IT IS ENVISAGED TO PROVIDE SUBSIDIES OF 17.98 BILLION DRAMS TO ARMENIAN COMMUNITIES IN 2007

Noyan Tapan
Nov 04 2006

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 4, NOYAN TAPAN. By the 2007 draft state budget,
the total amount of financial equalization subsidies to be provided
to Armenia’s communities will make 17.98 bln drams, which exceeds
by 22.6% or 3.3 bln drams (about 8.68 mln USD) the 2006 index. This
amount was calculated based on the requirement of the RA Law on Local
Self-Government, according to which it shall make no less than 4% than
the sum of actual revenues of the RA consolidated budget in the second
budgetary year preceding the given budgetary year. In this case, 4%
of the total sum of revenues of the 2005 consolidated budget (449.5
bln drams) was taken as the basis. RA Deputy Minister of Finance and
Economy Pavel Safarian said this when presenting the issue of the
2007 draft state budget-envisaged financing of local self-government
bodies at the November 3 joint sitting of the RA National Assembly
standing committees. 460 mln drams out of the indicated sum is
envisaged for financing the compensation to be given to community
budgets due to privileges. However, according to the deputy minister,
the calculation of compensation sums is still continuing, and it
is not ruled out that they will undergo some changes in the final
version of the draft to be submitted to the NA. First Deputy Mayor
of Yerevan Kamo Areyan said that in 2007 the total amount of state
subsidies for 12 district communities of Yerevan is envisaged to make
5.6 bln drams against 4.941 bln drams in 2006. The 2007 expenditures
on maintenance of the mayor’s office governance staff also increased
by 104 mln drams on 2006, making 584.187 mln drams. This increase is
mainly conditioned by a growth in the salaries of civil servants.