The government approved the postponement of the mandatory use of the spatial planning geoportal

Prague - The transitional period during which the National Geoportal for Spatial Planning will not be mandatory will be extended by one year until June 30, 2027. The relevant amendment to the Building Act was supported by the government today, reported the Minister for Regional Development Zuzana Mrázová (ANO) after the meeting. The geoportal is currently operational, but not all of its functions have been fully tested yet. According to Mrázová, complications could arise with its early launch. For example, the uploading of spatial-analytical data and user notifications do not yet work completely. The proposal for the amendment still needs to be discussed by Parliament and signed by the president.

The National Geoportal is the official information system for spatial planning. It is intended for storing data and supporting spatial planning processes, and it allows access to outputs of spatial planning in the Czech Republic. In 2024, Parliament passed an amendment to the Building Act that postponed the obligation to use the geoportal due to the problems with the digitalization of the building process at that time, until the end of this June. Therefore, municipalities do not have to upload their documentation into it and can continue to use the existing methods of publication on the official notice board.

The so-called technological bypass allows the simultaneous use of the original building management systems with the new ones. It was divided into two parts. The first part delayed the mandatory use of the National Geoportal for Spatial Planning, while the second part concerned, for example, the Information System for Building Management, which building office employees do not necessarily have to use until the end of 2027.

By having the geoportal operational, the Czech Republic, according to Mrázová, has met the milestones necessary for drawing funds from the National Recovery Plan. However, not all functionalities have been tested to a hundred percent yet. "From a procedural standpoint, there is a risk that complications could arise within the administrative processes and the discussion of spatial planning documentation by self-governments, as well as, for example, the spatial development plan in the case of the state," she said. According to her, this could also jeopardize the deadline by which the Czech Republic is required to determine so-called acceleration zones, i.e., locations where it would be possible to build wind farms more quickly.

Mrázová believes that this "small amendment to the Building Act" will receive support across the political spectrum in the Chamber of Deputies. Before submitting an amendment, she met with representatives of parliamentary clubs, informed them about the changes, and presented the current status of the geoportal functionalities.

The chairman of the ODS Martin Kupka said at a press conference of the shadow government of the ODS that he would want to know the minister's arguments. Mrázová proposed that the Chamber approve her proposal in an expedited manner in the first reading. However, the opposition could veto this procedure. "We certainly do not want to issue any blank check. And given how the government behaves towards the current opposition, and how it also acts in terms of standard practices that were upheld here and suddenly are not, to expect that we will agree to every step, to every 'not completed' of the government, and help it heal that. Such automation, such a blank check, I cannot imagine," Kupka stated.

According to Mrázová, spatial planning in the country will also be changed by another amendment to the Building Act being discussed in the Chamber. It significantly reforms building administration in the country. It introduces a central state building administration, declares mass housing constructions as a public interest, which can facilitate land expropriation, and anticipates the introduction of the principle of a single building process at one office with one stamp. Local governments should be responsible for spatial development. These changes will also require further adjustments to the National Geoportal for Spatial Planning, according to the minister.