to the document.

According to the notice, a three-tier system of gazettes — the central government and provincial and city governments — will be established and these governments should publish documents in accordance with their levels of responsibility. Commercial advertisements will be prohibited. Working mechanisms in relation to reviews, supervision, submissions and liaison should be established as well.

In addition, the State Council also urged governments at all levels to publish online gazettes, giving the public more access. Electronic watermarks and other means should be used to ensure the authenticity of the documents and avoid them being tampered with online.

Governments should also create gazette databases, which should be open to the public, and provide search functions, the notice said.

General offices of local governments are in charge of the work involved with the gazettes and should promote it in a regulated and orderly way, the document added.