THE LAW
ON SOCIAL PROTECTION, PROTECTION OF CIVIL
WAR VICTIMS AND PROTECTION OF
FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN
I – GENERAL PROVISIONS
Article 1
This Law on Social Protection, Protection of Civil War Victims and Protection of Families with Children (hereinafter: the Law) on the territory of Central Bosnia Canton (hereinafter: the Canton) regulates closer:
- basic elements of social protection of citizens and their families, forms and basic entitlements under social protection, beneficiaries of the entitlements, establishment of social protection institutions and invalid’s associations,
- basic entitlements of civil war victims and their families,
- basic elements of protection of family with children,
- financing and other issues of importance for obtaining basic entitlements under social protection, protection of civil war victims and protection of families with children in the Canton.
Article 2
This Law determines: basic entitlements, types and terms and conditions for obtaining entitlements under social protection, protection of civil war victims and protection of families with children, categories of social protection beneficiaries, procedure and responsibilities for obtaining the entitlements, establishment and activities of social protection institutions and invalid’s associations, financing, supervision, indemnity, penalty provisions, as well as transitional and final provisions.
Article 3
Activities of social protection, protection of civil war victims and protection of families with children are of special social importance.
Article 4
Activities of social protection, protection of civil war victims and protection of families with children shall be performed by social protection institutions.
Social protection institutions shall be legal entities.
Establishment and operations of social protection institutions shall be governed by regulations on institutions and by this Law.
Article 5
Humanitarian organizations, associations of citizens, religious institutions and organizations established by them, as well as other associations of citizens shall have special rights and responsibilities in promoting development of social protection and protection of families with children, managing and financing social institutions in line with this Law.
Article 6
Family, pursuant to this Law, consists of: spouse, or out-of-wedlock partner, child (within wedlock, out-of-wedlock, adopted, step-child, and child without any parent taken as foster-child), father, mother, step-mother, grandfather, grandmother (both father’s and mother’s parent), as well as siblings of spouses.
Family members of civil war victims, pursuant to this Law, are: spouse, children (born within or out-of-wedlock, adopted or step-children) – core family members, as well as parents, step-parents, and adoptive parents – broader family members.
Family member referred to in the Section 2 of this Article is also out-of-wedlock partner who has a child with civil war victim and has lived with him/her in common household minimum one year before his/her death).
Common household, pursuant to this Law, is economic unit of one or more families in which cash and other resources are obtained by work, use of common material assets (land, buildings, other) and spent jointly.
Article 7
Child, pursuant to this Law, is person up to 18 years old.
Exceptionally, child, pursuant to this Law, for the sake of obtaining entitlement to children allowance and scholarship or tuition, is person over 18 and below 27.
Article 8
The entitlements determined by this Law cannot be obtained by persons convicted by valid court sentence for war crimes or threatening constitutional system and security of Bosnia and Herzegovina or Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (hereinafter: the Federation).
The entitlements determined by this Law can neither be transferred to another person, nor inherited.
Article 9
The entitlement to certain form of social protection prescribed by this Law cannot be obtained by person who is eligible for obtaining the same entitlement under any other basis.
Article 10
Supervision over implementation of this Law, other regulations and general enactment of the Canton made in line with this Law, and over professional work of institutions established by municipality or the Canton shall be performed by line ministry responsible of social policy issues (hereinafter: the Line Ministry).
Article 11
The procedure of obtaining the entitlements and performing responsibilities determined by this Law, shall be governed by the Law on Administrative Procedure (“Official Gazette of Federation of BiH” No. 2/98 and 48/99) unless otherwise determined by this Law.
II. SOCIAL PROTECTION
II. 1. Definition of Social Protection
Article 12
Social protection, pursuant to this Law, is organized social activity focused on protection of individual and family or group of people who are in social need in the Canton.
Social need is permanent or temporary condition of an individual or family caused by war events, natural disasters, general economic crisis, psycho-physical condition of an individual or other causes which cannot be removed without assistance of another person or social community.
Social work, pursuant to this Law, is single psycho-social pedagogic activity focused professionally on improving quality of life in general.
Social protection of children, pursuant to the provisions of Convention on Children Rights, is implemented in children’s best interest.
II. 2. Social Protection Beneficiaries
Article 13
Social protection beneficiaries, pursuant to this Law, shall be persons in the condition of material need, as follows:
1. child without parental protection
2. child neglected in up-bringing
3. child uncared for
4. child whose development is disturbed by family circumstances
5. person disturbed in mental or physical development and person with disability
6. person materially uninsured and unable to work
7. elderly without family care
8. person with socially negative behavior
9. person and family in social need who necessitates adequate form of social protection due to special circumstances.
Article 14
Child without parental protection is: child whose parents are not alive, child of unknown parents, child of missing parents, child abandoned by parents, child whose parents are deprived from parental rights or business ability, child of parents who neglected their parental obligations towards the child and child of parents prevented to carry out their parental obligations.
Article 15
Child neglected in up-bringing, pursuant to this Law, is child who due to inadequate supervision and inadequate parental care, and negative influence by the community breaks generally accepted norms of behavior.
Child uncared for is child who, by his/her behavior, breaks generally accepted norms of behavior and commits magistrate or criminal offences.
Article 16
Person disturbed in mental or physical development and person with disability, pursuant to this Law, is child or adult who is:
1. blind or with damaged eyesight
2. deaf or with damaged hearing
3. with speech and voice difficulties
4. with bodily damage and permanent difficulties in physical development
5. with difficulties in mental development (light, moderate, severe and very severe degree)
6. with combined difficulties (children and adults with multiple difficulties in development.
Article 17
Child who lives in poor family relations or circumstances, pursuant to this Law, is child whose parents due to poor family relations, material or other reasons are unable to ensure normal conditions for proper raising, upbringing, and physical and mental development.
Article 18
Person materially uninsured and unable to work, pursuant to this Law, is adult unable to work, without means for supporting and who cannot obtain such means under any other basis.
Article 19
Elderly without family care, pursuant to this Law, is woman and man over 60 and 65, respectively, if they have neither family members nor relatives, who are, by the law, obliged to support them, or if they have such family members or relatives, such persons are unable to perform their obligation of support.
Article 20
Person with socially negative behavior, pursuant to this Law, is person prone to idling, vagrancy, prostitution, alcohol and other opiates abuse, as well as to other forms of socially unaccepted behavior.
Article 21
Person and family in social need who necessitates adequate form of social protection due to special circumstances, pursuant to the Article 13 Section 9 of this Law, is person or family in social need due to enforced migration, repatriation, natural disaster, death of one or more family members, return from medical treatment, discharge from prison, or corrective measure, or due to other difficulties.
Article 22
Certain activities of social protection can be carried out by humanitarian organizations, associations of citizens, religious organizations and other organizations subject to prior approval by the Line Ministry and in accordance with the Article 83 of this Law.
II. 3. Social Protection Entitlements
Article 23
Social protection entitlements, pursuant to this Law, shall be:
1. Cash benefit and other material assistance
2. Training for living and work
3. Accommodation in another family
4. Accommodation in social protection institution
5. Home care and house assistance
6. Services of social work and other professional work
7. Other forms of social work services.
Article 24
Persons and families in social need, who meet the conditions and beneficiaries of the entitlements referred to in the Article 23 Section 1 Items 1 through 4 of this Law, with exception of beneficiaries of other material assistance, shall be entitled to basic health insurance, unless they are insured under some other basis.
Contribution rate for compulsory health insurance for the beneficiaries referred to in the previous Section of this Article shall be accounted at the amount of 1,5% of average net wage earned in the Canton in the previous year.
The entitlements referred to in the Article 23 shall be obtained through Center for Social Work (hereinafter: the Center) according to beneficiary’s resident place.
Upon determining entitlement to health insurance referred to in the Sections 1 and 2 of this Article, such entitlement shall be recognized by the Decision on one of social protection forms, made by the Center.
II. 3.1 Cash Benefit and Other Material Assistance
Article 25
Cash benefit and other material assistance includes:
- permanent cash benefit
- carer’s allowance
- other material assistance
Article 26
The entitlement to permanent cash benefit and other material assistance shall be granted to persons and families under the following conditions:
1. if they are unable to work or prevented to benefit right to work
2. if they have neither income nor property, or if they have it is insufficient for supporting (pursuant to the Article 30 of this Law)
3. if they have no family members who are, by law, obliged to support them, or if they have, such persons are unable to perform their obligation of supporting.
Article 27
Unable or prevented to work, pursuant to this Law, is:
1. person completely unable for independent work and income earning
2. woman and man above 60 and 65, respectively
3. woman during pregnancy, childbirth and after childbirth, in accordance with labor regulations
4. parents, step-parents or adoptive parents, who takes care of one or more children up to one year old, and do not have family members who are, by law, obliged to support them, or if they have such family members they are unable to perform their obligation of supporting
5. child below 15, and if he/she attends regular education up to 27
6. person with permanent disabilities in physical and mental development
7. person who in the family takes care of person with disability or severely sick person if it is established that such person necessarily needs carrer.
Article 28
Finding and opinion on inability to work referred to in the Article 27 Section 1 Item 1 of this Law shall be issued at first and second instance by the medical committee established within pension and invalid insurance and which operates under regulations on pension and invalid insurance.
The Line Ministry shall be responsible of establishment of the committee for categorization of persons unable to work, at the second instance at Cantonal level, and determining financial resources for operations of such committee. Adult’s need for carer’s assistance shall be determined by the committee referred to in the Section 1 of this Article.
Child’s need for carer’s assistance shall be determined by the committee for assessing remaining ability to work and assessing children disturbed in mental and physical development, in accordance with the Rulebook on Identification, Assessment and Categorization of Children and Youth Disturbed in Development.
Article 29
First instance and second instance committee for determining remaining ability to work, child’s need for carer’s assistance and assessment of children disturbed in mental and physical development shall be established by the Center for Social Work and the Line Ministry, respectively.
First instance assessment of children with difficulties in development can be delegated to Resource Center established within the Center for Social Work for providing services to one more municipalities if the Center has verified medical committee which operates in accordance with the Rulebook on Identification and Assessment of Children with Difficulties in Development.
Level of the fee of the first instance committee referred to in the Section 1 of this Article shall be determined by the Center subject to approval by the Line Ministry, and fee of the second instance committee shall be determined by the Line Ministry.
Center shall submit to the Line Ministry financial request for paying medical committee’s fee according to determined children assessment pursuant to the Sections 1 and 2 of this Article.
Article 30
It shall be considered that household or person does not have necessary means for supporting if total monthly income per household member does not exceed 15% of average monthly net wage determined for previous year in the Canton.
If the beneficiary of permanent cash benefit is a person with disability with minimum 70% of bodily damage or with permanent disorders in mental of physical development, condition for obtaining the entitlement to permanent cash benefit shall be that total income per household member does not exceed 17% of average net wage earned in the previous year in the Canton.
Article 31
Total household income includes revenues obtained by all household members based on:
1. wage and other labor related receipts
2. old age, invalid and family pension
3. farming
4. unemployment benefit, cash benefit during training for work, maternity leave or sick leave
5. revenues earned from independent business
6. secondary business
8. revenue earned by real estate sale or rent, or base on property rights
9. revenues earned by commercial activity, provided services or other activities