According to the draft of the Ministry of Finance, the austerity decree provides for a 10% reduction in goods and services, a ban on the purchase of cars, a freeze on the civil service, a limitation of CA members to a maximum of 2 companies, etc. It should be noted that the government announced a “budget hole” of 20 billion lei.

The justification of the resolution shows that thanks to these measures, only 5.3 billion lei were saved. This is a quarter of the problem. So, it remains to be seen whether another resolution will be passed to change the tax for the rest.

Project GEO Austerity Decree 2023 – click to open

1. Costs for goods and services must be reduced by 10%. There is an exception: accordingly, expenses for medicines and sanitary and hygienic materials, for medical services, for expenses for health care activities and programs, as well as in the case of expenses related to units of pre-university and university education.

2. State authorities and institutions, including those with their own income, will no longer be able to buy, rent or lease cars, as well as furniture and office equipment.

Where such goods are needed, redistribution will have to be carried out, including from other institutions.

As for the ongoing public procurements, they will be able to be completed.

3. Freeze state employment.

In well-founded cases, the holding of Olympiads or exams may be approved by a memorandum approved at a Government meeting.

For positions for which a written examination of competitions or exams or a practical examination was carried out, the procedure for their employment may be extended.

Executive positions of civil servants may be held temporarily, without the obligation to hold a competition, with prior notification of the National Agency for Civil Service 5 days before the event.

4. Employees who have the academic title of doctor receive an allowance for the academic title of doctor in the amount of 50% of the level of the minimum gross basic salary in the country, which is guaranteed in the payment, which is provided every month only on the condition of performing their activities in the field in which they hold a position, and if the job description has a set of objective and quantified duties that allow a monthly check of how his activities are additionally capitalized.

The size of the official salary of this allowance is not taken into account when determining the maximum amounts of allowances, compensations, bonuses, bonuses and allowances.

Within 30 days from the date of entry into force of the emergency decree, the heads of state authorities and institutions, regardless of the form of funding and subordination, are obliged to issue an order to amend the job instructions.

5. Amounts withheld in the ratio of 10% to the state budget, to the state social insurance budget and to the unemployment insurance budget are canceled during the first budget adjustment, with the exception of investment expenses, expenses with the state reserve, stocks and mobilization, and related expenses with civil compensation.

6. The agency for quality and marketing of agro-food products will be established in 2024. Practically, according to the resolution, this is a postponement for 1 year.

7. Within 24 months from the entry into force of the extraordinary resolution, customers who award public procurements, the subject of which is agro-food products, apply the criterion of awarding the best ratio of price and quality.

The weightage for the quality assessment factor will be 70% of the total score and consists of: 50% for the supply chain sub-factor and 20% for authorisation/sanitary veterinary registration and food safety or phytosanitary certificate or certificate of origin, as the case may be, and for compliance with the legislation on tracking agro-food products.

8. A member of the Central Committee of a maximum of two state-owned companies

In 2023, employees of state bodies and institutions can hold the positions of a member of the board of directors and/or a member of the supervisory board of a maximum of two state-owned enterprises or in the management bodies of other economic entities owned by the state or

administrative-territorial units, the center of which is located on the territory of Romania.

9. After the entry into force of an emergency resolution, the Government may adopt draft normative acts/public policy documents, the application of which leads to a decrease in revenues or an increase in budget-approved expenditures, only if they are accompanied by a financial report.

10. Changes in the number of positions in the Cabinet of Ministers and the office

The maximum number of positions in the cabinet, according to the office, is:

• 9 positions of prime minister;

• 6 positions for the office of the Deputy Prime Minister with portfolio, Minister of State;

• 4 positions for the office of the vice-prime minister without a portfolio;

• 4 positions for the cabinet of the minister, the general secretary of the government and the head of the prime minister’s office;

• 4 positions for the cabinet of the authorized minister;

• 2 positions for the office of the Deputy General Secretary of the Government, the State Secretary and his equivalent in the ministries and working apparatus of the Government and the State Counselor;

• 2 positions of the head of a specialized body of the central state administration in the rank of state secretary;

• 1 position for the office of the Deputy State Secretary and his equivalent in the working apparatus of the Government as part of the ministries and other specialized bodies of the central state administration;”