European Commission seeks Romania’s answers on new integrity law and ‘Fritz amendment’

The European Commission has formally asked Romania to explain a new integrity law that could end the mandates of some elected officials, including Timișoara Mayor Dominic Fritz.

The request, sent by Ana Gallego, director-general of the Commission’s Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers, gives Bucharest two weeks to answer questions about whether the law complies with European Union legal principles. Particular attention is focused on the provision known as the “Fritz amendment.”

The law provides for the automatic termination of mandates one month after it enters into force for people covered by certain earlier incompatibility or conflict-of-interest decisions. The provision has triggered political and legal controversy. Opposition figures and civil society representatives have criticized it, while critics say applying the new rules to past situations could conflict with the principle of non-retroactivity and give the measure a punitive character.

Brussels is asking whether the automatic loss of office follows an individual assessment of the seriousness of each case. It also wants to know whether the law respects legal certainty, proportionality and the “ne bis in idem” principle, which bars double punishment for the same act.

The Commission has requested data on the number of elected officials who could be affected, the measure’s legal nature and whether courts can prevent its application in minor cases. It is also asking whether people who lose their mandates have an effective avenue of appeal. The law forms part of reforms Romania undertook under its National Recovery and Resilience Plan. President Nicușor Dan decided not to return it to Parliament for reconsideration.