Regulations of Jiangsu Province on Promotion of Public Cultural Services

(Adopted at the Nineteenth Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Twelfth People’s Congress of Jiangsu Province on December 4, 2015)

Chapter I General Provisions

Article 1 These Regulations are enacted in accordance with the relevant laws and administrative regulations, in light of the specific situation of this Province and for the purpose of safeguarding the fundamental cultural rights and interests of citizens, promoting the development of public cultural services, establishing a modern system of public cultural services, and enhancing the cultural and ethical quality of the whole society..

Article 2 These Regulations shall apply to the supply and support of public cultural services and relevant administrative activities within the administrative regions of this Province.

Article 3 The term "public cultural services" as used in these Regulations means public cultural facilities, products, activities, programs and other relevant services sponsored by local people's governments at different levels with the participation of social forces to meet the fundamental needs of citizens for culture.

Article 4 Public cultural services shall meet the requirements of overall coordination and convenience for the masses, and follow the principles of being non-profit, fundamental, equal, convenient and sustainable.

Article 5 The local people's governments at or above the county level shall formulate a development plan for public culture which meets the requirements of the local economic and social development and the fundamental needs of citizens for culture, and incorporate it into the plan on the local national economy and social development.

Article 6 Local people's governments at different levels shall exercise unified leadership over the work of public cultural services within their regions of administration, enhance overall coordination and establish a financial investment and guarantee mechanism.

Article 7 The competent department for cultural administration of the local people's governments at or above the county level shall be responsible for the work of public cultural services within their respective administrative regions.

The departments of development and reform, economy and informatization, finance, human resources and social security, land resources, rural and urban planning, education, science and technology, civil administration, press, publication, radio, film and television, sports, pricing and cultural relics shall, according to their respective functions and duties, coordinate their efforts in the work of public cultural services.

Article 8 Public cultural services shall be integrated with the development of science and technology and the Internet; and modern information technology, digital technology and communication technology shall be employed to improve public cultural services.

Article 9 Citizens, legal persons and other organizations are encouraged and supported to provide public cultural facilities, products, activities and relevant cultural services to the public.

Chapter II Service Providing

Article 10 Local people's governments at different levels shall, taking into consideration the local economic and social development, the regional cultural features, the demographic situation, and the cultural needs of the public, enrich the content of public cultural services, and enhance the quantity and quality of public cultural services.

Article 11 Local people's governments at different levels shall, in light of the actual local conditions and cultural needs of the public, formulate and publish regularly a plan and a catalog for the basic public cultural services, and provide free programs of public cultural services.

Appropriate fees may, in accordance with the relevant provisions of pricing administration, be charged for non-basic public cultural services, but not for profit-making purposes. The specific charging standards shall be prescribed by the department in charge of price of cities divided into districts and counties (cities or districts) together with relevant departments. The revenues derived therefrom shall be spent on the maintenance and management of public cultural facilities and the development of public culture.

Article 12 Government-invested projects as public libraries, museums, cultural centers, memorial halls, art galleries and cultural stations shall provide free access to the public.

Science museums, worker's cultural palaces, youth palaces, and women and children's recreation centers shall be urged to increase basic programs of public cultural services free of charge or at preferential rates.

Article 13 Non-profit cultural institutions shall improve the items and content of their services, provide the public with free or preferential art performances, exhibitions, radio, film and TV programs, reading services, and art training, etc., and offer support and assistance to the public for their cultural activities.

Commercial cultural institutions shall be encouraged to provide the public with free or preferential non-profit cultural services.

Article 14 Government organs, schools, enterprises and institutions shall be encouraged to open their cultural facilities to the public.

Article 15 Cultural products whose copyrights belong to the government shall be used for public cultural services free of charge.

Cultural products funded by the government shall be encouraged to be used for public cultural services free of charge.

Article 16 The local people's governments at or above the county level and its cultural department and other relevant departments shall provide targeted public cultural services for such special groups as minors, seniors, the disabled and migrant workers. In areas with necessary conditions, comprehensive public cultural facilities or public cultural zones shall be set up in such public places as hospitals, nursing homes, social welfare homes, factory districts, and workers' dormitory blocks.

Article 17 Local people's governments at different levels shall increase their supply of public cultural services to villages and communities and support villages and communities in their public cultural activities.

Local people's governments at different levels shall enlarge the coverage of public cultural services like radio, TV, film-screening, and cultural information resources sharing, etc. in rural areas, increase service items, improve service quality, support the production of public cultural products targeting the needs of rural audience, and create conditions to supply free public cultural services to farmers.

Article 18 The local people's governments at or above the county level shall incorporate the construction of public digital culture into the local information construction plan, enhance the development and utilization of public digital culture resources, establish a service platform of public digital culture which is characterized by standardization and interconnectivity, and provide the public with rich and convenient services of digital culture.

The management unit of public cultural facilities shall, through such technological means as informatization and digitalization, make use of broadband network, mobile Internet, broadcast network and satellite network to provide public cultural services, promote the construction and sharing of public cultural information resources, and enhance the capabilities of cultural information resources in transmission, storage, supply and remote service.

Both traditional and contemporary cultural treasures shall be promoted through network, the supply capacity of cyber culture products and services shall be expanded, and the healthy development of cyber culture products shall be boosted.

Article 19 Public libraries, museums, cultural centers and art galleries of the counties (county-level cities or districts) shall strengthen their guidance on public cultural services at the grassroots level and upgrade their services by means of operational instruction, key members training, artistic exchanges, and grassroots performances, etc.

Efforts shall be made to advance a free interlibrary loan system between the public libraries of the counties (county-level cities or districts) and the grassroots sites of public reading services, so as to gradually achieve interconnectivity and sharing between the digital resources of public libraries and various types of reading terminals.

Article 20 The local people's governments at or above the county level shall strengthen the integration of public cultural service resources across different departments, industries and regions, innovate the operation mechanism of public cultural service management, promote the joint construction and sharing, interconnectivity and integrated development of different institutions of public cultural services, and increase the efficiency of the comprehensive public cultural services.

Chapter III Construction of Facilities

Article 21 The term "public cultural facilities" as used in these Regulations means public libraries, museums, cultural centers, art galleries, science museums, memorial halls, exhibition halls, stadiums, worker's cultural palaces, youth palaces, women and children's recreation centers, cultural stations of towns and sub-districts, comprehensive cultural service centers of villages and communities (village bookstore), radio and TV transmission facilities, service outlets of public digital culture, as well as other buildings, places and facilities which are used to provide public cultural services.

Article 22 Local people's governments at different levels shall, based on the national economic and social development, the demographic distribution and structure, environmental conditions and the needs for the development of public cultural undertakings, ensure a balanced distribution of public cultural facilities.

Public cultural facilities shall, as needed, be built up in densely populated places where transportation is convenient for the public to make use of and easy to evacuate from any possible emergency.

Article 23 Local people's governments at different levels shall make a scientific and rational arrangement of the total number of public cultural facilities according to the per capita acreage of public cultural facilities. The acreage of public cultural facilities for every 10,000 people shall  meet the standard prescribed by the State and the Province.

Article 24 When building public cultural facilities like libraries, museums and cultural centers, the local people's governments at or above the county level shall make sure that the sites are rationally selected, and the facilities will function effectively and economically, meet the requirements of energy conservation and environmental protection, and conform to relevant national standards for the construction of barrier-free facilities.

Where conditions permit, a baby care room shall be set up in public cultural facilities according to the special needs of female groups.

Article 25 Comprehensive cultural service centers shall be established in towns, sub-districts, villages and communities for the purposes of cultural promotion, reading of books, newspapers and magazines, popularization of science and law, sports and fitness, and community services. Their functions and acreage shall match their service population and service radius and meet the needs of the public.

Where conditions permit or where the population is large, such places of public activities as recreation and sports squares shall be constructed as a complement to the comprehensive cultural stations of towns and sub-districts, as well as the comprehensive cultural service centers of villages and communities; relevant barrier-free facilities shall be perfected to facilitate the travel and use of seniors and the disabled. Where towns and sub-districts are merged, the existing public cultural facilities shall continue to be used for public cultural services to ensure full coverage.

The comprehensive cultural stations of towns and sub-districts and the comprehensive cultural service centers of villages and communities shall be constructed in accordance with the standards set by the provincial people's government.

Article 26 Local people's governments at different levels shall provide and update the devices and resources needed for the public cultural services. Where conditions permit, moving culture cars for cultural services shall be equipped according to practical needs to carry out cultural services on a moving base.

Public libraries, museums, cultural centers, art galleries, the comprehensive cultural stations of towns and sub-districts, and the comprehensive cultural service centers of villages and communities shall be equipped with digital facilities and devices for cultural services that meet the needs of the public.

Article 27 Local people's governments at different levels shall set up such facilities as billboards announcing public cultural information and newspaper bulletin boards (screens) in places with heavy foot traffic like airports, stations, wharfs and squares so as to provide the public with easy access to reading services.

Article 28 The land used for the construction of public cultural facilities shall be, according to law, incorporated into the overall plan of land use as well as urban and rural planning, which shall follow the principle of being economical and intensive and be examined and approved through legal procedures.

Under special circumstances where the land reserved for the construction of public cultural facilities needs to be adjusted, the urban and rural planning shall be modified according to law, and the land reserved for construction shall be demarcated anew in accordance with the provisions of the previous paragraph, whose acreage shall be no less than the original one.

Public cultural facilities shall be planned and built in accordance with relevant state and provincial regulations in the process of construction, renovation and expansion of residential quarters.

Article 29 The management unit of public cultural facilities shall establish and improve the safety management system and service standards, provide safety protection facilities and personnel, and formulate emergency plans to ensure the safety of the public and the public cultural facilities.

Article 30 Public cultural facilities shall be open to the public according to their functions and characteristics, and their service items and opening hours shall be made known to the public. The opening hours shall be no less than that as stipulated by the State. Under special circumstances where the items of public cultural services need to be changed or be shut up temporarily, an announcement shall be made to the society 7 days beforehand.

Article 31 Public cultural facilities may not be used for activities which do not match their functions and purposes.

No unit or individual may make use of public cultural facilities to engage in activities endangering public benefits.

Article 32 Local people's governments at different levels shall establish a publicly-participated evaluation mechanism for the efficient utilization of public cultural facilities, and make the evaluation result an important criterion for the determination of subsidies or rewards.

Article 33 No unit or individual may divert, embezzle, occupy or dismantle without approval the public cultural facilities, or change their functions and purposes in any way.

Where, as required by the urban-rural development, it is really necessary to dismantle the public cultural facilities or change their functions and purposes after being approved by the law, reconstruction shall be conducted in accordance with the provisions of laws and administrative regulations. The reconstruction shall follow the principle of construction coming before demolition or construction going simultaneously with demolition. Where construction goes simultaneously with demolition, transitional public cultural facilities shall be arranged to ensure that there is no break in public cultural services. Public cultural facilities thus reconstructed shall not be smaller than the original ones in acreage.

Chapter IV Social Participation

Article 34 Local people's governments at different levels and the cultural department and other relevant departments may, through government purchase of services, project subsidies, targeted funding and discount loans, etc., encourage and support social forces to provide public cultural services for the public free of charge or at preferential rates.

Citizens, legal persons and other organizations are encouraged and supported to build up or donate to build up public cultural facilities, and participate in public cultural services by way of sponsoring, undertaking, co-sponsoring or naming such activities.

Article 35 Local people's governments at different levels and the cultural department and other relevant departments shall, according to the development of economy and society, the demand for public cultural services and the fiscal budget of the region, formulate a guiding catalog or detailed purchasing catalog of public cultural services that the local government shall purchase from social forces, establish and improve such a mechanism of purchasing public cultural services by the government from social forces, and strengthen the performance evaluation of the public cultural services that have been purchased .

Article 36 Local people's governments at different levels and the cultural department and other relevant departments shall, according to the relevant provisions of the State and the Province, perfect relevant policies and management systems, simplify registration procedures for examination and approval ease the access conditions for public cultural services construct a platform for social participation, and formulate a guiding catalog for social forces in the region to participate in public cultural services.

Article 37 Public cultural organizations, colleges and universities, research institutions and high-tech enterprises are encouraged and supported to carry out cooperative researches to promote the application of modern scientific and technological achievements in the realm of public cultural services and upgrade the modernization level of public cultural services.

Article 38 Social organizations like relevant associations, societies and foundations are encouraged, guided and supported to participate in public cultural services and provide help in such aspects as legal issues, policies, finance, technology, management and market information.

Article 39 All circles of society are encouraged and guided to carry out cultural activities related to their own trade, promote the development of community culture, campus culture, corporate culture, rural culture and family culture, and form a system of social participation and cooperation in enhancing public cultural services.

Article 40 Local people's governments at different levels and the cultural department and other relevant departments shall guide, support and standardize the healthy development of folk art troupes, direct them to participate in public cultural services through government purchase of services, and provide the folk art troupes participating in public cultural activities with rehearsal venues, professional guidance, artistic training and information consultation, etc.

Article 41 The local people's governments at or above the county level and the cultural department and other relevant departments shall enhance the construction of talented teams for privately-operated enterprises and folk cultural groups who shall be treated equally as state-owned cultural institutions in such issues as determination of professional titles, training and learning, project application, and commendation and rewards, etc.

Article 42 Citizens are encouraged and supported to provide public cultural services voluntarily.

The competent department of cultural administration shall, together with other relevant departments, establish and improve a system of volunteer registration and recruitment, service record, administrative assessment and an incentive and guarantee mechanism, and enhance guidance and training so as to link volunteer services with government services and market services.

Article 43 Public libraries, cultural centers and museums shall be motivated to explore the establishment of corporate governance with the board of directors at the core and attract the participation of relevant representatives, professionals and people from all circles in their management.

Chapter V Supporting Measures

Article 44 The provincial people's government shall, in accordance with the State's guiding standards on basic public cultural services and in light of the specific situation of this Province, formulate assurance standards for basic public cultural services in the Province. The people’s governments of cities divided into districts and counties (county-level cities, districts) shall formulate their region-specific assurance standards for basic public cultural services to fit in with the development of local economy and society, which are not lower than the provincial standards.

The people’s governments of cities divided into districts, counties (county-level cities, districts), and towns shall be responsible for the implementation of the assurance standards for basic public cultural services in their administrative regions.

Article 45 The local people's governments at or above the county level shall take the lead in establishing a coordinating mechanism for the construction of public cultural service system which involves the cultural department and other relevant departments, advance in a concerted manner the formulation, implementation and evaluation of policies and standards concerning public cultural services, coordinate the implementation of major projects of public cultural services, push forward the joint construction and sharing of public cultural resources at the grassroots level, and promote the balanced development of public cultural services.

Article 46 Local people's governments at different levels shall incorporate into their fiscal budgets the outlays needed for public cultural facilities, products, activities, and programs. The financial expenditure on basic public cultural services shall suit the growth of the overall development of social economy and the financial capacity of the government, and the capacity of county-level finance to support the basic public cultural services shall be strengthened.

Article 47 The local people's governments at or above the county level shall reform and improve the transfer payment system to match the responsibility division between administrative powers and expenditure powers of the governments at different levels and optimize their structure of transfer payment.

The local people's governments at or above the county level shall integrate and standardize all kinds of existing special funds for public cultural services, and increase the transfer payment to economically less developed areas, focusing their support on the public cultural services in economically less developed towns and villages.

Article 48 The local people's governments at or above the county level shall establish and improve a system of audit supervision and statistical announcement for the funds of public cultural services to ensure that the funds are used exclusively for public cultural services, without being embezzled or diverted by any unit or individual.

Article 49 Where social forces offer their support to the construction of public cultural facilities and public cultural activities, and donate facilities and devices for public cultural services, they shall be entitled to preferential rates of taxes and fees in accordance with relevant national and provincial regulations.

Article 50 The local people's governments at or above the county level shall, according to the functions, tasks and service population of cultural institutions like public libraries, museums, cultural centers, art galleries and workers' cultural palaces, etc., make a rational manning for public cultural services and staff the comprehensive cultural stations of towns and sub-districts in accordance with relevant national and provincial regulations to fix the posts with personnel quota dedicated to specific purposes. Comprehensive cultural service centers of villages and communities shall set up public cultural posts to take charge of cultural services purchased by the government.

Article 51 The competent department for cultural administration shall provide on-the-job training for the personnel of public cultural services to upgrade their professionalism and service capacity.

The management unit for public cultural facilities shall, according to different job requirements, compile a training plan for the personnel of public cultural services and conduct graded and classified training for them.

Article 52 The local people's government at or above the county level and its cultural department and other relevant departments shall establish and improve a mechanism of introduction, cultivation and inducement of public cultural talents, and bring in and nurture leading talents in public cultural services.

Article 53 Local people's governments at different levels shall incorporate public cultural services into the appraisal work of local government, making it an important part for assessing the level and quality of local development as well as the performance and achievements of leading cadres.

The cultural department and other relevant departments shall establish a system of performance assessment and a mechanism of public evaluation and feedback for public cultural services, and make public opinions and suggestions a reference for the evaluation and dynamic adjustment of public cultural services.

Chapter VI Legal Liabilities

Article 54 Where local people's governments at different levels, in violation of the provisions of these Regulations, fail to fulfill their duties in supporting public cultural services, they shall be ordered by the people's government at the next higher level to make corrections within the prescribed time limit; if the case is serious, leading persons directly in charge and other persons directly responsible for it shall be given sanctions according to law.

Article 55 Where the management unit for public cultural facilities violates these Regulations in any of the following acts, it shall be ordered by the cultural department and other relevant departments to make corrections within the prescribed time limit; if the case is serious, leading persons directly in charge and other persons directly responsible for it shall be given sanctions according to law:

(1) failing to provide free basic items of public cultural services as stipulated;

(2) failing to set up a security system of management as stipulated; and

(3) failing to open the public cultural facilities to the public according to their functions and characteristics, and failing to make known to the public their service items and opening hours.

Article 56 Where the management unit for public cultural facilities, in violation of Article 31 of these Regulations, uses public cultural facilities for activities which do not match their functions and purposes, it shall be ordered by the cultural department and other relevant departments to make corrections within the prescribed time limit and be confiscated of the illegal income derived therefrom; if the illegal income is less than 5,000 yuan, a fine of not more than 10,000 yuan may be imposed; if the illegal income exceeds 5,000 yuan, a fine of not less than 2 times but not more than 5 times of the income shall be imposed ; the leading persons directly in charge and other persons directly responsible for it shall be given administrative sanctions according to law.

Article 57 Where any unit or individual, in violation of Article 33 of these Regulations, diverts, embezzles, occupies or dismantles without approval the public cultural facilities, or fails to reconstruct the public cultural facilities in accordance with the provisions of laws and administrative regulations after dismantling them, they shall be ordered by the cultural department and other relevant departments to make corrections within the prescribed time limit; if the case is serious, leading persons directly in charge and other persons directly responsible for it shall be given sanctions according to law; where a crime is constituted, the criminal liabilities shall be investigated according to law.

Article 58 Where any unit or individual, in violation of Article 48 of these Regulations, embezzles or diverts the funds for public cultural services, they shall be ordered to make corrections by the superior administrative organ or the supervisory organ; if the case is serious, leading persons directly in charge and other persons directly responsible for it shall be given sanctions according to law; where a crime is constituted, the criminal liabilities shall be investigated according to law.

Article 59 Where governmental organs like the cultural department and their personnel, in violation of these Regulations, neglect their duties, abuse their powers, or engage in malpractice for personal gains, leading persons directly in charge and other persons directly responsible for it shall be given administrative sanctions according to law; where a crime is constituted, the criminal liabilities shall be investigated according to law.

Chapter VII Supplementary Provision

Article 60 These Regulations shall enter into effect as of March 1, 2016.