Hefei steps up pace in building law-based government

Hefei, capital of East China's Anhui province, accelerated its pace in building a law-based government last year, according to the municipal government's annual report on the work in 2020. 

Improve legislative work 

Giving full play to its legislative function last year, the municipal government launched more than 20 related survey activities, promoted a system for collecting public opinion and feedback on draft legislations, and incorporated expert's opinion into all its legislative projects. 

Throughout 2020, the government formulated nine local regulations on such topics as garbage sorting, river management, collective heat supply and water supply management. 

Advance comprehensive reform 

By deepening its administrative approval reform, the government shortened the time spent on the administrative process for starting a new enterprise to just one day, and retained 186 municipal-level administrative matters that require approval. 

Intending to become a certificate-free city, the government repealed all municipal-level administrative matters that needed to be certified. 

It also publicized six lists for the regulation of market entities in an effort to further improve Hefei's business environment. 

In terms of government service reform, the city made all services available on a 24/7 online basis. 

It also strengthened its physical, WeChat-based and website-based public legal service platforms. 

Strengthen risk control and dispute resolution 

In 2020, Hefei's judicial department reviewed 190 documents concerning such key tasks as COVID-19 control and economic development. It also dealt with over 610 legal affairs involving issues like investment attraction and land planning in order to defuse potential risks in administrative decision making.

The municipal government received 418 applications for administrative reconsideration last year, enhancing the role of administrative reconsideration as a major way to resolve administrative disputes. It also added 137 new primary-level stations for receiving such applications, realizing citywide coverage in that regard. 

The government also rigorously implemented the rule requiring chief administrative officials to attend administrative trials. A total of 1,095 such trials were held across the city last year. 

Efforts were also made to deepen the city's administrative law enforcement system, and to combine multiple forces in resolving disputes at the primary level. 

Tighten supervision of administrative law enforcement 

In an effort to achieve smart supervision of administrative law enforcement last year, the government gave full play to its legal supervision platform, and developed an intelligent system that couples online case handling with mobile law enforcement. Over 10,000 matters were handled on the platform throughout 2020. 

Focusing on administrative law enforcement in key fields, it reviewed more than 1,500 case files last year. 

The government continued to promote its notification and commitment system, examining 1,861 government service items and 4,788 applications last year. 

It handled 13 disputes arising from administrative law enforcement activities in such areas as urban management, environmental protection and project construction. 

It also rolled out the "three systems" that standardize administrative law enforcement activities, enhanced the link between administrative law enforcement organs and public security organs, and strengthened legal training for administrative law enforcement officers.