Ukraine's leading English-language newspaper since 1995

Kyiv City Council has adopted the city budget for 2012 with revenues and expenditures in the amount of Hr 16.438 billion. Kyiv City Council has adopted the city budget for 2012 with revenues and expenditures in the amount of Hr 16.438 billion.

A total of 91 council deputies out of the 109 present in the hall voted for such a decision at a council meeting on Thursday. The UDAR faction of Vitaliy Klytschko did not participate in the vote.

The total amount of budget revenues is planned at Hr 16.438 billion, including Hr 2.576 billion as subsidies from the state budget. The budget's general fund will amount to Hr 14.137 billion Hr, and the special fund - Hr 2.301 billion, including Hr 1.489 billion as the development budget.

The main source of budget revenues is a tax on individuals' income in the amount of Hr 7.254 billion. The text of the budget says that in accordance with the state budget for 2012, the city budget will get only 50% of this tax.

Proceeds from land rent are projected at Hr 3.846 billion, from land sales – at Hr 660 million, from the privatization of municipal property – at Hr 400 million, and from the lease of municipal property – at Hr 140 million.

The expenditures of the city budget for 2012 were raised compared with the planned figures for the current year, in particular, on public administration by 5%, to Hr 616 million, on education by 30%, to Hr 4.528 billion, on health care by 39%, to Hr 3.708 billion, on social protection and social security by 11%, to Hr 2.46 billion, on culture and arts by 36%, to Hr 605 million, on the media by 6%, to Hr 35.8 million, on physical education and sports by 26%, to Hr 126.7 million, and on transport, road industry, communications, telecommunications and computer science by 213%, to Hr 673 million, of which Hr 360 million will be spent on compensation to municipal transport companies for the privileged travel of passengers.

At the same time, expenditures on housing and utility services were reduced by nearly 2.5 times, from Hr 1.197 billion to Hr 484 million, on construction by 3.5%, to Hr 773.2 million, and on contributions to the charter capital of business entities by 4.4 times, to Hr 208.9 million.

Spending on servicing debt in 2012 will shrink by 13%, to Hr 790.3 million, including foreign debt by 14%, to Hr 555.5 million, and domestic debt by 12%, to Hr 234.8 million.

The maximum amount of Kyiv's debt as of December 31, 2012 should not exceed Hr 8.07 billion.