A DEPUTY FROM SARATOV PREDICTED BANKRUPTCY OF THE CITY

The day before, the deputies of the Saratov Duma discussed the amendments that will be made to the city budget. The chairman of the finance committee, Alexander Strukov, was optimistic during his report and cheerfully called figures indicating an increase in the revenue and expenditure side of the budget. However, the state of the city treasury was criticized by the deputy Oleg Komarov, who engaged in controversy with the city officials.

According to the plans for the development of the municipality, the authorities plan to increase the sources for financing the budget deficit by almost 230 million rubles. This will be done through lending for 177.6 million rubles, as well as by the changes by 51.7 million rubles in the account balance. The revenue line in the budget, amounting to 22.53 billion rubles, remains 390 million rubles less than the expenditure line.

According to Komarov, who heads the Slavyanskiy Mir trade and industrial group and a number of other trade enterprises of the city, the state of the city treasury indicates that the city is on the way to bankruptcy.

First of all, the deputy was outraged by the plans to increase the limit of municipal debt to 6.93 billion rubles.

According to the deputy, the officials of the mayor's office only transfer finances from one project to another, while the budget turns out to be understated. According to Komarov, it should be at least 37 billion, and if we take into account the new territories annexed to the city (several neighboring villages), it should be around 50 billion. Otherwise, the development of the city may be under threat.

Such reasoning forced the mayor of the city, Mikhail Isaev, to enter into polemics. According to Isaev, it was not worth making economic claims. At the same time, in response to Komarov's words about the possible bankruptcy of Saratov, the mayor did not find anything better than to point out to the deputy that there were violations of labor legislation in his trade structures, revealed as a result of special raids. Komarov had no choice but to declare that his enterprises were the best in terms of performance, and the tax authorities had no claims against him.

Nobody from Saratov would be surprised by the skirmish between the deputy Komarov and the mayor Isaev.

Last year, the mayor has already applied to the commission of the city Duma, which deals with issues of deputy ethics. Then the reason was the designation of deputy Isaev as "the main corrupt official" in Komarov's speech. At that time, the mayor said that Komarov would have to stand by his words, hinting at possible criminal liability.