The draft update of the state budget, proposed by the caretaker government passed in the Budget parliamentary committee.
As already announced, the update envisages that by the end of the year the budget will receive BGN 2.1 billion more than the planned revenues, of which BGN 1.8 billion are provided for more expenditures.
This also means that the cash deficit will shrink by about BGN 280 million to BGN 4.6 billion. The largest share in these expenditures falls on social payments – BGN 575 million, which includes the increase in pensions (BGN 399 million).
The budget revision also includes BGN 430 million in additional business aid, BGN 335 million more in healthcare costs. The updated budget of the Health Insurance Fund, which is raised by BGN 120 million, also passed the first reading. with the virus. In 2022, budget expenditures are projected to rise by BGN 3 billion to over BGN 57 billion.
The Finance Ministry is planning the budget deficit to drop to 3 percent in 2022 and 2.3 percent in 2023. Caretaker Finance Minister Assen Vassilev said that after the upcoming budget revision, the budget deficit in 2021 will be 3.6 percent.
The draft budget for 2022 plans reserves of 3.3 billion leva for additional policies and contingency expenditures, said Vassilev. The draft budget of the Road Infrastructure Agency will increase by 900 million leva in 2022.
The mulled pension rise will not cause a deficit increase and a deviation from the Maastricht criteria for financial stability, Vassilev told the Parliamentary Budget and Finance Committee, which approved on first reading a revision of the public social insurance/BTA budget for 2021.