In their view, the document contains strict restrictions that undermine the principles of local autonomy, reduce municipalities’ own revenues, and jeopardize the success of the local self-government reform scheduled for 2027.
The organization’s official position was set forth in a letter addressed to Prime Minister Alexandru Munteanu and Finance Minister Adrian Gavrilita.
Without an analysis of the impact on local budgets
According to CALM, the proposals are one-sided and unbalanced, as they were developed without modeling or analyzing their actual impact on local budgets.
First and foremost, they would result in a significant reduction in personal income tax revenue. The explanatory note to the bill states that, at the national level, these revenues will decrease by 2.7 billion lei (approximately 24.96%) compared to the amounts planned for 2026. At the same time, this source forms the basis for the budgets of local municipalities.
Moreover, capping tax rates—which leads to a reduction in local governments’ own-source revenues—has already been ruled unconstitutional by two previous decisions of the Constitutional Court (No. 2 of January 28, 2014, and No. 27 of September 14, 2021). Returning to this issue constitutes a direct challenge to the principles of the rule of law.
Furthermore, the abolition of the land improvement fee paid by legal entities deprives budgets of revenue, and this comes immediately on the eve of the 2027 implementation of a new concept for sanitation fees in accordance with Law No. 178/2025.
The organization’s members viewed these proposals from the Ministry of Finance as an opportunity to favor certain groups (large retailers, gas stations, and wholesale warehouses) and representatives of the shadow economy.
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