site.btaParliamentary Budget Committee Passes at Second Reading Bill Bridging Public Finance Gap

The National Assembly’s Budget and Finance Committee passed at second reading the bill bridging the public finance gap until the passage of the three budget laws for 2025. The full title of the draft legislation moved by the caretaker Cabinet, is "Act on the Collection of Revenues and the Commitment of Expenditures in 2025 until the Passage of the 2025 State Budget of the Republic of Bulgaria Act, the 2025 Public Social Insurance Budget Act and the 2025 National Health Insurance Fund Budget Act".

Between the first and second readings, a total of eight proposals for amendments to the draft law were tabled. These included retaining the reduced VAT rates on bread, flour, and for the restaurant industry, as well as compensation for non-household electricity consumers. Most proposals, including those regarding preferential VAT rates on bread, were rejected as inadmissible.

The Committee approved the proposal to extend the business compensation programme for high electricity prices. The agenda included two identical proposals on the subject - one from GERB-UDF and another from the Movement for Rights and Freedoms – New Beginning.

The Act on revenue collection and expenditure commitment stipulates that primary administrators of funds must prioritize the full payment of salaries and social benefits. The document is valid for up to three months, i.e., until end-March 2025, and is effective retroactively from January 1, 2025.

During the debates prior to the vote, caretaker Finance Minister Lyudmila Petkova stated that, based on an analysis, January revenues would be sufficient to cover 100% of payments to municipalities, salaries, transfers to the State Social Insurance and the National Health Insurance Fund, as well as Bulgaria's contribution to the European Union.