The Ministry of the Interior will submit amendments to the law to the government by the end of May to define what a shelter is and corresponding Cabinet of Ministers regulations regarding procedures for determining, maintaining, and financing shelters.
The Ministry of Economics will develop building codes for the creation of shelters by the end of November.
“I am well aware that it will take some time, most likely not so quickly, because the bill will have a debate in the Saeima,” Kozlovskis said.
Therefore, the government has decided to act more quickly – the Ministry of the Interior, in cooperation with other institutions, will prepare criteria or guidelines for adapting existing structures that have basements to create shelters by March 1.
Latvia has about 29 thousand such buildings.
The Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Finance also prepare possible financial support to promote such initiatives.
“We're talking about volunteering here. We cannot oblige it at this time until there are regulations, but for this situation to move forward, it has been ordered to assess possible State aid to promote such initiatives [adapting buildings],” Kozlovskis noted.
