A new Standardization Act At the end of December 2015 the Standardization Act 2016 NormG 2016 was published in the Federal Law Gazette Significant parts of it became effective on 1 April 2016 Although key issues such as the financing of the standardization system have not been clarified yet Austrian Standards decided after intensive discussions with stakeholders to continue its work as a purely Austrian standardization organization A brief review The Austrian government programme 2013 2018 already stated that the somewhat dated Standardization Act 1971 should be amended A ministerial draft bill that the Federal Ministry of Science Research and Economy BMWFW released for consultation however caused enormous discussions Around 100 comments were received i e almost as many as on the Tax Reform Act They included very critical opinions voiced by industry SMEs administration and civil society Concerns were also raised by international parties and with regard to aspects of constitutional law The Austrian Standards Institute was not involved in the development of NormG 2016 but offered suggestions and proposals including an alternative draft bill in detailed comments The Standardization Act 2016 was finally adopted by the National Council on 9 December 2015 and published in the Federal Law Gazette on 28 December Essential aspects however have not been clari fied among others the fundamental issue of how the standardization system will be financed After a lively debate an extraordinary General Assembly of the Austrian Standards Institute resolved on 30 March 2016 that Austrian Standards should continue its work as a purely Austrian organization out of a sense of responsibility for Austria as a centre of business and employment in spite of the more difficult framework set by NormG 2016 The related declaration required by the Act was submitted to the BMWFW in time on 31 March 2016 As Austrian Standards explained in a press release in early April 2016 this decision was significantly influenced by numerous consultations that took place with stake holders from the economy science administration and society in the run up to the General Assembly and that reflected an impressively high level of trust As the press release further emphasized Austrian Standards could only return this trust to its partners and customers and considered this a mandate to make joint efforts and to make the best of this situation the best for Austria its economy and its citizens To succeed however all parties have to work together towards this common goal 9 Ke y i s s ue s sti l l o pen Current information on the NormG 2016

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