On Wednesday, the Speaker of the Libyan Parliament, Ageela Saleh, called on the Prime Minister of the Government of National Unity (GNU) Abdel-Hamid Dbaiba to spend 1/12 of the previous year’s budget, until the draft budget law is approved.
According to the law, temporary monthly appropriations may be allowed if the budget as a whole is not approved before the beginning of the fiscal year. The Prime Minister may spend on the basis of 1/12 of the previous year’s budget by virtue of a presidential decree, with regard to salaries and public expenditures in accordance with the financial law of the state.
If the budget law is not approved, “monthly disbursement will be made on a temporary basis, within the limits of the appropriations of the budget of the previous fiscal year,”, until its approval.
In some countries, spending controls are set at 1/12 per month of last year’s budget, so that the government does not spend the entire budget at the same time.
The disbursement is in accordance with Article 178, known as opening temporary monthly credits, and is only concerned with disbursing employees’ salaries.
This article shall continue until the budget is approved, or until the advent of the new fiscal year.