Circular No. 147/2011/TT-BTC on the management and use of state budget funds for tobacco control activities

CIRCULAR

Regulations on management and utilization of state budget funds for tobacco control activities

Implementing the Prime Minister's Directive No. 12/2007/CT-TTg dated May 10, 2007 on strengthening activities to prevent and control the harmful effects of tobacco;

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Pursuant to Decree No. 60/2003/NĐ-CP dated June 6, 2003 of the Government detailing and guiding the implementation of the State Budget Law;

Pursuant to the Decree No. 118/2008/NĐ-CP dated November 27, 2008 of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Finance;

Implementing Decision No. 1315/QĐ-TTg dated August 21, 2009 of the Prime Minister approving the Plan to implement the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, the Ministry of Finance hereby stipulates the management and utilization of state budget funds for tobacco control activities as follows:

1. The subjects and scope of application of this Circular are agencies, organizations, units (hereinafter referred to as units) that use state budget funds to carry out tobacco control activities.

Article 1. Scope of Regulation and Applicability

2. Funds for anti-smuggling activities of cigarettes and the production and sale of counterfeit tobacco products by ministries, sectors, and localities shall be managed and utilized according to the budget decentralization provisions of the State Budget Law and current financial management guidelines, and are not within the scope of regulation of this Circular.

Article 2. Contents and expenditure levels for tobacco harm reduction activities

1. Expenditure for organizing communication, education, and health promotion regarding tobacco control:

a) Expenditure for disseminating and popularizing knowledge about tobacco control through mass media (radio, television, press) in the form of contracts between the disseminating agency and the mass media.

b) Expenditure for purchasing, building, producing, duplicating, and distributing communication materials, products, and supporting documents for communication activities. The selection of dissemination forms, contents, and programs shall be decided by the head of the agency implementing the communication tasks based on the state budget expenditure plan approved by the competent authority. The expenditure level shall follow the regulations, standards, and unit prices of similar industries.

c) Expenditure for disseminating policies and laws on tobacco control as approved by the competent authority. The content and expenditure level shall be implemented according to the Joint Circular No. 73/2010/TTLT-BTC-BTP dated May 14, 2010 of the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Justice guiding the preparation, management, and use of funds to ensure the work of policy and legal education and any subsequent amendments and supplements (if any).

d) Expenditure for communication activities during "Tobacco-Free Week" and "World No Tobacco Day":

- Expenditure for opening ceremonies: The content and expenditure level shall be implemented according to the Circular No. 97/2010/TT-BTC dated July 6, 2010 of the Ministry of Finance on the system of travel expenses and conference organization costs for state agencies and public service units and any subsequent amendments and supplements (if any).

- Expenditure for the activities of mobile propaganda teams during campaigns to promote tobacco control in communities:

+ Expenditure for fuel, vehicle rental, photographing reference materials, and other activities. The expenditure level shall be approved by the competent authority based on actual needs.

+ Expenditure for supporting members of the mobile propaganda teams: The expenditure level is VND 50,000 per person per session.

e) Expenditure for organizing direct community communication activities, schools:

- Communication training classes.

- Radio broadcasts (supporting editing and broadcasting).

- Special lectures (supporting writing special topics, training lecturers, and providing drinking water for participants).

- Slogans, posters, banners.

The Minister, Deputy Ministers, Heads of Ministries equivalent to Ministries, Chairmen of Provincial People's Committees, and Chairmen of Municipal People's Committees directly under the Central Government shall base on the forms of communication to specify detailed expenditure levels for the above contents in accordance with the state budget plan assigned and the socio-economic conditions of their locality.

f) Expenditure for organizing contests to understand the harmful effects of tobacco:

- Preparing questions and answers (if applicable): Maximum expenditure is VND 500,000 per question set.

- Training for marking exams, contest judges, and announcing results: Maximum expenditure is VND 300,000 per person per day.

- Training for members of the organizing committee and secretaries: Maximum expenditure is VND 200,000 per person per day.

- Prize money: Maximum prize for a team is VND 4,000,000 per award; maximum prize for an individual is VND 2,000,000 per award.

- Expenditure for compiling and reporting contest results: Maximum expenditure is VND 1,000,000 per report.

- Other expenditures serving the contest (if any) such as: Renting scriptwriting, directing; renting halls, sound, lighting, props, decorations; training contestants, service staff, MCs; supporting transportation, food, and accommodation for contestants from afar; office supplies; fuel or vehicle rental and other necessary expenditures. The expenditure level shall be carried out according to the current state regulations. In cases where there are no expenditure regulations, the head of the organizing agency shall decide the expenditure level within the assigned state budget plan.

Depending on the scale of the contest (central, provincial, district, and grassroots levels) and the assigned state budget, the head of the organizing agency, organization, or unit shall decide the specific expenditure level and must not exceed the maximum expenditure level mentioned above.

2. Expenditure for rewarding collectives and individuals with outstanding achievements in tobacco control activities as decided by the competent authority. The content and expenditure level shall be in accordance with the Law on Encouragement and Reward and its guiding documents.

3. Expenditure for scientific research related to tobacco control for health. The expenditure level shall be in accordance with the current regulations on the construction and allocation of budget funds for scientific and technological projects using state budget funds and the current financial expenditure regulations.

3. Research related to preventing and combating the health hazards of tobacco shall be funded. The funding level shall be in accordance with current regulations on the construction and allocation of budget estimates for scientific and technological projects that utilize state funds and the current financial expenditure regime.

4. Expenses for investigating the health impacts of tobacco products shall be carried out in accordance with the decisions of the competent authority as stipulated in Clauses 2, 3, and 4 of Article 10 of Decree No. 40/2004/NĐ-CP dated February 13, 2004, guiding the implementation of certain provisions of the Law on Statistics. The content and level of expenditure shall be implemented in accordance with Circular No. 58/2011/TT-BTC dated May 11, 2011, of the Ministry of Finance on managing, using, and settling the budget for conducting statistical surveys and other amended and supplemented documents (if any).

5. Expenses for supporting smoking cessation:

a) Expenses for scientific research work and applying appropriate smoking cessation methods suitable to economic and social conditions. The level of expenditure shall be in accordance with current regulations on the construction and allocation of budget estimates for scientific and technological projects funded by the state budget and the current financial expenditure system.

b) Expenses for building and implementing pilot models to support smoking cessation in communities:

- Depending on specific requirements, conditions, and the local budget's capacity, the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee shall approve each specific model.

- Specific contents and levels of expenditure for each model: Based on the activities of each model and the current financial expenditure system, the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee shall decide on specific contents and levels of expenditure upon the proposal of the Director of the Department of Health.

6. Expenses for supporting the regular operations of the Steering Committee for the Program to Prevent and Control the Harmful Effects of Tobacco; the permanent agencies and units assisting in implementing tobacco harm prevention and control work at ministries, sectors, and localities, specifically:

a) Overtime expenses. The content and level of expenditure shall be implemented in accordance with Joint Circular No. 08/2005/TTLT-BNV-BTC dated January 5, 2005, of the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Finance guiding the implementation of overtime pay for civil servants, public officials, and employees and other amended and supplemented documents (if any).

b) Allowance for兼任职务的津贴（如有）。

c) Payment for public services, office supplies, information, and communication expenses; purchase of materials serving professional work according to actual expenditures reflected in valid invoices and vouchers in accordance with regulations.

d) Expenses for professional training meetings on preventing and controlling the harmful effects of tobacco. The content and level of expenditure shall be in accordance with Circular No. 97/2010/TT-BTC dated July 6, 2010, of the Ministry of Finance on the system of travel expenses and the organization of meetings for state agencies and public institutions and other amended and supplemented documents (if any).

e) Expenses for monitoring the implementation of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. The content and level of expenditure shall be in accordance with Circular No. 06/2007/TT-BTC dated January 26, 2007, of the Ministry of Finance guiding the preparation, management, and use of funds to ensure the supervision of policy implementation, strategies, plans, and other amended and supplemented documents (if any).

f) Other expenses serving the work of preventing and controlling the harmful effects of tobacco. Based on the requirements of the work and the annual state budget estimate assigned, the head of the agency, organization, or unit directly managing the budget shall consider and decide on specific expenditure levels in accordance with the assigned budget estimate; fully comply with the regulations on invoices and vouchers.

Article 3. Financial management work

1. The preparation, allocation, implementation of the budget, and settlement of funds from the state budget for tobacco harm prevention and control activities shall be carried out in accordance with the current provisions of the State Budget Law, the Accounting Law, and guiding documents thereof.

2. This Circular provides additional guidance on the preparation of budgets, implementation, and settlement of funds for tobacco harm prevention and control activities of the Steering Committee for Tobacco Harm Prevention and Control Program and the competent agencies and units assisting in implementing such activities at ministries, sectors, and localities as follows:

a) Annually, along with the time for preparing the state budget, agencies, organizations, and units assigned to be the competent agencies and units assisting in implementing tobacco harm prevention and control activities at ministries, sectors, localities, and the Steering Committee for Tobacco Harm Prevention and Control Program shall be responsible for preparing the state budget expenditure plan to implement tobacco harm prevention and control activities in accordance with this Circular and consolidating it into the annual regular expenditure budget of the agency, organization, or unit to submit to the competent authorities for consideration and allocation of funds in accordance with current regulations.

b) ALLOCATION AND ASSIGNMENT OF BUDGET ESTIMATES:

Based on the annual state budget expenditure plan allocated by the competent authority, the agencies, organizations, and units assigned to be the competent agencies and units assisting in implementing tobacco harm prevention and control activities at ministries, sectors, localities, and the Steering Committee for Tobacco Harm Prevention and Control Program shall be responsible for ensuring funds for tobacco harm prevention and control activities according to their assigned tasks.

b) Accounting and settlement of funds:

Funds for implementing tobacco harm prevention and control activities shall be consolidated into the annual state budget settlement of the agencies, organizations, and units assigned to be the competent agencies and units assisting in implementing tobacco harm prevention and control activities at ministries, sectors, localities, and the Steering Committee for Tobacco Harm Prevention and Control Program in accordance with the regulations.

Article 4. Effective date

This Circular takes effect from January 1, 2012. During the implementation period, if there are any difficulties, units are requested to report to the Ministry of Finance for research, amendment, and supplementation to ensure appropriateness./.