The legislative body passed the bill with amendments to the Law on Local Public Finances in the final reading. In 2014, the new provisions will be applied in three pilot districts and in the municipality of Chisinau. In the other territorial-administrative units, the amendments will start to be used in 2015. The bill was adopted by the votes of 53 lawmakers. The Communist and Liberal MPs voted against, IPN reports.
In the new variant, the law provides for direct budgetary relations between the central authorities and the mayor’s offices. The size of the allocations from the state budget depends on the number of inhabitants of a settlement. The law will be piloted in the districts of Basarabeasca, Ocnita, and Rascani and in the municipality of Chisinau.
The head of the Parliament’s commission on economy, budget and finance Veaceslav Ionita said the bill is aimed at improving the current system of local public finances so as to ensure the financial autonomy of the local public administration, by maintaining financial discipline, increasing efficiency and ensuring equity in the provision of financial resources.
The Liberal MPs said the bill must come into force nationwide in 2014. “It is evident that the unwillingness to make this law take effect in 2014 is related to the coming local elections. The government does not want its mayors to remain uncontrolled from political and economic viewpoints. The coalition will keep many instruments of economic influence for at least another year so as to be able to influence the mayors to fulfill the orders coming from parties,” said Liberal lawmaker Valeriu Munteanu.
The leader of the Liberal-Democratic faction Valeriu Strelet said the statements concerning the instruments of influence are speculative. “We have a responsible attitude to this bill. We support the financial decentralization and the strengthening of the local self-government. But we want to see how the provisions will be implemented in these pilot regions in 2014,” he stated.
Earlier, the mayors staged a public event in support of the adoption of the bill in the third, final reading, with implementation from 2014.
