The consolidated budget of the Vitebsk region for 2021 will maintain its social orientation
This was discussed at a recent joint meeting of the standing commissions for local self-government and regulations, as well as for the social sphere, social protection of citizens, and youth affairs of the regional Council of Deputies. Together with the heads of the departments of the regional executive committee, the people's elected representatives analyzed the results of the social sphere sectors' work in 2020 and problematic issues to determine the budgetary possibilities for their resolution in 2021.
As noted by Svetlana Zubritskaya, Deputy Head of the Main Financial Department of the Regional Executive Committee, during the formation of the region's budget for 2021, requests were received suggesting an increase in its expenditures by more than 355 million rubles. About 15% of this amount was managed to be provided for in the draft main financial document of the Vitebsk region; the remaining issues will be resolved as the budget is executed.
– Taking into account the tasks set for 2021, the formation of the revenue base of the regional treasury is projected to be very challenging. Significant funds are required to ensure, among other things, the current activities of the social sphere and other sectors financed from the budget, – noted Svetlana Zubritskaya. In these conditions, it is important not only to initiate requests for additional funding but also to mobilize intellectual potential for the formation of additional revenue sources.
The priority areas of budget policy in 2021 regarding expenditures remain the social protection of the population and the improvement of citizens' welfare through salary increases. One of the main features of the 2021 budget is a significant increase in salary expenditures. If their share in the treasury's volume is currently about 46%, then for the next year this figure will exceed 52%. The salary increase for public sector employees is planned to be carried out in two stages, taking into account the economy reaching the target development scenario indicators. This implies receiving additional revenues from profit tax, which will finance the increase in labor remuneration. Additionally, the consolidated budget provides funds for increasing the salaries of low-paid categories of workers in such sectors as education, culture, and social protection of the population.
The consolidated budget of the Vitebsk region for 2021 will maintain its social focus. Its expenditure part is projected at 2.478 billion rubles.
It is expected that over 1.7 billion rubles will be allocated to finance the social sphere. At the same time, the share of social expenditures in the total treasury volume will increase and will be about 70%. The most budget-intensive sectors will remain education (its share in budget expenditures will exceed 31%), healthcare (almost 27%), social policy (about 7%), physical culture, sports, culture, and media (about 5%). In general, there is a certain deficit of resources in the financing of the social sphere, especially in terms of capital needs. However, expenditures in sectoral breakdown are planned taking into account the institutions' need for budget financing and are focused on those facilities that have a high degree of readiness and are most significant for the region.
Despite the limited revenue base, local budgets are provided with resources to finance the most important expenditure areas, emphasized Svetlana Zubritskaya. The budget execution in 2021 will largely depend on the performance of the real sector of the economy. Positive economic development dynamics will allow finding additional sources and resolving issues that were not reflected in the 2021 budget draft.
For example, as noted by Dmitry Khoma, Head of the Main Department for Education of the Regional Executive Committee, the preschool education system of the Vitebsk region will require special attention next year, as it is fully transitioning to new funding conditions. A resource deficit is already being calculated today, and the possibilities for covering it are very limited. To this end, reserves will need to be sought within the general and secondary education system. According to Dmitry Khoma, another option – optimizing the network of institutions – requires particular thoroughness and careful consideration of decisions. This is a categorical requirement of the Chairman of the Regional Executive Committee, Nikolai Sherstnev.
Similar problems will have to be addressed in the social protection system, where about 3 million rubles need to be raised solely for the additional support of territorial centers for social services for the population. Even in healthcare, where expenditures are planned at about 660 million rubles, financial issues remain open regarding a number of aspects.
Among other main areas of budget financing, 140 million rubles are planned for capital expenditures, including over 50 million rubles transferred from the republican budget for specific purposes. At the same time, an increase in capital investments is not planned, as there are no significant grounds for this. 182 million rubles, or 7% of the budget expenditures, are intended for supporting sectors of the national economy. About 56% of these are allocated to the agro-industrial complex, 22% will go to financing the transport sector, and another approximately 10% – to road management organizations.
Overall, the consolidated budget of the Vitebsk region was formed with a surplus of 72 million rubles.
In the absence of sources for significant expenditure growth in 2021, the balance of local budgets was ensured within the available resources, taking into account measures to optimize and save costs, noted Svetlana Zubritskaya. In addition, it is planned to maintain approaches to tax distribution and the operation of other budget rules, which makes the revenue base of the treasury predictable. Only in this way can the stability of local budgets at all levels be ensured, which directly affects the quality of regional development.