חוק התקנים (תיקון מס' 13), התשע"ח-2018Standards Law (Amendment No. 13), 2018 · automatic translation · suggest a correction

Official summary of the law (Knesset)

The law was passed in second and third reading on 19 February 2018, and it amends the Standards Law, 1953. The Standards Law as currently worded regulates the process of setting standards by the Standards Institution, and the authority of the Minister of Economy and Industry (hereinafter – the Minister of Economy) to declare an Israeli standard set by the Institution as an official standard. The default rule currently set in the law is that setting a standard must be based on international standardization in developed countries. The law as currently worded also provides that declaring an official standard in a field for which another minister is responsible requires that minister's consent, and if it concerns an Israeli standard based on an international standard but including deviations from the international standard, the Minister of Economy must bring the matter for discussion before an advisory committee comprising representatives of government ministries and public representatives – the "Adoption Committee" – which is meant to examine the justifications for the deviations. About a year ago, the Knesset approved a comprehensive reform in the field of standardization, under which special provisions were set for aligning Israeli standardization with international standardization by August 2019, unless there are deviations between the official standard and the international standard that are "required national deviations" – deviations arising from unique characteristics such as Israeli law, language adaptation, and the like. Since the implementation of these special provisions encountered difficulties, among other things due to workload at the Adoption Committee, the amendment to the law establishes a more efficient and faster procedure for re-examining official standards in order to align them with international standardization. The new procedure is meant to be completed by 12 August 2019. Under the new procedure, the Standards Institution will prepare a list of existing official standards, noting for each standard whether it includes a deviation from the international standard and whether the deviation is a "required national deviation." Where an official standard includes a deviation that is not required, the Minister of Economy must revoke the official status of that standard or align it with the international standard, unless the exceptions specified in the law apply. In order to streamline the process and ensure it is completed by 12 August 2019, the amendment to the law provides that revoking the standard's status will not require consultation with the Adoption Committee, and the minister responsible for the field of the standard will be required to convey to the Minister of Economy his position regarding the revocation or alignment by the set date; if he does not convey his position by that date, he will be deemed to agree to the revocation or alignment.

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