Nicolas Perez - Oficina de Presupuesto del Congreso

TRAINING ON GENDER ISSUES

by Nicolas Perez | Jun 21, 2023 | Activities

The Argentine Congressional Budget Office (OPC) participated in the fifth edition of the Gender-Responsive Budgeting (GRB) program offered by the Parliamentary Training Institute of the Honorable Chamber of Deputies of the Nation.

On Wednesday 21, María Pía Buigiafreddo, analyst of the Directorate of Studies, Analysis and Evaluation of the OPC, gave the third of the four consecutive weekly classes of the program, which was held in virtual modality and was referred to the budget execution.

Up to June, the National Government executed 36% of the budgeted expenditure in this area, basically through cash transfers to women, which accounts for 98% of GRB resources, as she pointed out.

The data summarized during this training are included in the respective monitor published on the OPC’s web page, which is updated periodically.

The training program, scheduled in consecutive weekly meetings, focused on human rights, budget design and diversity.

ANALYSIS OF THE NATIONAL GOVERNMENT BUDGET EXECUTION – MAY 2023

by Nicolas Perez | Jun 15, 2023 | Budget Execution

Despite the decrease in revenues, in the first five months of the year the National Government recorded a real drop in the economic, primary, and financial deficits.

The financial deficit was 10.0% lower than in the same period of the previous year.
The primary deficit – which does not include interest payments – decreased 27.7%.
Revenues contracted by 6.7% YoY in real terms and expenditures by 7.5% YoY.
Tax revenues fell 12.3% YoY, partially offset by a 2.2% YoY improvement in social security contributions.
Primary expenditures fell 9.9% YoY in the cumulative to May, a contraction led by the reduction in family allowances (30.0% YoY) and energy subsidies (20.0% YoY).
When comparing month to month of each year, primary expenditures recorded eleven consecutive months of declines.
• Debt interest payments rose 17.8% YoY.
The following budget appropriations showed high execution percentages: Alimentar benefit (62.8%), Potenciar Trabajo (51.6%) and Progresar student grants (44.4%).

FISCAL IMPACT OF THE MALVINAS HISTORICAL REPARATIONS BILL 4187-D-2022

by Nicolas Perez | Jun 12, 2023 | Cost Estimates

The Bill proposes to grant a “Malvinas Historical Reparation” benefit to persons who, in compliance with the Compulsory Military Service Law, were enlisted as privates in the conscription service and participated in the South Atlantic conflict in the period between April 2 and June 14, 1982, in effective combat actions in the Malvinas Theater of Operations (TOM), in the Georgia and South Sandwich Islands, or effectively entered into combat in the area of the South Atlantic Theater of Operations (TOAS) and to the civilians who were performing service or support functions in the aforementioned places, and in case of death of the deceased, for their beneficiaries.

The benefit consists of an amount equivalent to 104 minimum pensions of the SIPA (Argentine Integrated Pension System) and will be paid in 24 consecutive payments updated by the pension mobility index.

Assuming that 11,824 beneficiaries will receive the historical reparation in a staggered manner as from September of the current fiscal year, the fiscal impact for the National Government was estimated at an approximate expense of ARS9.448 billion in 2023 (0.006% of GDP), ARS88.217 billion in 2024 (0.026% of GDP), and ARS128.381 billion in 2025 (0.025% of GDP).

PARITY DEMOCRACY, TOPIC OF THE MEETING OF WOMEN LEGISLATORS FROM ARGENTINA AND BOLIVIA

by Nicolas Perez | Jun 1, 2023 | Activities

The Argentine Congressional Budget Office (OPC) participated in the meeting between women legislators from both countries that took place on Monday, May 29, in the Delia Parodi Hall of the Legislative Palace and which took the form of panels and round tables to analyze situations of gender-related violence in the parliamentary sphere.

The meeting was organized by the General Direction of Equality of the Chamber of Deputies together with the international confederation Oxfam and the Coordinator of Women of Bolivia.

A monitoring on gender violence due to political issues in social networks, conducted by the Observatory of Gender and Parliamentary Equity, was presented at the meeting.

There was also an analysis of gender-responsive budgeting (PPG), a debate in which Catalina Cirio, deputy director of the Observatory, and Natalia Laria, coordinator of parliamentary and institutional relations of the OPC, made presentations.

Through its web page, the OPC published reports and has a data monitor on PPG, which is updated periodically.

FISCAL IMPACT OF BILL 1687-D-23 ON THE RIGHTS OF CONICET FELLOWSHIP HOLDERS

by Nicolas Perez | May 29, 2023 | Cost Estimates

The Bill proposes the automatic adjustment of the stipends of CONICET (National Scientific and Technical Research Council) fellowship holders, bringing them closer to a percentage of the amount received by an Assistant Researchers of that entity (80% and 90% for doctoral and postdoctoral fellowships, respectively). Currently, the value of the stipend is set by CONICET.

In addition, the Bill establishes that fellowship holders will have a 13th stipend and that they will be required to make Social Security contributions, giving rise to the inclusion of these persons to the Special Pension System for Scientific and Technological Researchers established by Law 22,929 as amended.

These provisions do not imply the existence of any kind of employment relationship between fellowship holders and the National Government.

The fiscal impact of this legislative proposal was estimated at an approximate expenditure of ARS13.801 billion, equivalent to 0.008% of GDP, consisting of ARS28.787 billion in expenses, partially offset by the collection of ARS14.986 billion in Social Security contributions.

FISCAL IMPACT OF BILL CD-6-2023 ON THE CREATION OF THE PROGRAM FOR THE PREVENTION, DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT OF PRECOCIOUS PUBERTY

by Nicolas Perez | May 29, 2023 | Cost Estimates

The purpose of Bill CD-6-2023 is to create the Precocious Puberty Program (PPP) within the scope of the Ministry of Health of the Nation, with the objective of guaranteeing access to detection, diagnosis, and comprehensive treatment of precocious puberty in girls and boys throughout the territory of the Argentine Republic.

The fiscal impact of the legislative proposal is estimated at ARS917 million per year, of which ARS576 million would cover the sensitization, dissemination, and awareness-raising campaign and ARS341 million to ensure free access to diagnosis, comprehensive care and the provision of medication for those who are not covered by the Mandatory Medical Program (PMO).