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Article 61
 

The Procedure for using Electronic (Audio-Visual) Mass Media

1. All TV and radio organizations must, no later than 120 days prior to the day of the elections, publish in print mass media information about the estimated cost of one minute (second) of air time, and forward the estimates to the Central Election Commission.

2. State and municipal TV and radio organizations shall, at the expense of funds allocated from the State Budget of Ukraine for the preparation and conduct of elections, provide air time for the pre-election campaign between 19 and 22 hrs.

3. The broadcasting time (broadcasting schedule) of TV and radio organizations, which have a license from the National TV and Radio Broadcasting Council of Ukraine for the right to use all-national broadcasting channels, shall be changed (without changing the volume of broad­casting) during the pre-election campaign period of the elections of the President of Ukraine in order to provide regional state TV and radio organizations with the opportunity to extend their programs and pre-election broadcasts in the respective regions.

4. TV and radio organizations shall provide the candidate to the post of President of Ukraine registered by the Central Election Commission general time for his/her pre-election campaign pur­poses at the expense of funds allocated from the State Budget of Ukraine for the preparation and conduct of the elections, of no less than 30 minutes on an all-national TV channel and 45 minutes on an all-national radio channel, as well as 20 minutes on regional TV channels and 20 mi­nutes on regional radio channels in each of the regions of Ukraine (The Autonomous Republic of Crimea, the oblasts, the cities of Kyiv and Sevastopol). This time shall be provided to the candidate on each of the aforementioned channels three times in equal shares of the general time. The Central Election Commission shall determine the volume and procedure for using the airtime allocated at the expense of funds, envisaged by part nine of article 60 of this Law, ensuring equal conditions for the candidates.

5. It shall be prohibited 20 minutes before and after TV and radio broadcasts of a pre-election campaign-related program of a respective candidate to the post of President of Ukraine to com­ment in any form or evaluate the content of pre-election campaign program or to give any infor­ma­tion on this candidate or party (bloc).

6. The distribution of air time , with an indication of the pre-election campaign TV and radio programs, and the specific date and time they are aired, shall be made by the respective state and municipal TV and radio organizations based on the results of lots drawn by the Central Election Commission, or, under the decision of the Central Election Commission, by one of the territorial election commissions in each of the regions of Ukraine (the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, the oblasts, the cities of Kyiv and Sevastopol) with the participation of the candidates to the post of President of Ukraine, their proxies or authorized representatives of the candidates.

7. The results of drawing lots related to the provision of air time for pre-election campaign purposes at the expense of funds allocated from the State Budget of Ukraine for the preparation and conduct of elections, shall be published in the newspapers "Holos Ukrainy" and "Uriadovy Courier" and in local state or municipal mass media, respectively, within three days from the day the Central Election Commission and the respective territorial election commissions have approved them.

8. The Central Election Commission and the respective territorial election commissions shall provide the payment for broadcast time according to their approved estimates from the funds allocated from the State Budget of Ukraine for the preparation and conduct of elections, based on respective agreements that shall be concluded between the Central Election Commission, the National TV Company of Ukraine, and National Radio company of Ukraine, and between the respective territorial election commissions and the regional state or municipal TV and radio organizations.

9. Air time at the expense of the funds from the campaign fund of a candidate to the post of President of Ukraine shall be provided on the basis of an agreement that shall be concluded between the administrator of the campaign fund of the candidate and a TV and radio organization of any form of ownership. Provision of airtime without the conclusion of such an agreement and without crediting funds to the account of the TV and radio organization shall be prohibited.

11. TV and radio organizations of all forms of ownership are obliged on the written requests of the Central Election Commission or National TV and Radio Council of Ukraine to provide information on the allocation of air time for pre-election campaign purposes, and are obliged, if necessary, to provide copies of the respective agreements, payment documents and broadcasts recorded on tapes or other carriers of information.