site.btaCourt Revokes Unified Welfare Benefits for Social Integration, Transport and Telecommunication Services of Disabled People

Sofia, June 19 (BTA) - A five-member panel of the Supreme Administrative Court (SAC) revoked conclusively provisions from the Integration of the People with Disabilities Act Implementing Regulations which determine a unified amount of the monthly welfare benefits for social integration, transport, IT and communication services for such people, SAC said in a press release.

The revoked provisions determined a monthly benefit for transport services amounting to 15 per cent of the guaranteed minimum income, and a monthly benefit for IT and communication services amounting to 20 per cent of the guaranteed minimum income. The guaranteed minimum income for 2018 is 75 leva/month, so that the two amounts are 11.25 leva and 15 leva respectively.

The judges found the formula legally non-compliant as according to the Integration of the People with Disabilities Act, the deciding factor in determining the amount of the monthly benefits in question are only the individual needs of the concrete recipient. Having a unified amount of the benefits creates objective hindrances for the social integration of disabled people and for the exercise of their fundamental rights and freedoms, the judges argued.

According to them, the amount of the monthly welfare benefit for social integration is to be according to the individual needs of the concrete person, the extent of his/her working capacity, and the type and extent of the disability. Binding the amount of the benefits with the guaranteed minimum income limits the freedom of movement, the right to full social inclusion, personal mobility and freedom of expression, the freedom of access to information, the right to education, the right to access to rehabilitation services and provision of proper living standards, reads the court decision.