The amendments to the Electoral Code are about to be voted on by the deputies in the plenary hall, BNT reported. The amendments were approved by the legal committee at a midnight meeting that lasted nearly 14 hours.
The committee adopted the introduction of scanning devices for voting with paper ballots, in which voters mark their vote by hand. The machines will report the result, and the scanning device will collect the ballots in a sealed ballot box, which will not be opened by the Sectional Election Commission.
The machine will also issue a receipt for the vote, which will be placed in a separate box. The BSP's proposal to have the changes come into effect from January 1, 2027 was rejected. "Green Light" received GERB's proposal that, if new machines are not provided for the upcoming early elections, voting with the devices from the previous vote or with paper ballots would be maintained.
The proposal by "Vazrazhdane" to limit the number of polling stations in countries outside the EU was also approved. There, a maximum of 20 polling stations outside diplomatic missions will be able to be opened.
The parliament will discuss changes to the Cybersecurity Act at second reading, the adopted program for today's plenary session provides, BTA reported. The amendments are the second item on the agenda.
The changes were adopted at first reading in February 2025 and are in fulfillment of Bulgaria's commitments to introduce into its national legislation by October 17, 2024 provisions of the European Directive on measures for a high common level of cybersecurity, which includes the protection of network and information systems (NIS) or the so-called NIS Directive 2.
The draft law, in accordance with the NIS Directive 2, provides an opportunity to achieve the general goal of increasing the level of protection against incidents, risks and threats to network and information security in the EU, writes in the explanatory memorandum of the proposer of the amendments, the Council of Ministers.
The general goal of the draft law is to ensure the legal integration of Bulgarian cybersecurity with European cybersecurity, including through the introduction of improved European requirements in relation to, for example, risk assessment. The changes are also related to incident reporting, testing, raising awareness and the fact that cyber incidents and the lack of an adequate response can threaten the stability of both public and private entities.
The bill expands the sectors of impact, which from eight to 18: energy, transport, banking sector, financial market infrastructures, healthcare, drinking water, wastewater, digital infrastructure, information and communication technology service management (between businesses), public administration, space, as well as other critical sectors such as: postal and courier services, waste management, production, preparation and distribution of chemicals, production, processing and distribution of food, manufacturing, digital service providers and scientific research.
The first item on the parliament's agenda for the day is the ratification of the Multilateral Agreement between Competent Authorities on Automatic Exchange of Information on Cryptoassets and the Supplement to the The multilateral agreement between the competent authorities for the automatic exchange of information on financial accounts. The ratification and entry into force of the two acts should allow the exchange of information with partner jurisdictions outside the EU, says the report of the Foreign Policy Committee in the National Assembly. Based on these agreements, Bulgaria is expected to receive extremely important information, which is essential for determining the tax obligations of Bulgarian residents and businesses for income and assets they own abroad.