January 28, 2015, 11:03 am / Finance / Politics

The government's anti-crisis plan costs 2.3 trillion rubles

This amount includes the use of the national welfare fund, OFZ and government guarantees Philip Sterkin Yana Shebalina Denis Abramov / Vedomosti

The Russian government on Wednesday unveiled an anti-crisis plan; it was published on the government website. The document includes 60 priority measures “aimed at intensifying structural changes in the Russian economy, stabilizing the work of systemically important organizations, achieving a balanced labor market, reducing inflation and mitigating the consequences of rising prices... for low-income families, achieving positive growth rates and macroeconomic stability in the medium term," the report says . The price of the announced plan is 2.3 trillion rubles, including the use of the national welfare fund, OFZ and state guarantees.

On Tuesday evening, the plan was signed by Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev. According to the document, most categories of federal budget expenditures in 2015, including government agencies, will be reduced by 10%. Over the next three years they will have to be reduced by at least 5% per year. The cuts will not affect social obligations, the country's defense capability, support for agriculture and the fulfillment of Russia's international obligations, the plan notes.

The government hopes that “the gradual stabilization of global commodity markets and measures taken jointly with the Bank of Russia will normalize the situation in the foreign exchange market and create conditions for a significant reduction in nominal interest rates and increasing the availability of credit.”

Putin instructed the Accounts Chamber to monitor the expenditure of funds allocated for the anti-crisis plan.

The largest of the total 2.3 trillion rubles. expense items are previously made decisions on additional capitalization of banks at the expense of OFZ by 1 trillion rubles. and by 250 billion rubles. at the expense of the National Welfare Fund for the implementation of investment projects. Another 300 billion rubles. VEB will receive from the National Welfare Fund. This measure was also in the original version of the plan, discussed in the government and the Kremlin in recent weeks. Thus, 550 billion rubles will be used from the National Welfare Fund, but the final amount that will be allocated in the first quarter must be determined by the Ministry of Finance and other departments by January 29.

About 390 billion rubles will be spent from the budget, expenses for the first quarter will also be clarified. Minister Anton Siluanov said that 170 billion rubles allocated to the anti-crisis fund will be spent from the budget. The remaining expenses will be financed by a 10% budget cut in 2015. The preamble to the plan states that investment resources will be concentrated on completing previously started projects, and the implementation of some new projects will be postponed.

The largest budget expenditures: up to 50 billion rubles. may be allocated to support agriculture, up to 52.2 billion rubles. - to support the labor market, 188 billion rubles. - for indexation of insurance pensions for inflation in 2014, 20 billion rubles. will be allocated to subsidize loan rates to companies implementing investment projects (the amount does not include costs for the defense industry). Defense companies may receive compensation (in whole or in part) for the costs they incur additionally due to changes in exchange rates (the amount must be determined by January 29).

Up to 160 billion rubles. Regions can receive loans in the form of loans. By 200 billion rubles. State guarantees will be provided for loans and bonds to companies selected by the government for the implementation of investment projects and debt restructuring. Project financing from the Central Bank may be increased if the regulator makes such a decision (allocation of money from the Central Bank to banks secured by loans for investment projects). To achieve this, state guarantees for such projects will be increased by 30 billion rubles. This will allow the Central Bank to double funding to 240 billion rubles. (but for now the Central Bank has set a limit of 50 billion rubles).

The idea of creating a bad debt bank remains in the plan. The idea of creating it on the basis of a bank that had fallen under reorganization was discussed; the Deposit Insurance Agency could manage it, an official said earlier, but the Central Bank opposed it.

The tax burden on small businesses will be reduced. Regions will be able to reduce rates under the simplified system when collecting tax on revenue from 6 to 1%, and from 15 to 7.5% on the difference between income and expenses. But another key measure was not preserved (the business called it more important) - doubling, to 120 million rubles, the revenue at which taxpayers can use the simplified system.

The number of enterprises that are classified as micro, small and medium-sized businesses will be increased by changing the criteria: revenue will be doubled - to 120 million, 800 million and 2 billion rubles. respectively. Small businesses will receive immunity from prosecution by the FAS, in particular for abuse of a dominant position.

A federal official who participated in the work on the document told Vedomosti the day before that this is not the final anti-crisis program: first it is necessary to update the macroeconomic forecast, adopt amendments to the budget and only after that determine all anti-crisis measures, their cost and sources of financing - this will not be before March. First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov estimated the costs of the anti-crisis plan at 1.375 trillion rubles.

Today Medvedev will discuss anti-crisis measures with members of the United Russia faction, and at the plenary meeting of the Duma on Friday, Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov intends to speak to deputies, two federal officials told Vedomosti.

The President asked the Accounts Chamber to monitor the implementation of the anti-crisis plan, Prime reports. He recalled that this is “a plan for ensuring sustainable development of the economy and social sphere in 2015.” and “significant government resources” are being allocated to its implementation. Under the special control of the joint venture, according to him, there should be conditions for the allocation of funds to banks, as well as the use of funds that are sent to the banking system. “First of all, these resources should be used to finance the most significant projects in the real sector of the economy at an affordable interest rate,” Putin believes.