site.btaFinance Ministry Prepares Legislation to Allow Direct Purchase of Firefighting Equipment

The Finance Ministry is preparing amendments to Public Procurement Act to allow direct contracting for the purchase of specialized equipment for management of disasters and accidents, said caretaker Finance Minister Lyudmila Petkova. She was speaking Wednesday at a news briefing in the Council of Ministers after Wednesday's government meeting.

Prime Minister Dimitar Glavchev said Tuesday that acquisition of firefighting equipment is slowed down by public procurement appeal procedures.

Fire victims can receive compensations from several sources, Petkova said. The Social Assistance Agency has allocated BGN 1,578 for emergency needs, the Social Assistance Fund has provided BGN 2,500 for replacement of furniture lost in the fire. The Ministry of Agriculture and Food will pay de minimis compensation for lost animals and damaged areas, which will amount EUR 25,000 for farmers and individuals and up to EUR 250,000 for legal entities, the Finance Minister said. 

Petkova also noted that people whose homes were destroyed by the wildfires will be offered the same type of accommodation as Ukrainian refugees.

The funding allocated to Ministries of the Interior and of Defence for the equipping of aircraft and maintenance of firefighting equipment are provided through restructuring of expenditures from the state budget, Petkova said.

The opportunity for fast-tracked purchase of specialized firefighting equipment has been discussed with representatives of parliamentary parties, the Minister added.

During the briefing, Caretaker Agriculture Minister Georgi Tahov was asked whether his Ministry will provide logistical support to ensure that aid farmers have been collecting for the fire-hit areas - straw, hay and wheat - reach its destination. Tahov said that the logistical part of the operation is organized by branch organizations of affected farmers, and the Ministry has not been asked to cover the transportation costs. “This is a wonderful initiative for mutual assistance by the branch organizations and I urge them, once they have joined in, to somehow organize it to completion. The Ministry cannot organize the transportation", Tahov added.