================================================================================ LATVIA FOOD, RESOURCE, AND COMMODITY ASSURANCE ACT Saeima of the Republic of Latvia, 14th Saeima, 2026 Session Prepared by Imran Cooper, The Amanuensis May 2026 VERIFICATION NOTES: LATVIA FISCAL AND PROGRAMME FRAMEWORK (verified 2025-2026): - Republic of Latvia (Latvijas Republika): population approximately 1.88 million (Centrālā statistikas pārvalde / Central Statistics Bureau of Latvia, 2025); EU member since 1 May 2004; eurozone member since 1 January 2014; NATO member since 29 March 2004; 119 municipal-level local governments under the 2020-2021 administrative- territorial reform. - Currency: Euro (€). - Saeima of the Republic of Latvia (Latvijas Republikas Saeima): unicameral parliament, 100 members elected by proportional representation. The 14th Saeima was elected in October 2022; the 15th Saeima will be elected in October 2026. - Constitution: Satversme (the Constitution of the Republic of Latvia, adopted 15 February 1922, restored to full force 6 July 1993 after the 4 May 1990 Declaration on the Restoration of Independence). - Latvia Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF): **total €1.97 billion** EU NextGenerationEU allocation. Third payment €293 million disbursed 9 May 2025 (38 reform-and-investment indicators approved). Fourth (penultimate) payment €371.2 million disbursed 8 May 2026 (fm.gov.lv Ministry of Finance Latvia; eureporter.co; lsm.lv; ec.europa.eu reforms-investments country-pages Latvia). LATVIAN STATE FINANCING AND DISTRIBUTION CHASSIS: - JSC Development Finance Institution Altum (AS "Attīstības finanšu institūcija Altum"): state-owned development finance institution providing loans, guarantees, and venture-capital investments in state-defined priority areas for enterprises and households. Altum is the load-bearing Latvian indigenous chassis for productive-capacity financing at sovereign scale. Strategy 2025-2027 in final approval as of Q2 2025 (altum.lv; nasdaqbaltic.com 2025 Q2 report; news.eu.nasdaq.com). - Latvenergo AS: the state-owned electricity utility, the dominant Latvian generator. - AS Sadales tīkls: the state-owned electricity distribution network operator. - Augstsprieguma tīkls (AST): the state-owned transmission system operator that executed the Baltic Synchro disconnection from BRELL on 9 February 2025. - VAS Latvijas dzelzceļš (LDz): the state-owned Latvian railways. - Latvijas Pasts: the state postal service. - Latvijas Banka (Bank of Latvia): central bank within the eurozone framework; governed by the European Central Bank (ECB) under the Eurosystem. - Valsts ieņēmumu dienests (VID / State Revenue Service): tax administration. - Valsts sociālās apdrošināšanas aģentūra (VSAA / State Social Insurance Agency): the population-level social-security administrative chassis. LATVIAN AGRICULTURAL AND FOOD CONTEXT: - Latvia has substantial domestic agricultural capacity in dairy, grain (rye, oats, wheat), pork, poultry, and forestry products. The Lauku atbalsta dienests (Rural Support Service) administers agricultural payments and rural development programmes including the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund (EAGF) and the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD). - The Latvian cooperative tradition (kooperatīvs) is deep, with significant pre-Soviet roots in agricultural and consumer cooperatives, suppressed under Soviet rule, reviving in the post-1991 period. - Latvian inflation 2022-2024 spike: peak Latvian food prices rose significantly during the European energy crisis following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, exacerbated by Latvia's small open economy and historic energy dependence on Russian gas and Russian-grid electricity (since resolved through Baltic Synchro on 9 February 2025). - Latvian food bank network: Paēdušai Latvijai (Fed Latvia) and other Latvian food-assistance organisations. LATVIAN CONSTITUTIONAL AND PHILOSOPHICAL ANCHORS: - Satversme (Constitution of the Republic of Latvia, 1922 / restored 1993): Preamble (added 2014): affirms the Latvian people's right to self-determination, the dignity and freedom of every individual, the rule of law, and the duty of every citizen to care for themselves, their loved ones, and the common good of society and the state. Article 1: Latvia is an independent, democratic Republic. Article 2: The sovereign power of the State of Latvia is vested in the people of Latvia. Article 89: The State shall recognise and protect fundamental human rights in accordance with this Constitution, laws, and international agreements binding on Latvia. Article 109: Everyone has the right to social security in old age, for work disability, for unemployment, and in other cases as provided by law. Article 110: The State shall protect and support marriage, the family, the rights of parents, and the rights of the child. - Krišjānis Barons (1835-1923): "Father of the Dainas" — collector and editor of the Latviešu Dainas, the corpus of approximately 217,996 Latvian folk songs that anchor Latvian national identity and the cooperative-communal-subsistence tradition. The philosophical foundation for Latvian collective cultural memory. - Atmoda (Awakening), late 1980s: the Latvian national-liberation movement that preceded restoration of independence. - Barricades of 1991 (Barikādes, 13-27 January 1991): the civilian defense of Latvian independence against Soviet OMON forces; Latvians built barricades around the Saeima, the Cabinet of Ministers, Latvian Television, Latvian Radio, the Latvian Telegraph Agency, and other critical infrastructure. Five Latvians killed defending the barricades. The Barricades are a living national memory of citizen-led defense of democratic institutions; the philosophical anchor for collective civic duty in modern Latvia. - Dziesmu un deju svētki (Latvian Song and Dance Celebration, since 1873): inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The continuous Latvian cooperative cultural tradition mobilising tens of thousands of singers and dancers from every Latvian municipality. The philosophical anchor for Latvian collective cultural-cooperative capacity at population scale. - Latvian cooperative tradition (kooperatīvs): the pre-Soviet agricultural and consumer cooperative movement, suppressed under Soviet rule, reviving post-1991 particularly in agriculture (LPKS Latraps and other cooperative federations). DISTRIBUTION INFRASTRUCTURE PROOF OF CAPACITY: - Valsts sociālās apdrošināšanas aģentūra (VSAA): administers Latvian pensions, family-state benefits, and social insurance to the entire Latvian ordinarily-resident population. - Personas kods (Personal Code): the Latvian national-identification number, the population-level identifier infrastructure. - eParaksts and Latvija.lv: Latvia operates substantial e-government infrastructure with electronic signature capability and a unified state-service portal. - Lauku atbalsta dienests (Rural Support Service): administers EU CAP and rural-development funding; the load-bearing rural distribution chassis. HISTORICAL AND BIOLOGICAL PRECEDENT (Papers VIII + I, universal): - Augustus annona civica; Nerva alimenta; Tabula Alimentaria COMPETENCY AND DEVELOPMENTAL INFRASTRUCTURE (Paper X, universal): - Latvian education: 9-year basic education + 3-year secondary; Latvian universities including the University of Latvia (founded 1919), Riga Technical University, Latvian University of Life Sciences and Technologies - PIAAC / OECD adult-skills assessment patterns relevant for the developmental-window extension to age 25 CLASSICAL AND PHILOSOPHICAL ANCHORS (universal + Latvian): - Plato "Republic"; Adam Smith "Wealth of Nations" Book V - Krišjānis Barons (Latvian national-cultural anchor) - Barricades of 1991 (Latvian civic-duty anchor) - Dziesmu un deju svētki (Latvian cooperative-cultural anchor) UNVERIFIED (flag for final-pass verification before public distribution): - Saeima term enumeration confirmed at 14th (Oct 2022-Oct 2026); 15th Saeima election October 2026 confirmed - Latvian state budget 2026 total (refresh against Saeima budget Act) - Latvian RRF total disbursement after fourth payment (€293M + €371.2M plus prior tranches) - Altum 2024 financial-statement balance sheet figures (refresh against altum.lv Annual Report 2024) ================================================================================ SAEIMA OF THE REPUBLIC OF LATVIA Latvijas Republikas Saeima 14th Saeima / 2026 Session ================================================================================ LIKUMPROJEKTS / DRAFT LAW IESNIEDZIS ________ (Saeimas deputāti) INTRODUCED BY ________ (Members of the Saeima) PAR LATVIJAS PĀRTIKAS, RESURSU UN PIRMĀS NEPIECIEŠAMĪBAS PREČU NODROŠINĀJUMA PROGRAMMU CONCERNING THE LATVIAN FOOD, RESOURCE, AND COMMODITY ASSURANCE PROGRAMME LIKUMS / A LAW ================================================================================ LONG TITLE / GARAIS NOSAUKUMS ================================================================================ LATVIJAS REPUBLIKAS LIKUMS PAR PĀRTIKAS, RESURSU UN PIRMĀS NEPIECIEŠAMĪBAS PREČU NODROŠINĀJUMU A LAW OF THE REPUBLIC OF LATVIA concerning the establishment of the Latvian Food, Resource, and Commodity Assurance Programme; the establishment of Latvian Food Assurance Centres (Latvijas pārtikas nodrošināšanas centri, LPNC) in every Latvian region and major municipality; the conferral of an at-cost basic-needs commodity entitlement on every Latvian citizen ordinarily resident in the Republic, identified by Personas kods (Personal Code), enrolled through the existing Valsts sociālās apdrošināšanas aģentūra (State Social Insurance Agency, VSAA) and Latvija.lv unified state-service portal infrastructure; coordination with Altum (the state-owned Development Finance Institution) for capital investment; coordination with the Lauku atbalsta dienests (Rural Support Service) for rural distribution and the Latvian agricultural cooperative sector; coordination with the Latvian Recovery and Resilience Plan (€1.97 billion EU NextGenerationEU allocation, third payment €293M disbursed May 2025, fourth payment €371.2M disbursed May 2026); coordination with Latvian consumer cooperatives in the kooperatīvs tradition; consistency with the Satversme (Constitution of the Republic of Latvia, 1922 / restored 1993) and the philosophical heritage of Krišjānis Barons, the Barricades of 1991, and the Dziesmu un deju svētki cooperative- cultural tradition; explicit declination to establish any new Latvian income tax (iedzīvotāju ienākuma nodoklis), value added tax (pievienotās vērtības nodoklis, PVN), excise duty, or other Latvian tax of any kind for the funding of the Programme; and provision for connected purposes. ================================================================================ LEGISLATIVE ROUTING NOTE ================================================================================ This Draft Law (Likumprojekts) is for introduction in the Saeima of the Republic of Latvia during the 14th Saeima, 2026 Session, under the legislative-initiative provisions of the Satversme. Suggested committee referrals following First Reading: - Sociālo un darba lietu komisija (Social and Labour Affairs Committee) — for the welfare-related provisions - Budžeta un finanšu (nodokļu) komisija (Budget and Finance / Tax Committee) — for the fiscal provisions - Tautsaimniecības, agrārās, vides un reģionālās politikas komisija (National Economy, Agrarian, Environmental, and Regional Policy Committee) — for the food-distribution + agricultural-cooperative provisions - Eiropas lietu komisija (European Affairs Committee) — for the Latvian RRF coordination provisions - Izglītības, kultūras un zinātnes komisija (Education, Culture, and Science Committee) — for the education-modernisation provisions Following Saeima passage on Third Reading, the Law is submitted to the President of the Republic for promulgation in the Latvijas Vēstnesis (Official Gazette). ================================================================================ DIVISION I — FOOD ASSURANCE ================================================================================ ARTICLE 1. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE LATVIAN FOOD, RESOURCE, AND COMMODITY ASSURANCE PROGRAMME. (1) There is hereby established the Latvian Food, Resource, and Commodity Assurance Programme (Latvijas pārtikas, resursu un pirmās nepieciešamības preču nodrošinājuma programma, "the Programme"), administered by the Ministry of Welfare (Labklājības ministrija) in coordination with the Ministry of Agriculture (Zemkopības ministrija), the Ministry of Finance (Finanšu ministrija), and the 119 municipal local governments. (2) The Programme shall operate Latvian Food Assurance Centres (Latvijas pārtikas nodrošināšanas centri, "LPNC") in every Latvian region and major municipality on the effective date of this Act. ARTICLE 2. ENTITLEMENT TO PARTICIPATE. (1) Every Latvian citizen ordinarily resident in the Republic of Latvia, identified by Personas kods (Personal Code), is automatically entitled to participate in the Programme. (2) Foreign nationals lawfully resident in Latvia who hold a Personas kods (including holders of EU residence rights and Latvian residence permits) are likewise entitled. (3) Participation is voluntary. No citizen is required to obtain goods through the Programme; the existing commercial retail market continues to operate unaffected. ARTICLE 3. PROGRAMME GOODS AND AT-COST PRICING. (1) LPNC outlets shall offer for distribution at production cost plus reasonable distribution allowance: (a) Staple foods (rye bread, rupjmaize, oats, grains, pulses, potatoes, cooking oils, sugar, salt, tea, coffee); (b) Protein sources (pork, chicken, eggs, freshwater and Baltic fish from Latvian fisheries, dairy products including sour cream and cottage cheese consistent with Latvian dietary tradition); (c) Vegetables and fruits sourced where possible from Latvian producers including beetroot, carrots, cabbage, apples; (d) Basic clothing including weather-appropriate outerwear suitable for the Latvian climate, school uniforms aligned with national-curriculum requirements, undergarments, and footwear; (e) Hand tools, household goods, basic kitchen and cleaning supplies; (f) Educational supplies for students through the developmental window extended to age 25; (g) Basic baby and child supplies; (h) Emergency-preparedness supplies (water, non-perishable food, basic lighting) given Latvia's strategic-security exposure to its eastern frontier. (2) Pricing shall be calculated on the at-cost basis. ARTICLE 4. COORDINATION WITH AGRICULTURAL COOPERATIVES AND THE LAUKU ATBALSTA DIENESTS. (1) The Minister of Agriculture, in coordination with the Lauku atbalsta dienests (Rural Support Service), is directed to enter partnership agreements with Latvian agricultural cooperatives (kooperatīvs), including LPKS Latraps and other cooperative federations, for the supply of Latvian-grown agricultural commodities to the Programme. (2) The partnership shall preserve cooperative autonomy and membership governance and shall coordinate with European Agricultural Guarantee Fund (EAGF) and European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) administration under the Common Agricultural Policy framework. ================================================================================ DIVISION II — PUBLIC HEALTH PROMOTION ================================================================================ ARTICLE 5. PUBLIC HEALTH PROMOTION. (1) The Programme operates in coordination with the Nacionālais veselības dienests (National Health Service) to monitor and to contribute to the reduction of basic-needs food insecurity and stress-mediated public-health conditions in Latvian regions. (2) The Ministry of Health (Veselības ministrija) shall report annually to the Saeima on the relationship between LPNC access in each region and Latvian population health indicators. ================================================================================ DIVISION III — EDUCATION MODERNISATION ================================================================================ ARTICLE 6. EDUCATION PIPELINE AND THE EXTENDED DEVELOPMENTAL WINDOW. (1) The Latvian education system is acknowledged by this Act as a foundation for the developmental pipeline proposed by the Vitruvian Quotient framework (Cooper, 2026) — the K-20 grade range under existing Latvian compulsory and post-compulsory education, plus an extension of the developmental window to age 25 consistent with the Compendium's broader proposal. (2) The Minister of Education and Science (Izglītības un zinātnes ministrs) is directed to prepare a report to the Saeima within twenty-four months of the effective date of this Act on the operational steps required to extend developmental and competency-maintenance frameworks beyond the current post-secondary framework, in coordination with the University of Latvia, Riga Technical University, the Latvian University of Life Sciences and Technologies, and other Latvian universities. (3) The Vitruvian Quotient framework (Cooper, 2026) is recognised by this Act as the conceptual instrument for the developmental pipeline. Detailed implementation of a Latvian Education Modernisation Law is the subject of a separate Likumprojekts. ================================================================================ DIVISION IV — FUNDING ================================================================================ ARTICLE 7. INITIAL APPROPRIATION. (1) For the financial year 2027 there is appropriated from the Latvian state budget the sum of €100 million for the establishment of the Programme and the initial operation of LPNC outlets. (2) Subsequent annual appropriations shall be made in the ordinary annual budget Law. ARTICLE 8. COORDINATION WITH ALTUM. (1) LPNC infrastructure capital investment may, by agreement between the Programme and JSC Development Finance Institution Altum, be co-financed from Altum's loan, guarantee, or venture- capital instruments where consistent with the Altum Strategy 2025-2027 priority areas, up to a cumulative outstanding principal of €300 million. (2) Altum's role as the state-owned development finance institution of Latvia, with its mandate to develop and implement state- support financial instruments, makes it the natural Latvian indigenous chassis for Programme capital investment. ARTICLE 9. COORDINATION WITH THE LATVIAN RECOVERY AND RESILIENCE PLAN. (1) LPNC infrastructure capital investment may, by agreement between the Programme and the Ministry of Finance, be co-financed from the Latvian Recovery and Resilience Facility allocation (€1.97 billion total EU NextGenerationEU allocation to Latvia, of which the third payment of €293 million was disbursed 9 May 2025 and the fourth penultimate payment of €371.2 million was disbursed 8 May 2026) where consistent with the Latvian Recovery and Resilience Plan investment and reform lines approved by the European Commission and the Council of the European Union. (2) The Programme does not displace any existing Latvian RRF investment or reform line. ================================================================================ DIVISION V — GENERAL PROVISIONS ================================================================================ ARTICLE 10. NO NEW TAXATION. (1) The Saeima declares that no new Latvian personal income tax (iedzīvotāju ienākuma nodoklis, IIN), corporate income tax (uzņēmumu ienākuma nodoklis, UIN), value added tax (pievienotās vērtības nodoklis, PVN), excise duty (akcīzes nodoklis), or other Latvian tax of any kind is established, extended, or increased by this Act for the funding of the Programme. (2) The Programme is funded through existing Latvian fiscal infrastructure as enumerated in Division IV. ARTICLE 11. EXISTING LATVIAN INSTITUTIONS UNAFFECTED. This Act does not affect the establishment, functions, governance, or operation of: (a) Latvijas Banka (Bank of Latvia, the central bank within the Eurosystem); (b) Altum (JSC Development Finance Institution Altum), beyond the coordination expressly authorised by Article 8; (c) Latvenergo, AS Sadales tīkls, Augstsprieguma tīkls (AST), VAS Latvijas dzelzceļš, Latvijas Pasts, and other state-owned enterprises; (d) Valsts sociālās apdrošināšanas aģentūra (VSAA), Valsts ieņēmumu dienests (VID), Nacionālais veselības dienests, Lauku atbalsta dienests, and other state agencies, beyond the coordination expressly authorised by this Act; (e) The Latvian Recovery and Resilience Plan, beyond the coordination expressly authorised by Article 9; (f) Latvian consumer cooperatives, agricultural cooperatives (kooperatīvs), and the kooperatīvs tradition generally; (g) The Saeima, the Cabinet of Ministers (Ministru kabinets), the President of the Republic (Valsts prezidents), the Constitutional Court (Satversmes tiesa), the Supreme Court (Augstākā tiesa), and the Satversme. ARTICLE 12. SATVERSME CONSISTENCY. (1) This Act is enacted consistent with the Satversme of the Republic of Latvia (1922 / restored 1993), including the Preamble's affirmation of the duty of every citizen to care for the common good of society and the state, and Article 109's guarantee of the right to social security. ARTICLE 13. EFFECTIVE DATE. (1) This Act takes effect on 1 January 2027, except that Article 7 (Initial Appropriation) takes effect on the date this Act is promulgated in the Latvijas Vēstnesis, and Article 1 (Establishment) takes effect ninety days after promulgation. (2) The Cabinet of Ministers shall issue implementing regulations (Ministru kabineta noteikumi) within 120 days of promulgation. ARTICLE 14. INTERPRETATION. In this Act — "the Programme" means the Latvian Food, Resource, and Commodity Assurance Programme established under Article 1; "a LPNC outlet" means a Latvian Food Assurance Centre established under Article 1; "Personas kods" means the Latvian Personal Code; "Altum" means JSC Development Finance Institution Altum; "Latvian RRF" means the Latvian Recovery and Resilience Facility allocation under the EU Recovery and Resilience Facility; "kooperatīvs" means a Latvian cooperative; "ordinarily resident" has the meaning given by Latvian residence law. ================================================================================ - END - ================================================================================