Waste collection in the Bulgarian capital city will be tackled with Budget money, according to a new waste management bill rushed into Parliament last week.

The bill was submitted by two of the parties in the ruling coalition - the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) and the Movement for Rights and Freedoms - but voting was postponed after it was shut down by the third party in the ruling coalition, the National Movement for Stability and Progress.

The bill, which is expected to return to the Cabinet's agenda this week, envisages the Government taking over Sofia’s waste management, which is estimated to cost an annual 150 million leva.

According to the proposal, waste taxes might not be enough to cover the full cost of handling the refuse of the capital. This means that taxpayers from all across the country could end up paying for Sofia’s waste expenses.

The waste tax to be collected by the state will be set by the Government on the basis of the tax appraisal of the property or disposed waste. The bill allows the Cabinet to choose waste management contractors and pass an ordinance on Sofia’s waste collection.

Controversially, the project envisages forced land appropriation and a ban on court appeals against statements of violation issues during a waste crisis.

BSP city councilors said on May 11 that they would propose to the Government to take up from the municipality the technical service fee paid for building construction, where proceeds spent on street renovation and construction. BSP argued that the municipality has failed to perform its duty of repairing the road pots on Sofia’s boulevards.

Source: Dnevnik