Russian Lawmakers to Debate on Ineffective Budget Use Bill

MOSCOW, January 22 (RIA Novosti) - A draft law on the ineffective use of allocated budget means was submitted on Monday with the Russian parliament’s lower house, the State Duma.

The bill, initiated by lawmakers from the United Russia ruling party, stipulates an administrative or criminal punishment for the use of budget means that yielded no results or exceeded the allocated sum.

State officials are facing a penalty of up to 5,000 rubles ($165) or a two-year work suspension, while legal entities face a fine of up to 50,000 rubles ($1,650), under the new draft law.

However, if a violation is conducted on a larger scale, the bill envisages a penalty of up to 300,000 rubles ($9,900) fine or two years in prison.