The new Draft Law on the National Security Agency (NSA), which is scheduled for consideration by the Committee on Security and Defence on 29 July, unjustifiably introduces a complete exemption from the application of public procurement regulations for the realisation of all NSA procurements.
Article 83 of the Draft Law stipulates that “procurement regulations shall not apply to procurements carried out by the Agency.” The proposed amendments represent a step backwards compared to the current legislation, since even procurements that do not have a security character, such as office supplies, mobile phone services, or vehicle purchases, would be carried out under procedures determined solely by the Director of the Agency.
It should be recalled that the Law on Public Procurement distinguishes three types of procurement:
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Procurement without a security character, which are carried out under the procedures of the Public Procurement Law;
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Procurement with a security character, whose subject is related to national defense and security goals (weapons, military equipment, combat vehicles), which are conducted according to Government regulations and the list of military equipment and products, procedures, and methods for conducting public procurement in the field of defense and security;
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Special security procurements, regulated by special provisions/internal acts, such as Article 48 of the current Law on the National Security Agency, which prescribes that the procurement, maintenance, and servicing of special equipment, service weapons, and premises used by the Agency are conducted under procedures prescribed by the Director.
The current legal framework clearly differentiates between the nature of procurements carried out by security institutions and the level of transparency that can be ensured for them. Procedures are adapted to the type of procurement, depending on whether they should be conducted through open procedures or special processes aligned with international standards, while ensuring that certain procurement segments remain classified in order to meet sensitive defense or security requirements.
As defined in the Draft Law, all three categories of procurement would be treated as classified, i.e., carried out under procedures determined by the Director of the Agency, leaving room for arbitrariness and discretionary spending through non-transparent processes. Exempting all procurements from the current legislation, which also prescribes reporting obligations on conducted procurements, will lead to a complete lack of external oversight over NSA procurements.
We also emphasise that the Ministry of Finance did not issue a positive opinion on Article 83, which, among other things, foresees an exemption from reporting obligations to tax authorities. The Ministry underlined that there is legal and fiscal inconsistency, as well as terminological ambiguities, and that the complete exclusion of reporting obligations is contrary to the principles of fiscal transparency and the applicable legislation (Opinion of the Ministry of Finance of 22 July 2025 on the Draft Law on the National Security Agency).
Furthermore, the proposed amendments must be carefully reconsidered, bearing in mind that they could affect the re-opening of Chapter 5 – Public Procurement, which was only recently closed.
In view of the above, we have called on the members of the Committee on Security and Defence to pay special attention during the discussion of the Draft Law to the arguments presented in our letter, and to carry out the necessary amendments accordingly.
Dragana Jaćimović