CRKVENAC ON MORE EFFICIENT SPENDING OF STATE FUNDS

ZAGREB, Feb 19 (Hina) - Budgetary commitments are being carried out directly via the State Treasury with increasing frequency, and the obligation for budgetary users to open accounts with the Croatian Postal Bank should make the spending of tax payers' money more efficient, Croatian Finance Minister Mato Crkvenac said on Tuesday. Around 90 percent of expenditure is taken out of the State Treasury and paid to the ultimate user. All salary payments to budgetary users are made this way, all capital investments are paid directly, as are all suppliers for amounts exceeding 200,000 kuna, solidarity funds, etc. Other payments, which make up a smaller part of current transactions, e.g. for treasuries for business trips and similar expenses, require users to open deposit accounts at the Croatian Postal Bank by the end of this month. The Finance Ministry has committed ministries, bodies of state administration and judiciary, social welfare centres, pension, health insurance and employment funds, as well as two newly- established funds -- for development and employment, and for regional development -- which had deposit accounts at the Croatian National Bank, to open new accounts at the Croatian Postal Bank. Decentralised institutions (primary and secondary schools, pupils' hostels and senior citizens' homes), as well as institutions receiving funds from their own work from several sources (faculties, institutes, health and cultural institutions financed from local budgets) can open accounts with any commercial bank, but only one account, of which they are obliged to inform the Finance Ministry. Crkvenac stressed that the aim of the measures is to promote the efficacy of spending tax payers' money. The Postal Bank can do the job efficiently, and since it is a state-owned bank, if it makes profit in the process, it will go into the state budget, Crkvenac said. (hina) lml sb