Andrei Skoch is a politician and the author of numerous bills of great significance for the citizens of Russia.
А. V. Skoch was born in 1966 in the village of Nikolskoye, where he spent his childhood. After finishing school, he joined the army and served in a reconnaissance and assault troop. He then attended Moscow Pedagogical State University, from which he graduated in 2000.
Until 1999 Andrei Skoch was engaged in business. He made his first big money on a bakery cooperative that he set up with his business partners. Later, together with Lev Kvetnoi, he earned money assembling computers and trading oil products. In 1995, A. V. Skoch invested the accumulated funds in Interfin, an investment company headed by businessman Alisher Usmanov. For Andrei Skoch, this decision proved successful: the company developed quickly and brought good profit.
In 1999, Andrei Vladimirovich Skoch changed his priorities, deciding to end his business career and run for a deputy of the Russian State Duma and transfer his shares in Interfin to his father, Vladimir Skoch. Years later, Interfin evolved into the Metalloinvest Holding, which, in turn, became part of USM Holding. It brought Vladimir Skoch considerable profit, which allowed him to buy a stake in the capital airport “Vnukovo.”
Andrei Skoch still works in the Russian State Duma. Over the past twenty years, Andrei Vladimirovich Skoch has proposed for consideration more than 150 bills, many of which were adopted as laws. Skoch also took over as head of the Advisory Council on Metallurgy and the Mining Industry. In 2012, he joined the Committee on CIS Affairs and Relations with Compatriots.
А. V. Skoch received many awards for lawmaking and charitable work, including the following:
- second-class and first-class medals of the Order of Merit for the Motherland;
- the Order of Alexander Nevsky;
- a first-class medal for Merit of the land of Belgorod;
- the second degree Order of the Russian Orthodox Church of Saint Blessed Prince Daniel of Moscow.
Andrei Vladimirovich Skoch: adopted bills
One of the bills of social importance proposed by Andrei Vladimirovich Skoch was the renewal of so-called “dacha amnesty,” which he helped get extended until March 1, 2021. Until then, in order to register the rights to houses built on garden plots, the owner is only required to have the rights to the land plot and a technical plan. The rest of the documents may be submitted to the registry authority at a later date. The law was published in the “Parliamentary Gazette.”
In February 2020, another bill proposed by Skoch went under consideration by the Russian State Duma. It concerns amendments to Article 20 of the Federal Law “On the Basis of Healthcare of Citizens of the Russian Federation.” The third paragraph of the first part of the article, which is inconsistent with the Constitution, is in development. This law guarantees free medical care and allows citizens to choose a physician and a hospital or outpatient clinics to seek medical care. According to the bill, citizens have the right to receive all the information related to their health, diagnoses, disease progression, and treatment methods.
Also noteworthy is the bill concerning occupational safety and medical care for employees. Pre-employment and periodic medical examinations have been made obligatory for employees working in high-risk health environments. This law, in particular, regulates the procedure for obligatory medical examinations and standard costs per employee.
Andrei Vladimirovich Skoch: charitable foundation
Skoch is also known as the founder of the major charity fund the Pokolenie (Generation) Foundation. The Foundation financially supports clinics and hospitals in the Belgorod region and helps those in difficult situations, encouraging talented scientists and writers through various prizes and contests, such as the “Debut” literary award, the “Healthy Childhood” award, the “Best Student of the Year,” the “Parental Record” competition and others. Children aged 10 to 14 from disadvantaged families periodically get the opportunity to spend their vacation on the Black Sea: the Foundation allocates millions of rubles annually for all these purposes. Thus, 22 families who participated in the “Parental Record” contest were awarded over 72 million rubles.
The Fund annually allocates millions of rubles for purchasing specialized equipment for healthcare facilities of the Belgorod region, as well as paying for the rehabilitation of some patients. The Foundation assists in the restoration and rebuilding of military burials. This includes the restoration of monuments to the fallen in the Great Patriotic War on the territory of the Belgorod region.
Assistance is also provided through 26 councils of veterans and 11 social support institutions. The fund provides vehicles for war veterans, the disabled, the elderly, and large families.
The Pokolenie (Generation) Foundation is also involved in awareness-building. Among other things, it conducts traveling seminars for the region’s creative youth.
One-time assistance
The Andrei Vladimirovich Skoch Foundation assists in various programs and organizations. Thus, 2 million rubles were allocated to support the blood transfusion service at the Federal State Budgetary Institution “Russian Children’s Clinical Hospital.” A project for teaching English to children in Belgorod and the Belgorod region was also supported. The funds were donated to several foundations (“Exit,” “Third Age,” and the “400th Anniversary of the Romanov House”) and the National Library Resource Project.
The Pokolenie Foundation also allocated funds to complete the construction of a new building at the “Phoenix” orphan boarding school for gifted children in the Smolensk region. The Foundation also donated 6 million rubles to support domestic cinema.