Bill indicates AL should have a vote when budgets increase

A public consultation on the amended budget framework law commences today, seeking opinions on the revised regulations which govern the authority’s right to budget within public departments.
The amendment, which was believed to have come into effect in time for the government’s 2017 budget, mandates that budget increases to public infrastructure projects must reach the city’s legislature for examination.
Nonetheless, the upcoming revised law cannot be applied retroactively to the city’s ongoing public infrastructure projects whose construction costs already overrun, revealed Daisy Ho In Mui, deputy director of the Financial Services Bureau following a press briefing held at the bureau’s premise yesterday.
Furthermore, the official also clarified that, differing from Hong Kong’s Legislative Council in which lawmakers possess statutory power to sanction a proposed budget, the city’s legislature merely served as an advisory body.
“It’s like, [the lawmakers] doubt the amount, then the government will offer its explanation to see if they accept it or not,” said Ho. “There are opinions to give, yet it’s not a matter of approval.”
Under the proposed rule, the Legislative Assembly would be entitled to express its views whenever a budget is increased. On the contrary however, any budget revision without an additional increment involved will rely only on the Chief Executive’s decision.
“For example, the budget has been set at MOP100 billion, yet under some unforeseeable circumstance the amount has to go up to MOP110 billion, it’s necessary for the Legislative Assembly to review the related budgeting,” said Stephen Iong Kong Leong, head of the bureau.
The existing budget framework law, formulated in 1983 by the Portuguese administration, fails to govern the government departments’ standby funds prepared for future contingencies in budget planning, as the sum could be unlimited. However, with the new regulation, that back-up reserve is confined to only three percent of the sum of the total expenditure budget.
“In compiling annual budgets, not only do the departments submit their fiscal report for one particular year, but they also examine how much money and years are to be involved in the entire project,” said Daisy Ho, stressing that the budget planners have to meticulously take into account the possible increment in budgeting looming in the coming years.
Despite the newly introduced policy requiring the government to report on its budget execution to the legislature for the first half of the year at the end of July annually, the Financial Services Bureau will also conduct a review on how the budgets will be utilized in that particular period within the 30 days after every quarter. “If the situation deviated from its expected prospects after its implementation, they will certainly have to provide us with related information before we submit it to the Legislative Assembly and explain the matter,” she added.
The new version of the law also prohibits the authorities from transferring their budgets across departments. Public reserves allocated to a designated project are also disallowed from being spent on others. Staff reporter