The social vector of the Sverdlovsk region

28.08.2013 — Analysis

In the complex budgetary situation.

In its strategy for the next three years, the regional government gambled on improving the quality of life for residents of the Central Urals.

A mild scenario for the regional budget

The budget of the Sverdlovsk region today is largely dependent on the state of export-oriented sectors of the economy. So any significant fluctuation in the global metals market is immediately reflected in the financial security of the revenue side of the regional budget. Official statistics showed that, despite some instability in certain markets, the industry of the region for the year 2012 grew by 8.3%, while the growth of fees in the budget amounted to about 14%. There was also an increase of almost 4% in the number of enterprises that ended 2012 in the black, contributing to an increase of 12.2% of the payments for income tax received by the regional coffers.

The results show that the regional budget revenues last year amounted to 154.7 billion roubles, which is 10.9% (15.2 million) more than in 2011. There was a 10.6% increase overall and the consolidated budget of the region (regional and all cities and districts of the region) was up to 203.6 billion roubles. Key income sources for the public purse included: tax on income of natural persons - 68.3 billion roubles, tax on profits of organizations - 55.6 billion, corporate property tax - 14.6 billion and excise duties - 11.5 billion.

In the first half of 2013, the budget of the Sverdlovsk region received 90.8 billion roubles in tax and non-tax revenues, which is 2.2 billion more than the same period last year. There is an increase in basic revenues. The only exception is the tax on profits of organizations.

Today the situation with budget revenues is developing at a moderate pace. In order to fulfil all liabilities assumed, the regional government is working with major taxpayers. Only in May - June, officials met with representatives of 80 leading companies in the region, the sum of which amounted to about 25% of the budget of the Sverdlovsk region.

The regional government is taking steps to optimize the existing regional ​​debt. At the end of July 2013 the total debt amounted to 18.4 billion roubles – 1.5 billion less than the same period last year.

According to the rankings of the constituent territories of the Russian Federation for 2012, compiled by the Centre for Economic Research, the Sverdlovsk region rose from 23^rd to 18^th place according to the level of debt.

The necessary funds for the necessary areas

With regards to the social budget of the Sverdlovsk region, about 80% of the expenditure contributes to the financing of socially important issues for the residents of the Central Urals. In 2012-2013, the priority has been given to improving the quality and availability of services provided by social institutions.

In 2012, 19.4% of all expenditures of the consolidated budget of the region occurred in health care. This is more than 39.5 billion roubles – almost 8.9 billion more than in 2011.

In 2012, the process of restructuring the network and optimization of financing medical institutions continued in the health care system. The system of compulsory health insurance became the main channel for financing health care systems in order to achieve a more effective management of cash resources in 2013. Thus, hospitals and clinics now receive money for actual medical assistance in the Sverdlovsk region.

In 2012, as part of a regional program to modernize health care, the Sverdlovsk region took measures to strengthen the material and technical basis of institutions, the introduction of information technologies and standards of health care services. About 13.4 billion roubles was spent for this purpose, of which 8.3 billion came from the Federal Compulsory Medical Insurance Fund, 4.1 billion – from the Territory Compulsory Medical Insurance Fund, and 970 million – from the consolidated budget of the Sverdlovsk region. These funds bought about 1.5 thousand units of various medical equipment for 134 health facilities and renovated 137 hospitals, clinics, and health centres. 

In 2013, to complete the program, another 60 health facilities will be renovated and 447 units of medical equipment will be purchased. In the current year about 43.3 billion roubles will be allocated to health care (about 3.8 billion roubles more than in the year 2012).

The construction of the first phase of the regional tuberculosis dispensary is ongoing, as well as the Nizhny Tagil blood transfusion station No. 3, the medical building of the central hospital in Severouralsk, as well as buildings for the conduct of general medical practice in Kushva.

Increasing the wages of doctors and medical staff remains an important topical issue. The average wage of doctors has already grown by 24.4%, medical staff – by 19.1%. There is another increase by 15% planned by October 2013. The regional budget includes an additional 208 million roubles for this purpose. In addition to the regional budget, the obligatory medical insurance has helped with the increase in the wages. In the total, the cost of rising wages of doctors and nurses is stipulated to be more than 3.2 billion roubles.

You can never get enough of kindergartens and schools

In 2012, regional spending on education amounted to almost 37.2 billion roubles. The construction and renovation of kindergartens expended 1.4 billion roubles. This has enabled the opening of 10 kindergartens with a capacity of 1590 places. In addition to three in Ekaterinburg, there was one kindergarten established in Kirovgrad, Kamensk-Uralsky, Sredneuralsk, Berezovsky, Krasnoufimsk and in two villages of the region. The Sverdlovsk region received 7963 new places in kindergartens taking into account federal subsidies in the past year as part of the regional target program "Development of pre-school educational institutions."

In 2013, with the financial assistance from the federal budget (1.25 billion roubles) and the regional budget (4.6 billion roubles), 12,089 places will be created in pre-school institutions in 30 municipalities.

420 million roubles from the regional budget is also planned for the renovation and construction of schools in Sysert (480 places), Verkhnyaya Salda (550 places), the village of Platonovo, Shali municipal district (154 places). This year the building of the ecological department of the "Centre of further education of children 'Youth Palace'" is being financed in Ekaterinburg. The regional public purse has set aside 96 million roubles for this.

In addition to investing in the expansion of the educational infrastructure, the regional authorities have sent funds to bring the salaries of teachers in kindergartens to the salaries of teachers in schools. Last year, the amount of the Central Urals regional subsidies amounted to 122.5 million roubles. In 2013, 213.3 million roubles is provided for this purpose. By the end of this year, the average salary of teachers in kindergartens should grow by 7.1%. In order to increase the average salaries of teachers, almost 372 million roubles has been set aside in the regional budget for the current year.

The total budget for education in the Sverdlovsk region in 2013 amounts to about 43.5 billion roubles.

Major restructuring 

Slightly more than 2 billion roubles from the regional budget was spent on the development of culture in 2012. From this, 257 million roubles was spent on the construction and reconstruction of cultural objects. The lion's share of funds – 232 million roubles was allocated to complete the reconstruction of the ‘Dom Krestyanina’ (cultural and educational centre for farmworkers/peasants) which houses the Children's Philharmonic.

This branch of the budget amounts to 3.3 billion roubles in 2013. 150 million roubles is allocated on the construction of cultural facilities, of which 106.3 million roubles is for the construction of a rehearsal room-artistic corpus for the Ekaterinburg Philharmonic, and another 24 million – to create the Pervouralsk innovative cultural centre. It is expected that the federal government should spend 166.7 million roubles on this facility.

Almost 7 billion roubles was spent on the development of physical culture and sports in the 2012 budget of the Sverdlovsk region. More than a third of funds was spent on the construction and renovation of sports facilities. Among them – the ice arena in Verkhnyaya Pyshma and the indoor court in Revda.

Almost 540 million roubles was spent on work on the reconstruction of the Nizhny Tagil "Aist" children's and youth sports school for Olympic reservists on the Dolgaya mountain. For this year alone, regional and federal funding, amounting to almost 156 million roubles, is expected to cover the costs of completing it.

In 2013, the consolidated budget for the development of physical culture and sports set aside about 3.85 billion roubles. These funds will help to complete the construction of swimming pools in Aramil, sports and recreation centres in Verkhnyaya Sinyachikha, Asbest, Bogdanovich and Novaya Lyalya. Furthermore a sports complex for cycling is planned to be built in Verkhnyaya Pyshma and the "Metallurg" stadium in Kamensk-Uralsky will be renovated.

House-warming with government support

Currently two regional programs that are associated with providing housing for disadvantaged categories of citizens are being implemented in the Central Urals: "Development of a residential complex in the Sverdlovsk region" and "Social protection and social support for people with disabilities in the Sverdlovsk region."

In 2012, the first program for the construction, acquisition and renovation of 683 properties of large families received in excess of 956 million roubles from the regional budget, which is 2.7 times more than in the previous year. In 2013 it is planned to spend upwards of 926 million. 638 families with a large amount of children have been granted relevant attestations, of which 437 have already been paid to the amount of 640 million roubles.

The regional budget allocated almost 282 million roubles for housing of employees of state institutions and regional organizations in the past year, which allowed 468 families to improve their living conditions. This year the planned figure of 281 million roubles will be issued in the form of attestations, of which 248 have already been realized in the amount of 160 million roubles.

In 2012, 406 young families received social welfare payments for the purchase or construction of housing, as well as the repayment of mortgage loans and interest on them. 263 million roubles have been allocated for this purpose, of which 138 million roubles has been taken from the regional budget, almost 86 million from local budgets and the rest funded by federal budgets. 226 million roubles will be allocated over the coming year from the regional budget to help fund young families.

The issue of accommodation is being tackled for orphaned children as part of the program "Social protection and social support for the disabled." In 2012, the regional government directed more than 1 billion roubles for the purchase of 817 apartments and houses, a further 111 million roubles came from federal financial support. It is planned to allocate one billion roubles from the regional and federal budgets for the purchase of housing for children without parental care in 2013. In the first half of the year alone over 176 million roubles was spent on the improvement of living conditions of 130 people. 

There are also records of people with disabilities from combat operations groups I and II kept in the Sverdlovsk region that require housing. 5.5 million roubles was spent in 2012 for the construction and purchase of 11 apartments and houses from the regional coffers for them. More than 134 million roubles has been allocated in the current year to ensure housing for 65 people.

In addition, the federal and regional governments are providing funds to provide housing for the disabled, war veterans and families with disabled children. In 2012, this amounted to about 341 million roubles, which resolved the issue of housing for 176 families of veterans and the disabled. In 2013, almost 413 million roubles is planned for this purpose. During the first half of the year 68 people were housed, another 43 residential premises were built and will be transferred under contracts of social hiring.

To stimulate the involvement of young people to work in rural areas, the costs of construction (purchase) and improving the living conditions of young families and young professionals are being allocated by the regional budget. In 2012, a little more than 188 million roubles was spent on this. Dedicated funds enabled the construction of more than 14.8 thousand square meters of housing for those who live and work in rural areas, including 8.2 thousand "squares" – for young professionals and their families. At the same time, the living conditions of 222 families in the countryside were improved, including 131 families of young professionals.

In 2013, more than 185 million roubles was allocated from the regional and federal budgets for the construction of rural housing. In addition, as of 2013, agricultural enterprises are able to receive subsidies from the regional budget to solve the housing problems of their professionals. This year, this will constitute 50 million roubles.

Let the disabled earn

Since 2010, the regional target program "Social protection and social support for people with disabilities in the Sverdlovsk region" has been implemented in the Sverdlovsk region. More than 53 million roubles was allocated last year to the creation of an accessible environment for people with disabilities from the regional budget. Furthermore, 20 million roubles worth of subsidies were awarded, in particular, for technical re-equipment and modernization to save jobs for disabled people, in respect to four specialized organizations located in the Sverdlovsk region. The sole founder of these organizations is the "All-Russian Society of the Blind", All-Russian disabled people society.

Another 33 million roubles was directed for social activities and the acquisition of 57 units of physical fitness equipment, 8 sets of equipment for sensory rooms in the institutions of social services for the population.

In 2013, 58.5 million roubles was directed to measures for creating an accessible environment for the disabled, of which 20 million roubles will be transferred to specialized institutions for the modernization of jobs. There will also be continued upgrading of institutions, increased purchase of high-tech equipment for the rehabilitation of persons with disabilities and to provide them with a comfortable environment.

In 2012, the Sverdlovsk region adopted the "Program to promote the employment of unemployed persons with disabilities, parents with many children, parents raising children with disabilities." Last year, its funding amounted to 11.8 million roubles. In 2013, 32.3 million roubles has been allocated to the organization of workplaces for persons with disabilities.

The regional government has taken a chance on the development of public programs to increase cost-effectiveness primarily in the areas of social importance. 40 billion roubles was provided in 2013 for the implementation of all the 23 regional programs – one and a half times more than in the previous year.

The task of the Cabinet of Ministers is to generate the regional budget for three years in a set program format. Based on the beliefs of Sverdlovsk Region Governor Evgeny Kuyvashev, it must maintain its social orientation, and be focused on improving the quality of life for all residents of the region.

Andrei GRACHEV