This provision is contained in the draft amendments to the Law on Public Finances and Fiscal Responsibility, which the Finance Ministry submitted for public consultations. The amendments are designed to harmonize the Moldovan legislation with the European legislation and to improve the management of public finances.
According to the draft, the law introduces new obligations for the authorities to improve budget planning based on a cautious macroeconomic scenario and relevant data.
Budget forecasts will have to be compared with the estimates of the EC and, if necessary, other international independent institutions. And in case of serious discrepancies, the authorities will be obliged to justify them in detail, especially in case of deviations of key external parameters.
In addition, the draft provides for regular evaluation of forecasts by the Tax Council. As previously reported by Logos Press, it will become an independent body that carries out assessment and monitoring in the field of public finance.
If systematic and significant deviations from the forecasts are identified within four years, the authorities will be obliged to make adjustments and make them public. These innovations are intended to improve the accuracy of budget planning and the transparency of fiscal policy.
In addition, the Ministry of Finance proposes to shift the budget calendar by two weeks. The government will approve the mid-term budget forecast and submit draft amendments to parliament by June 15, instead of June 1, as stipulated in the current law. In turn, parliament will approve amendments and additions resulting from the fiscal policy for the next year, also 15 days later – by July 31.
Consultations on the draft will last until April 15 this year.
