Guidance on Implementation of Regular State Budget Expenditures for the Year 2017

The Ministry of Finance provides guidance on several aspects of recurrent expenditure management of the state budget for 2017, including:

- Stopping and canceling the budget estimates for recurrent domestic expenditure (excluding: Non-business capital of targeted programs, national targeted programs; expenditure from retained fees, and career revenue as regulated);- Thoroughly saving recurrent expenditure, state management apparatus expenditure, public service provider activities expenditure;- For programs and projects using foreign capital (excluding loans and aid recorded as revenue and expenditure of the state budget).

Stopping and canceling the budget estimates for recurrent domestic expenditure

Stopping and canceling the budget estimates for recurrent domestic expenditure (excluding: Non-business capital of targeted programs, national targeted programs; expenditure from retained fees, and career revenue as regulated) as follows:

- Cancel the budget estimates for recurrent expenditure assigned at the beginning of the year to primary budget units which by June 30, 2017, had not been allocated to supplement the central and local budget reserves; except for expenditures permitted under current legal documents (allocation, disbursement according to implementation progress,...), cases allowed by the Prime Minister of the Government of Vietnam, and expenditures that primary budget units are reporting to the Prime Minister of the Government of Vietnam (for primary budget units at the central level) and the People's Committees of provinces and centrally-run cities (for primary budget units at the local level) due to lack of concurrence by the financial authority in the budget allocation check. Pending the decision of the Prime Minister of the Government of Vietnam or the People's Committee of the province/city, units are not permitted to spend on items not agreed upon by the financial authority.- Stop and cancel the budget estimates for procurement, repair funds arranged in the beginning-of-year budget estimates but not implemented by June 30, 2017 (project approval decisions not issued), not approved budget estimates, not approved contractor selection plans to supplement the central and local budget reserves; except for some cases: National reserve procurement funds; funds for disease prevention and control, disaster recovery; funds for defense and security tasks; funds allowed to be executed under current legal documents (allocation, disbursement according to implementation progress,...); budget adjustment for tasks already allocated at the beginning of the year to suit practical arising and special cases decided by the Prime Minister of the Government of Vietnam.- For state asset procurement (including car procurement):- Principle, standard, norm, and methods of state asset procurement: Comply with Official Dispatch 2676/BTC-QLCS dated February 28, 2017.- Funding allocation, planning implementation of state asset procurement: Follow this guidance from the Ministry of Finance.

Thoroughly saving recurrent expenditure, state management apparatus expenditure

Content of saving expenditure includes:

- Foreign business trip expenses: Strictly implement Directive 38-CT/TW dated July 21, 2014; Directive 21-CT/TW; instructions from the Prime Minister of the Government of Vietnam in Official Dispatch 10572/VPCP-QHQT.- Domestic business trip expenses: Review the organization of task forces in the spirit of thorough saving, obtaining information based on the assigned functions and duties of agencies and units. If necessary to organize a task force, specifically determine each member's role, strictly prevent combining business trips with sightseeing, and tourism. Thoroughly review inspection programs, inspection teams from higher to lower levels, ensuring compact, economical, and effective; no extravagant reception for lower levels and related agencies.- Office supplies expenses: Thoroughly save on office supplies use, enhance receiving instructions via IT networks to minimize unnecessary printing, and copying, and utilize double-sided printing.- Electricity usage expenses: Save electricity under Inter-circular 111/2009/TTLT-BTC-BCT.- Expenditure on receptions, conferences, seminars, festivals, anniversaries, groundbreaking, and inaugurations of works and projects:- Strictly implement spending policies on organizing conferences, seminars; policies on reception of domestic and international guests; curb ostentatious and widespread guest receptions causing state budget waste. Minimize expenditure on receptions, conferences, seminars, festivals, anniversaries, groundbreaking, inaugurations; avoid organizing unessential meetings, seminars;...- Integrate tasks and combine meetings rationally; prepare carefully and fully as required, ensuring the content of the meeting, depending on the nature, content, purpose, and requirement, the convener must carefully consider and decide the appropriate composition and number of participants, ensuring economy and effectiveness.- Enhance using online meetings to direct, manage, and handle related work, thereby saving costs on electricity, water, phone, stationery, fuel, travel, and accommodation for participants.- Minimize organizing centralized meetings (except for meetings with state secrets); for nationwide, sector-wide mandatory meetings, written approval from the competent authority is required (meetings organized by Ministries, ministerial-level agencies, and agencies under the Government of Vietnam must be approved by the Prime Minister of the Government of Vietnam; meetings organized by Central committees of the Communist Party must be approved by the Standing Secretariat; meetings convened by specialized agencies under the provincial People's Committee must be approved by the Chairman of the provincial People's Committee; meetings convened by specialized agencies under the district People's Committee must be approved by the Chairman of the district People's Committee).

See detailed content at Official Dispatch 4494/BTC-HCSN dated April 4, 2017.

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