Ivan Grigorov
The Constitutional Court established a case file on Monday at the request of the Supreme Cassation Court, which alleges that the 2003 Budget Act is unconstitutional.
In mid-January, the Supreme Cassation Court decided to approach the Constitutional Court regarding the budget, specifically the section dealing with the budget for the judiciary.
If the Constitutional Court decides that it cannot rule on the judiciary appropriations alone, then the whole budget should be declared unconstitutional, SCC judges have said.
Ivan Grigorov, chairman of the SCC, has said the funding allotted from the budget was not enough to enable the court to do its job.
The 2003 budget has allotted 7 million leva for the SCC, rejecting a request by the court to be granted 19 million leva.
The Government last Thursday adopted an ordinance on the utilisation of the 2003 national budget.
The ordinance specifies the activities of government departments and state-financed institutions for utilisation of the budget by months and quarters, Deputy Finance Minister Kiril Ananiev told journalists.
Such ordinances are passed by the Government every year.
Ananiev emphasised that the priority in the 2003 budget was social spending, which added up to 13.9 per cent of GDP. The appropriations for the Labour and Social Policy Ministry were increased from 167 million leva last year to more than 705 million leva as the Ministry took over from local governments the task of paying for certain social spending items.
This figure also includes a 217 million leva programme for transition from social support to employment.
The subsidies for the State Agriculture Fund were increased from 20 million leva in 2002 to 40 million, and those for the State Tobacco Fund from 65 million to 101 million leva. The subsidy for the Bulgarian State Railways (BDZ) stayed unchanged at 70 million leva.
The appropriations for the heating companies were upped from 37 million leva in 2002 to 45 million this year, and for the National Health Insurance Fund from 549 million leva last year to 731 million leva in 2003.
This year the Government will transfer to municipalities almost 698 million leva of the personal income tax receipts.
In mid-January, the Supreme Cassation Court decided to approach the Constitutional Court regarding the budget, specifically the section dealing with the budget for the judiciary.
If the Constitutional Court decides that it cannot rule on the judiciary appropriations alone, then the whole budget should be declared unconstitutional, SCC judges have said.
Ivan Grigorov, chairman of the SCC, has said the funding allotted from the budget was not enough to enable the court to do its job.
The 2003 budget has allotted 7 million leva for the SCC, rejecting a request by the court to be granted 19 million leva.
The Government last Thursday adopted an ordinance on the utilisation of the 2003 national budget.
The ordinance specifies the activities of government departments and state-financed institutions for utilisation of the budget by months and quarters, Deputy Finance Minister Kiril Ananiev told journalists.
Such ordinances are passed by the Government every year.
Ananiev emphasised that the priority in the 2003 budget was social spending, which added up to 13.9 per cent of GDP. The appropriations for the Labour and Social Policy Ministry were increased from 167 million leva last year to more than 705 million leva as the Ministry took over from local governments the task of paying for certain social spending items.
This figure also includes a 217 million leva programme for transition from social support to employment.
The subsidies for the State Agriculture Fund were increased from 20 million leva in 2002 to 40 million, and those for the State Tobacco Fund from 65 million to 101 million leva. The subsidy for the Bulgarian State Railways (BDZ) stayed unchanged at 70 million leva.
The appropriations for the heating companies were upped from 37 million leva in 2002 to 45 million this year, and for the National Health Insurance Fund from 549 million leva last year to 731 million leva in 2003.
This year the Government will transfer to municipalities almost 698 million leva of the personal income tax receipts.
