Waiting for a miracle

The Pskov City Duma adopted the budget of Pskov for 2013 as amended by Governor Andrey Turchak

January 25, Tatyana's Day, a month after the first reading, the deputies of the Pskov City Duma adopted the budget of Pskov for 2013 and the planning period of 2014-2015. Since the first reading, the budget that returned Pskov to the early 2000s [ 1 ] has not undergone any significant changes. But if in the first reading from the first attempt not a single city parliamentarian voted for the draft budget, in the second attempt - 17 out of 22, then in the second - the budget, most mildly called "a financial noose around the neck of the city", passed in gloomy silence: Of the 19 deputies present at the session, only two did not support the draft. The Pskov City Duma, fairly battered by internal strife initiated by the governor's team [ 2 ], considered it good to start the financial year under the conditions proposed by the governor. But the decision of the Duma has its own wisdom: the governor will have to return to the issue of financing Pskov one way or another, and a purely Pskov “justifying reason” was immediately found: another anniversary, the 1110th anniversary of the first mention of Pskov in the annals.

For the first time in the new century, the draft budget of Pskov did not pass the parliament the first time: on November 27, 2012, the deputies of the Pskov City Duma did not adopt the budget of the city of Pskov for 2013 and the planning period of 2014-2015 in the first reading, in fact, in protest against the reduction of almost all parameters city wallet.

Not a single parliamentarian dared to support the project, which was actually written according to the templates of the regional administration.

Exactly one month later, on December 27, a few days before the new year, 17 parliamentarians supported virtually the same document, which added only 7.384 million rubles. to equalize the budgetary provision for kindergartens.

And the city authorities spoke about the loss of approximately 2.5 billion rubles of income, of which at least 500 million were critical for the city's execution of court decisions in the area of providing housing to citizens and urgent repairs in the housing and communal services.

Communists Viktor Dulya, Dmitry Barabanov and Valery Petrov voted against, Natalya Vdovina (United Russia) and Artur Gaiduk (YABLOKO) abstained.

A month has passed. It was obvious that there was no alternative to adopting the budget in the second reading: the possibilities of the budget in the interim management mode (the so-called “life by 1/12”) are so limited that they turn the financial activity of any budgetary institution into a painful process of coordinating literally every transfer.

On January 15, at a regular coordination meeting of the city authorities, the head of the city, Ivan Tsetsersky, admitted: “Despite the parameters and lack of funds, the deputies are inclined to adopt the budget in the second reading. We are not ready to live on 1/12 of the budget.”

The only "achievement" in the internal transfer of budget expenditure items was the transfer of 14 million rubles by the city administration in favor of the education department. for catering for schoolchildren in the amount of 2012, while reducing the cost of street lighting by the corresponding amount.

The struggle against the “colonial budget”, as the deputy of the regional Assembly Lev Shlosberg dubbed the Pskov city budget of 2013, fizzled out before the obvious ultimatum of the regional authorities, who made it clear: they intend to physically wait for the Pskov City Duma to adopt the budget exactly in the version in which it was " dried” in the bowels of the regional financial department, and “fix the weight”.

The "revenge budget", in the figurative expression of Artur Gaiduk, was adopted.

Having waited for the "point of contact", the governor, who also inevitably fell into a trap made by him, one way or another, will be forced to look for a way out so as not to become the culprit of all city troubles in the eyes of angry citizens.

But now every addition to the Pskov budget will be linked to the "governor's initiative", which, quite obviously, satisfies the governor.

To some extent, this also satisfies the deputies of the Pskov City Duma, who suddenly and acutely felt their financial and essentially impotence power: the city parliament, the majority of which is United Russia, even "fell at the master's feet", did not achieve anything.

The parliamentarians, dumbfounded by this negative effect, already considered any outcome to be a blessing, because a terrible end is better than a horror without end.

A few days before the third budget session, on January 21, at the regular conference of the city branch of United Russia, representatives of the parliamentary majority stated with regret: the 2013 budget does not allow them to fulfill any of the promises of their so-called. "People's Program" - the PR brainchild of Governor Andrey Turchak, noisily presented even at the federal level as a great achievement of the Pskov United Russia. At the same time, the essence of the “project” was tritely simple: voters ask candidates for deputies and deputies from United Russia for some material benefits, candidates and deputies promise, and obligations are fulfilled at the expense of regional and local budgets.

And now the moment of truth has come: there is no money in the Pskov budget for 2013 for the promises made by United Russia just now, in February-March 2012, within the framework of the “people's program”.

And the governor demands the fulfillment of the promise.

In the end, there are things worse than the demands of the governor - people demand. Good promises are easy to remember.

But there is no money.

The third budget session of the Pskov City Duma was not expected by a single sharp word, not a single bright speech.

The new "thunderstorm of the city" Grigory Turchin sat silently on the budget issue, wisely deciding that against the backdrop of a poor budget, silence is golden.

Tamara Vint, the head of the City Financial Department, as if justifying the future vote of the deputies, recalled all the horrors of the interim budget management, immediately listing all the expenditure items for which funding is either stopped or significantly reduced.

Ms. Vint identified the minimum hole in the city budget for 2013 at 928 million rubles, most of which falls on housing and communal services (265 million rubles) and education (390 million rubles).

The financial crisis of Pskov began in the 2nd half of 2012, but before the discussion of the draft budget for 2013, it was not publicly commented on. Now, the city authorities, it seems, are no longer afraid of any numbers: trouble has come - open the gate. The overdue accounts payable of Pskov as of January 1, 2013 amounted to 159.7 million rubles, the total municipal debt was 316.7 million.

The city has never actually had such debts.

In the tone of Ms. Vint, the chairman of the budget committee of the Duma, deputy head of the city, Natalia Sokolova, recalling that not a single line of city budget expenditures meets the minimum sufficient level, said the key words: “We must vote for the budget.”

At the same time, it was obvious that only the word “must” motivates Natalya Viktorovna herself.

17 out of 19 deputies who were present at the session voted for the draft budget, except for Valery Petrov (the deputy from the Communist Party voted against), and the "Yabloko" Artur Gaiduk, who abstained.

The fact that it was Andrei Turchak who would be solemnly awarded the laurels of the savior of Pskov from a financial catastrophe became clear even before the session: on January 22, Ivan Tsetsersky announced that his appeal to the head of the region with a request to head the organizing committee for the celebration of the 1110th anniversary of the first mention of Pskov in the annals was satisfied, the governor agreed to "support the regional center."

The event immediately received a financial aspect: “The celebration of the 1110th anniversary of the first mention of Pskov in the annals should receive not a local, but at least a regional level,” Ivan Tsetsersky proclaimed and added that, despite the budget deficit, within year the budget can be amended, which will increase both revenues and expenditures.

In the end, on the days of the anniversary, it is very important to show yourself kind and generous to everyone who is going to the polls. There is nothing more dangerous for a politician than the lack of bread and circuses for the people.

Konstantin MINAEV

1 See: K. Minaev. Back to the zero // "PG", No. 45 (617) of November 21-27, 2012; K. Minaev. No money - no budget // "PG", No. 46 (618) of November 28 - December 4, 2012

2 See: A. Alesin. Tremble and be afraid! // "PG", No. 48 (620) of December 12-18, 2012; D. Kamalyagin. “And I can be a shepherd” // “PG”, No. 1 (623) from January 9-15, 2013