The last cannon! Legislative bombs in Parliament, at the end of the legislature: immunities, “special” salaries or tax exemptions

In the two Houses of Parliament, several laws with economic impact are being adopted, but also controversial initiatives, both by PSD and PNL, under the conditions in which new benefits would be granted to different socio-professional categories. . One of the controversial laws that is about to be approved is the one initiated by the leader of the PNL deputies, Florin Roman, and some PSD parliamentarians and establishes that those responsible for the Financial Supervision Authority will receive criminal and civil immunity, and a number of expenses such as transportation and accommodation will be reimbursed if they do not live in Bucharest, although they receive some of the highest salaries from state institutions.

Florin Roman proposes that several ASF employees be exempt from civil or criminal liability, so that they can exercise their functions objectively. They can only be held liable if the court finds that they have acted in bad faith or negligence. Also striking are the provisions to provide accommodation and transportation for ASF leaders, given that they have some of the highest salaries in Romanian institutions, between 8,000 and 14,500 euros a month.

The limits of tax evasion

Another controversial bill, initiated by former Social Democrat Cătălin Rădulescu, stipulates that people accused of tax evasion can get away with it if the damage is recovered and it is up to 50,000 euros. The initiative is close to the final vote in the Chamber of Deputies, the report of the specialized commission having already been approved. Under current law, tax evasion is punishable by between three and ten years in prison. The initiator motivated his approach by the fact that the prisons are overcrowded anyway and the Romanian state was accused by international organizations for the conditions in the penitentiaries, but also that this law would initiate the recovery of material damages.

PSD and Pro Romania have launched a bill to grant a short-term subsidy, for a period of 12 months from the lifting of the state of emergency, to employees whose normal working hours are reduced. In the law that has already been approved in the Senate and is waiting to be adopted by the plenary session of the Chamber of Deputies, the initiators affirm that by reducing working hours, employees end up paying less money.

The amount of the short-term subsidy would be 60% of the base salary corresponding to the job held, not received as a result of the reduction in working hours, respectively 70% in the case of employees who have at least one child. The employer must prove the decrease in income resulting from the loss of the employees’ employment contracts in order to settle the amounts necessary for the granting of short-term compensation. To be included in the grid of those who benefit from the law, the employer must show to the County Employment Agency the fact that at least one third of the total number of employees have lost more than 20% of their wage income.

Pressure to double allocations

The duplication of allowances law, sent for re-examination by President Klaus Iohannis on November 14 and awaiting re-entry into the legislative circuit in the Senate, to be discussed by the Chamber of Deputies, also returned to the table. The NLP and the head of state want a gradual increase in allocations, while PSD demands that they be doubled from August 2020, a deadline already exceeded.

Professional drivers could be exempt from income tax, as well as IT professionals and construction workers, to have a minimum wage of 3,000 lei. The PSD project was adopted by the Senate in September and is now before the specialized commission of the Chamber of Deputies for the report. Specifically, professional drivers would be exempt from tax until December 31, 2028.

Likewise, in the First Chamber there is a project by PSD deputy Oana Florea, regarding the increase in salaries of physiotherapists, psychologists, nurses and doctors, as of January 1, 2021, with the amounts set for January 1, 2022, in accordance with the Paid Personnel Law. of public funds. Salaries, according to the proposed grid, would be between 4,500 lei and 6,100 lei.