This Act comes into effect as of April 1, 2000; provided, however, that the provisions set forth in the following items come into effect as of the day specified in the relevant item:

The affairs, authority or official powers of a prefectural governor pertaining to matters as to which the provisions then in force continue to govern pursuant to the provisions of Article 32, paragraph (1), Article 78, paragraph (1), and Article 87, paragraphs (1) and (13) of the Supplementary Provisions of the Act Partially Amending the National Pension Act, etc. (Act No. 34 of 1985) (hereinafter referred to as "affairs, etc." in this Article) are to be the affairs or authority of the Minister of Health and Welfare or the Director-General of the Social Insurance Agency, or of the director of a Regional Social Insurance Bureau to whom authority has been delegated by either of them or the head of a Social Insurance Office to whom authority has been delegated by that director of a Regional Social Insurance Bureau, who is to perform the affairs or exercise the authority corresponding to those affairs, etc. pursuant to the provisions of the National Pension Act, the Employees' Pension Insurance Act and the Mariners Insurance Act as amended by this Act or of orders based on those Acts.

An order to suspend business or other disposition issued by the Minister of Health and Welfare or by a prefectural governor or other organ of a local government pursuant to the provisions of Article 46, paragraph (4) or Article 59, paragraph (1) or (3) of the Child Welfare Act, Article 8, paragraph (1) of the Act on Amma-Massage Practitioners, Acupuncturists, and Moxa-cauterists, etc. (including as applied mutatis mutandis pursuant to Article 12-2, paragraph (2) of that Act), Article 22 of the Food Sanitation Act, Article 5, paragraph (2) or Article 25, paragraph (1) of the Medical Care Act, Article 17, paragraph (1) of the Poisonous and Deleterious Substances Control Act (including as applied mutatis mutandis pursuant to Article 22, paragraphs (4) and (5) of that Act), Article 100, paragraph (1) of the Employees' Pension Insurance Act, Article 39, paragraph (1) of the Water Supply Act, Article 106, paragraph (1) of the National Pension Act, Article 69, paragraph (1) or Article 72 of the Pharmaceutical Affairs Act, or Article 18, paragraph (1) of the Judo Therapists Act, each prior to amendment by this Act, is deemed to be an order to suspend business or other disposition issued by the Minister of Health and Welfare or by a local government pursuant to the provisions of Article 46, paragraph (4) or Article 59, paragraph (1) or (3) of the Child Welfare Act, Article 8, paragraph (1) of the Act on Amma-Massage Practitioners, Acupuncturists, and Moxa-cauterists, etc. (including as applied mutatis mutandis pursuant to Article 12-2, paragraph (2) of that Act), Article 22 or 23 of the Food Sanitation Act, Article 5, paragraph (2) or Article 25, paragraph (1) of the Medical Care Act, Article 17, paragraph (1) or (2) of the Poisonous and Deleterious Substances Control Act (including as applied mutatis mutandis pursuant to Article 22, paragraphs (4) and (5) of that Act), Article 100, paragraph (1) of the Employees' Pension Insurance Act, Article 39, paragraph (1) or (2) of the Water Supply Act, Article 106, paragraph (1) of the National Pension Act, Article 69, paragraph (1) or (2) or Article 72, paragraph (2) of the Pharmaceutical Affairs Act, or Article 18, paragraph (1) of the Judo Therapists Act, each as amended by this Act, respectively.

Beyond what is provided for in the respective Acts prior to amendment by this Act, the affairs of the State, other local governments or other public entities that, before this Act comes into effect, an organ of a local government managed or executed pursuant to an Act or a Cabinet Order based on it (referred to as "affairs of the State, etc." in Article 161 of the Supplementary Provisions) are, after this Act comes into effect, to be handled by the local government as affairs of that local government pursuant to an Act or a Cabinet Order based on it.

①A disposition such as a permission or other act carried out before this Act (or, for the provisions set forth in the items of Article 1 of the Supplementary Provisions, those respective provisions; the same applies hereinafter in this Article and in Article 163 of the Supplementary Provisions) comes into effect pursuant to the provisions of the respective Acts prior to amendment (hereinafter referred to in this Article as a "disposition or other act"), or an application for a permission or other act actually made pursuant to the provisions of the respective Acts prior to amendment at the time this Act comes into effect (hereinafter referred to in this Article as an "application or other act"), for which the person who is to carry out the administrative functions pertaining to that act will differ as of the date on which this Act comes into effect, is, except as provided for in the provisions of Article 2 through the preceding Article of the Supplementary Provisions or in the provisions concerning transitional measures of the respective Acts after amendment (including orders based on them), deemed to be a disposition or other act or an application or other act carried out pursuant to the corresponding provisions of the respective Acts after amendment, with regard to the application of the respective Acts after amendment on or after the date on which this Act comes into effect.

②With regard to matters for which, before this Act comes into effect, a report, notification, submission or other procedure had to be made to an organ of the State or of a local government pursuant to the provisions of the respective Acts prior to amendment and for which that procedure has not been carried out before the date on which this Act comes into effect, except as otherwise provided for in this Act or a Cabinet Order based on it, the provisions of the respective Acts as amended by this Act apply by deeming those matters to be matters for which a report, notification, submission or other procedure must be made to the corresponding organ of the State or of a local government pursuant to the corresponding provisions of the respective Acts after amendment and for which that procedure has not been carried out.

①With regard to an appeal under the Administrative Complaint Review Act against a disposition pertaining to affairs of the State, etc. that was made before the Effective Date and for which the administrative agency that made the disposition (hereinafter referred to in this Article as "the agency that made the disposition") had, before the Effective Date, a higher administrative agency prescribed in that Act (hereinafter referred to in this Article as a "higher administrative agency"), the provisions of the Administrative Complaint Review Act apply by deeming the agency that made the disposition to continue to have a higher administrative agency even on or after the Effective Date. In this case, the administrative agency deemed to be the higher administrative agency of the agency that made the disposition is the administrative agency that was the higher administrative agency of that agency before the Effective Date.

②In the case referred to in the preceding paragraph, if the administrative agency deemed to be the higher administrative agency is an organ of a local government, the affairs that the organ is to handle pursuant to the provisions of the Administrative Complaint Review Act are Type 1 statutory entrusted affairs prescribed in Article 2, paragraph (9), item (i) of the new Local Autonomy Act.

The provisions then in force continue to govern fees that were to be paid before the Effective Date pursuant to the provisions of the respective Acts prior to amendment by this Act (including orders based on them), except as otherwise provided for in this Act or a Cabinet Order based on it.

With regard to the application of penal provisions to acts committed before this Act comes into effect, the provisions then in force continue to govern.

Beyond what is provided for in these Supplementary Provisions, transitional measures necessary in connection with the enforcement of this Act (including transitional measures concerning penal provisions) are specified by Cabinet Order.

With regard to Type 1 statutory entrusted affairs prescribed in Article 2, paragraph (9), item (i) of the new Local Autonomy Act, care is to be taken to avoid establishing new ones as far as possible, and those set forth in Appended Table 1 of the new Local Autonomy Act and those indicated in Cabinet Orders based on the new Local Autonomy Act are to be reviewed from the standpoint of promoting decentralization and appropriately revised as needed.

The government is to consider ways of enhancing and securing local tax revenue sources in accordance with the division of roles between the State and local governments so that local governments are able to carry out their affairs and business autonomously and independently, while taking into consideration changes in economic conditions and other circumstances, and is to take necessary measures based on the results of that consideration.

The government is to review, in connection with the reform of the medical insurance system, the pension system and other systems, the system for processing social insurance affairs, the way the personnel engaged in it should be, and other matters, from the viewpoint of ensuring convenience for insured persons and others, making the processing of affairs more efficient and so on, and, when it finds it necessary, is to take the necessary measures based on the results.