Joint Circular No. 24/2014/TTLT-BTC-BTP guiding the preparation of budget estimates, management, use, and settlement of expenses for implementing Decision No. 59/2012/QĐ-TTg dated December 24, 2012 of the Prime Minister on legal aid policies for the poor and ethnic minorities in poor communes during the period from 2013 to 2020.

JOINT CIRCULAR

Guidelines for the preparation, management, use, and settlement of funds to implement

Decision Decision No. 59/2012/QĐ-TTg dated December 24, 2012 of the Prime Minister on

policy legal assistance for the poor, ethnic minority groups

in poor communes during the period 2013-2020

_______________________

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

Pursuant to Decree No. 215/2013/NĐ-CP dated December 23, 2013, promulgated by the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Finance;

Pursuant to Decree No. 22/2013/NĐ-CP dated March 13, 2013, of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Justice;

Implementing Decision No. 59/2012/QĐ-TTg dated December 24, 2012 of the Prime Minister on the policy of legal assistance for the poor, ethnic minority groups in poor communes during the period 2013-2020;

The Minister of Finance and the Minister of Justice issue this Joint Circular guiding the preparation, management, use, and settlement of funds to implement Decision No. 59/2012/QĐ-TTg dated December 24, 2012 of the Prime Minister on the policy of legal assistance for the poor, ethnic minority groups in poor communes during the period 2013-2020 as follows:

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

This Joint Circular guides the preparation, management, use, and settlement of funds to implement Decision No. 59/2012/QĐ-TTg dated December 24, 2012 of the Prime Minister on the policy of legal assistance for the poor, ethnic minority groups in poor communes during the period 2013-2020 (hereinafter referred to as Decision No. 59/2012/QĐ-TTg).

Article 2. Applicability

1. Department of Justice.

2. State Legal Aid Center.

3. Other agencies and organizations related to the preparation, management, use, and settlement of funds to implement Decision No. 59/2012/QĐ-TTg.

Article 3. Sources of funds to ensure implementation

1. State budget (central budget and local budget).

2. International cooperation projects (if any).

3. Donations from individuals and organizations within and outside Vietnam (if any).

Article 4. Principles for Managing and Using Funds

1. State budget funds allocated for the implementation of the policy of legal assistance for the poor, ethnic minority groups in poor communes and particularly difficult villages must be managed and used for their intended purposes, for the appropriate beneficiaries, economically, and effectively.

2. The preparation of budgets, management, and settlement of state funds shall be carried out in accordance with the Law on State Budget, guiding documents, and provisions of this Circular.

3. Funds from donations of individuals and organizations within and outside Vietnam; international cooperation projects shall be implemented strictly in accordance with agreements with funding agencies, enterprises, organizations, and individuals within and outside Vietnam and in compliance with Vietnamese laws.

Article 5. Content of Expenditure

1. Administrative expenses for implementing tasks such as guidance; inspection, supervision; seminars, mid-term reviews, final evaluations of the implementation of Decision No. 59/2012/QĐ-TTg.

2. Expenditures for activities to implement the policy of legal assistance as stipulated in Article 3 of Decision No. 59/2012/QĐ-TTg.

Article 6. Budget Expenditure Levels

1. The expenditure levels for implementing the contents specified in Article 5 of this Joint Circular shall be implemented in accordance with the provisions of Joint Circular No. 209/2012/TTLT-BTC-BTP dated November 30, 2012 of the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Justice guiding the preparation, management, use, and settlement of funds to ensure the operation of legal aid agencies and organizations; financial standards supporting activities to implement the policy of legal assistance shall be implemented in accordance with the provisions of Article 4 of Decision No. 59/2012/QĐ-TTg.

2. The expenditure levels for implementing the contents specified in Clause 5, 7, and 8 of Article 4 of Decision No. 59/2012/QĐ-TTg shall be implemented as follows:

a) Supplying the Vietnam Law Report to People's Committees and Legal Aid Clubs of poor communes at the price of circulation of the Vietnam Law Report with a quantity of: 01 issue/weekly report; Lunar New Year report, Lunar New Year report/unit/year.

b) Supporting tuition fees for civil servants of provincial Legal Aid Centers participating in lawyer training courses to appoint Legal Aid Officers: according to the current tuition fee of the Academy of Political Science. The number of supports is 03 people/center/year.

c) Supporting tuition fees for ethnic minority language training for legal aid providers directly providing legal aid in poor communes: according to the tuition fee of the training institution approved by the competent authority. The number of supports is 02 people/center/year.

Article 7. Preparation, execution, and settlement of budget expenses

The preparation, execution, and settlement of budget expenses shall be carried out in accordance with Decision No. 59/2012/QĐ-TTg, implemented in accordance with the provisions of Circular Joint Circular No. 209/2012/TTLT-BTC-BTP dated November 30, 2012, issued by the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Justice guiding the preparation, management, use, and settlement of budget expenses to ensure the operation of state legal aid agencies and organizations. This circular provides additional guidance on the following special points:

1. Preparing budgets

a) For management expenses: Each year, the Department of Justice prepares the budget for management expenses in accordance with Decision No. 59/2012/QĐ-TTg as stipulated by current regulations.

b) For expenses under Decision No. 59/2012/QĐ-TTg:

- For provinces and centrally-administered cities that can balance their budgets:

Based on the number of poor communes and extremely difficult hamlets and villages as specified in Clause 2, Article 2 of Decision No. 59/2012/QĐ-TTg, the State Legal Aid Center prepares the budget for expenses under Decision No. 59/2012/QĐ-TTg and sends it to the Department of Justice for consolidation before submitting to the Department of Finance for approval by the competent authority to allocate funds according to the regulations.

- For provinces that cannot balance their budgets:

Based on the number of poor communes and extremely difficult hamlets and villages as specified in Clause 2, Article 2 of Decision No. 59/2012/QĐ-TTg, the State Legal Aid Center prepares the budget and sends it to the Department of Justice for consolidation before submitting to the Department of Finance for the People's Committee of the province. On the basis of the forecast of local revenue and expenditure, the People's Committee of the province consolidates the budget proposal requesting central government support for targeted purposes as specified in Clauses 2, 3, 4, and 5 of Article 3 of Decision No. 59/2012/QĐ-TTg and reports it to the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Finance.

The Ministry of Justice consolidates the budget proposal requesting central government support for the provinces in the planning year and submits it to the Ministry of Finance for review and submission to the competent authority for decision in accordance with the provisions of the State Budget Law.

The preparation and submission of the budget proposal requesting financial support from the central budget must ensure legal aid work for the poor and ethnic minority groups in poor communes as stipulated by the State Budget Law and other implementing documents regarding the deadline for reporting annual state budget estimates.

2. Allocating budgets

When allocating the budget to the State Legal Aid Center, the competent authorities need to assign specifically the regular operating expenses, management activities, and specialized business expenses as prescribed in Decision No. 59/2012/QĐ-TTg.

3. Execution of the budget

a) For provinces that cannot balance their budgets, after the competent authority approves the budget, the Ministry of Finance will notify the supported localities of the funds.

b) Based on the state budget expenditure plan assigned by the competent authority, units shall withdraw the budget at the State Treasury where transactions are conducted to implement the plan.

The State Treasury shall monitor, execute, and settle payments for each activity of the legal aid policy in accordance with the Circular of the Ministry of Finance guiding the system of management, disbursement, and settlement of state budget expenditures through the State Treasury, current expenditure regulations, and the provisions of this Circular.

4. Accounting and Settlement

Units directly using the state budget to implement the legal aid policy under Decision No. 59/2012/QĐ-TTg of the Prime Minister shall be responsible for accounting and settling expenses in accordance with the State Budget Law, the Accounting Law, and other implementing documents.

Article 8. Implementation clause

This Circular takes effect from April 10, 2014.

During the implementation process, if there are difficulties or obstacles arising, localities are requested to report them to the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Justice for study and resolution./.