June 26, 2008. XVII Session of the Tomsk Oblast State Duma

46 issues and 29 bills on the agenda.

The deputies adopted the Oblast Law on folk decorative arts. The Law guarantees support for investment projects on preservation, revival, and development of folk decorative arts in Tomsk Oblast; provides the basis for training of qualified specialists in folk decorative arts; and ensures information support for them. The Law secures the rights of masters in folk decorative arts – they are entitled to receive a fee for the creation of unique articles; they can exhibit their produce; they may visit the regional public museums and study the funds of all the national archives, libraries and museums in the region free of charge.

The regional parliament made changes to the program "Patriotic Education in Tomsk Oblast for 2006-2010" in order to increase the efficiency of spending in this area. The revised program came to include some efficiency indices of its implementation. Additional funds were allocated thereto.

The deputies decided to increase by 232m rubles the subsidies to the local budgets to ensure state guarantees of the citizens’ rights to have free education. The other subsidies increased were those to the municipal budgets to provide instruction for children in need of prolonged treatment in municipal health care educational institutions. Additional funds were allocated to pay salaries to teachers.

Funds were allocated from the regional budget to prepare Tomsk schools and kindergartens for the new academic year, and to pay bonuses to school teachers. The deputies adopted in two readings amendments to the bill “On Allocation of Interbudgetary Transfers”. Additional 162m rubles will go for repair works at 3 kindergartens, 5 schools, and 2 lyceums. There is a plan to create 660 additional vacant places at nursery schools, and to improve the learning conditions for 7000 schoolchildren of Tomsk.

Tomsk Oblast is among the regions to have won in the complex project for modernization of education. One of the project goals is to increase the teachers’ income and to switch to a new approach to labor remuneration depending on the results and quality of work. 30m rubles were allocated from the regional budget to achieve these goals.

The Duma amended a number of bills on social support for orphans and neglected children, and for the social workers involved in guardianship issues.

The deputies heard and approved the report of the Tomsk Oblast Administration on the results of the activity of the regional public institutions for 2007. The Administration has been working to optimize the activity of the regional public unitary enterprises (RPUEs). As of January 1, 2007 there were 41 of them including 20 operating RPUEs. The others were undergoing liquidation and bankruptcy proceedings. As of January 1, 2008 there were 32 left including 19 operating RPUEs. The aggregate sale proceeds totaled 1.8bn rubles (99.9% by 2006). It is forecast that as of January 1, 2009 the public sector of the Tomsk Oblast economy will include 22 RPUEs. Continuous optimization of RPUEs has resulted in the positive dynamics of sale proceeds and average payments to the budget.

Three additional reports were heard and approved:

The income to the regional budget from the privatization of public property in 2007 accounted for 57m rubles. The property acquired into public ownership totaled 47m rubles.
In 2007 the regional budget received 61m rubles from the leasing of the Tomsk Oblast public property, i.e. 110.8% of the planned sum.
The total area of the regional public real estate is over 1.3m sq m; 0.1m sq m were granted to the regional enterprises for free management, and 0.03m sq m were leased.
Boris Maltsev said that it had been for the first time over many years that the figures outlined in the reports almost completely agree with the practical results.

The Duma voted to increase by 46m rubles the amount of revenues to and expenditures of the health care insurance budget for 2008, so the revenues to the health care insurance budget in 2008 will total 4,512m rubles, and expenditures – 4,593m rubles.

The amendment to the expenses section include:

increased spending on health care services for the Tomsk Oblast citizens in other regions of the Russian Federation;

increased spending on supplementary medical examination of working population;

increased spending on the implementation of the pilot project aimed to improve the quality of health care services;

increased subsidies to the regional budget to provide free medications, medical supplies, and specialized clinical dietary nutrition to the disabled children.

The deputies adopted in the first reading the amendments to the regional target program on social development of rural areas till 2010. The bill prolongs the program until 2012. The authors analyzed the implemented program projects, the amount of their financing for 2004-2007. The amendments include some additional projects and their financing till 2012.
The program projects involve construction and reconstruction of municipal property, including civil engineering, social and recreation structures. The projects aim to create a new image of rural areas in the region which should meet the modern requirements of comfortable living, as well as to contribute to the development of the agro-industrial complex in Tomsk Oblast.
The deputies adopted in the second reading amendments to the Oblast Law “On the Basics of Improvement”. The bill increases the fines for offences in the improvement process. For instance, the fine for dumping of construction waste for legal entities will be 50,000 to 1m rubles; the household waste dumping will cost the ordinary people 1,000 to 5,000 rubles, and 50,000 to 500,000 rubles for legal entities.
The Duma also endorsed the draft amendments to the Oblast Law on the administrative charges for offences against the public order. For instance, swimming under the influence of alcohol will cost 1,000 rubles as a fine. The same fine is imposed on people bathing their pets in public places.

The deputies considered in the first reading the bill “On Management and Protection of Surface Water Reservoirs in Tomsk Oblast”. The bill determines the main directions of activity for the Tomsk Oblast Administration in management and protection of surface water resources, ascertains the sources of financing. The prospective law solves the issues of engineering protection of the territories, buildings and structures from flooding by the surface waters as well as the issues of protection of the surface waters from pollution by rain and thaw waters from the contaminated areas. One of the bill sections regulates the management of small rivers flowing across oil-fields exposed to pollutions. Such territories need decades to revegetate. The bill will make it possible to improve the situation.

Boris Maltsev, Speaker of the Tomsk Oblast State Duma held a traditional press-conference in between the sessions.

The Legislative Duma of Tomsk Oblast

June 26, 2008. XVII Session of the Tomsk Oblast State Duma