Circular No. 90/1999/TT-BTC guides certain points regarding measures to implement tasks for the last six months of 1999.

CIRCULAR

OF THE MINISTRY OF FINANCE NUMBER 90/1999/TT-BTC DATED JULY 22, 1999 GUIDING CERTAIN POINTS REGARDING THE MEASURES FOR MANAGING AND IMPLEMENTING THE TASKS IN THE LAST SIX MONTHS OF 1999

Implementing Decision No. 248/1998/QĐ-TTg dated December 24, 1998 of the Prime Minister on certain policies and measures for managing the plan for economic and social development and the state budget estimate for 1999, the Ministry of Finance issued Circular No. 190/1998/TT-BTC dated December 31, 1998; ministries, sectors, and localities need to organize and implement well the policies of the Government and the guidance of the Ministry of Finance.

On July 9, 1999, the Government issued Resolution No. 08/1999/NQ-CP on measures for managing and implementing tasks in the last six months of 1999. The Ministry of Finance guides certain specific points regarding financial and state budget management measures from now until the end of 1999 as follows:

1. Ministries, sectors, and People's Committees at all levels focus on directing efforts to boost production and business operations, expand markets. Based on this, closely monitor sources of revenue to collect accurately and fully all revenues generated according to the Law, exploit potential revenues and dormant revenue sources, strive to achieve and exceed the budget revenue targets assigned, paying attention to:

- Continuing to direct the implementation of new tax laws, particularly value-added tax, and promptly address difficulties and obstacles during the implementation process. Within its authority, the Ministry of Finance will immediately handle issues related to invoices, certificates, revenue collection procedures, and tax refunds to ensure both strictness and simplicity, and convenience. At the same time, it will submit to the Government and National Assembly proposals to adjust tax rates for certain goods and reduce taxes for goods and materials in stock as of December 31, 1998 when put into production and consumption at a loss, allowing continued tax benefits for investment projects with preferential treatment and production facilities of disabled persons.

- In conjunction with measures to encourage enterprises to invest deeply and improve technology to increase productivity, quality, and lower product costs, enhancing competitiveness. Ministries, sectors, and localities direct relevant agencies to promptly resolve large quantities of products in inventory through price reductions, deferred payment sales, and extended tax payment periods corresponding to deferred payment terms.

- To promote exports, the State will establish an Export Support Fund. This fund will be used to provide financial support for exporting goods to new markets; exporting agricultural and food products, consumer goods to CIS countries and Eastern European countries; supporting interest rates for purchasing export goods; supporting costs for finding new markets...

- Implement classification of enterprises to have appropriate policies: for enterprises operating effectively, encourage and support them to continue to improve; for loss-making enterprises that do not need to be maintained, sell, lease, or dissolve them; for state-owned enterprises not within the scope required to maintain state ownership, if transferring to another form of ownership would operate better, actively transfer ownership, including selling shares to foreigners.

2. Ministries, sectors, and People's Committees at all levels review the list of construction projects recorded in the capital plan for 1999. Projects that have actual work volumes should promptly complete procedures for payment. If conditions for implementation are not met or deemed ineffective, report to the competent authority to adjust funds for other projects that meet conditions but have not been allocated funds, to accelerate construction progress and put projects into use sooner.

Financial agencies ensure sufficient funding is transferred to investment development agencies to advance 40-50% of the remaining value of the 1999 construction plan budget to speed up construction progress. In cases where localities face funding shortages, the Ministry of Finance will increase the budget adjustment progress to allow localities to allocate funds proactively.

3. For construction volumes exceeding the 1996-1997 plan which were allocated funding by the Government, project sponsors must urgently complete documentation to settle matters definitively in the third quarter of 1999. Projects that have been funded but have lower settlement amounts than announced cannot be adjusted for other projects. For localities that have received full funding according to announcements but have not settled or transferred to the Investment Development Bureau for settlement, the Department of Finance and Price Control will report and return to the central budget. If they do not return to the central budget, the Ministry of Finance will deduct from the allocations to the locality.

For unresolved cases that have not been settled, the Department of Finance and Price Control together with the Investment Development Bureau will clearly state the reasons and notify the project sponsor, while compiling reports to the provincial People's Committee to report to the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Planning and Investment before September 30, 1999.

4. Ministries, sectors, and People's Committees at all levels:

- Immediately prepare necessary conditions to implement the additional investment capital for concentrated construction projects supplemented for 1999 after the Prime Minister decides, with this capital mainly allocated for projects serving agriculture, transportation, education, healthcare, clean water supply programs in mountainous areas, remote regions, employment resolution programs, free migration, and economic and social development in poor border communes not included in the 1,000 extremely difficult poor communes. For agriculture, focus capital on irrigation and seed improvement (including plants and animals). In addition to supplementary funding from the central budget, localities need to mobilize local resources to supplement these poor communes so that within a few years, these communes can complete basic infrastructure such as electricity, roads, schools, health stations, markets, clean water...

- Prepare projects for important production works and infrastructure projects with the potential for revenue recovery to be ready to accept preferential funding sources, manage these funds strictly, ensuring effective use of funds and repayment of loans.

The State shall allocate a portion of preferential credit funds for provincial and centrally-administered city budgets to borrow for investment in constructing durable canal and irrigation structures, upgrading road surfaces, and rural electrification projects under local budget investment targets that have not yet been funded. Localities shall promptly complete necessary procedures and report to the Ministry of Planning and Investment and the Ministry of Finance before August 15, 1999, to borrow preferential credit funds and arrange repayments (both principal and interest) over several years from the local budget.

- Promptly review and address any difficulties in allocating funds for target programs within their authority; simultaneously, timely reflect any difficulties that cannot be resolved by ministries, sectors, or localities.

5. For Program 135, provincial and municipal People's Committees need to complete the decision on capital allocation for each project and establish the Project Management Board before August 1, 1999; at the same time, urgently direct the People's Committees of districts and project sponsors to complete other necessary procedures to implement the program.

To accelerate the implementation of the program in the first year of execution (1999), when the project has been approved and a contract signed with Party B, the State Treasury shall advance approximately 50% of the construction capital and upon commencement of construction, advance up to 70% of the contract value of the project.

6. Localities need to concentrate resources to achieve the goal of constructing durable canals from various sources such as agricultural land tax revenue, water resource fees, preferential credit, and contributions from the people, specifically:

+ For inter-district and inter-village canal construction, the investment capital shall be allocated from agricultural land tax revenue. Water management units, based on water resource fee revenues, after deducting reasonable expenses, shall retain the remainder for investing in durable canal construction under their management. If insufficient, localities shall aggregate and report to the Ministry of Planning and Investment and the Ministry of Finance to borrow preferential credit funds and receive state budget subsidies for interest rate differences.

+ For intra-village and field canal construction, it shall be implemented through joint efforts between the State and the people, specifically: people contribute labor, while the local budget supports materials (steel, cement) for construction.

7. People's Committees at all levels shall organize budget expenditure based on revenue capacity. If revenue increases, expenditure may increase accordingly, prioritizing essential tasks such as construction investment, education and training, science and technology, environmental protection, health, culture, reserves, etc. In education and training, priority should be given to activities directly serving teaching and learning. In science and technology, focus should be on research and development of new technologies, new types of seeds, and seedlings. In cases where revenue does not meet expectations, expenditures must be rearranged proactively, reducing spending based on necessity rather than uniformly.

8. The unallocated 10% of the 1999 budget expenditure forecast for budgetary units according to the National Assembly Resolution shall be handled as follows:

- For the central budget, the Government has balanced for newly emerging tasks that cannot be delayed, so from now until the end of the year, if ministries, sectors, and localities have new expenditure tasks arising, they shall proactively arrange them within the allocated budget.

- For local budgets: it is necessary to proactively utilize budget reserves and the aforementioned unallocated 10% to address urgent expenditure tasks and those already planned but lacking funding.

9. Ministries, sectors, and People's Committees at all levels shall instruct subordinate units to strictly implement the Decree on Thrift and Prevention of Waste at all levels, sectors, and fields. Attention should be paid to:

- Minimizing the use of state budget funds for building new office premises, purchasing new small cars, and acquiring expensive equipment for administrative and public service agencies. The management and use of vehicles in administrative and public service agencies and state-owned enterprises shall comply with Decision No. 122/1999/QĐ-TTg dated May 10, 1999, of the Prime Minister. The purchase of small cars for work purposes shall initially follow the provisions of Circular No. 190/1998/TT-BTC dated December 31, 1998, of the Ministry of Finance.

- Based on the results of asset and land inventory in administrative and public service areas and asset allocation regulations, assets should be reallocated from surplus to deficit areas to effectively utilize state assets. Expenditures on conferences, ceremonies, and unnecessary expenses should be reduced proactively. Any savings made by units, after approval by the same-level financial authorities, may be used to supplement unexpected expenditure tasks or those already planned but lacking funding.

- Localities must use supplementary funds with specific objectives and authorized receipts from the central budget for their intended purposes efficiently. Expenditures from retained revenue sources must be balanced in the budget planning stage; if the allocated budget is incorrect, adjustments must be made.

- Prepare conditions to implement cost-sharing in some units based on the experience of units that have already implemented cost-sharing, expanding to other units.

- Heads of agencies and units using state budget funds are responsible for using funds economically and in accordance with policies and regulations, and bear legal responsibility for expenditures that violate these regulations.

- Financial authorities and State Treasuries at all levels must strengthen inspection and control of expenditures during allocation and management to ensure compliance with national regulations.

10. Ministries, sectors, People's Committees of localities shall inspect and direct subordinate units that have not yet publicly disclosed the budget estimate for the year 1999 to organize public disclosure before July 31, 1999, and prepare for public disclosure of the final accounts immediately after approval by the competent authority in accordance with the provisions of Decision No. 225/1998/QĐ-TTg dated November 20, 1998 of the Government Chairman and Circular No. 188/1998/TT-BTC dated December 30, 1998 of the Ministry of Finance. For violations, appropriate measures shall be taken depending on the severity.

The above are some regulations guiding certain points of Resolution No. 08/1999/NQ-CP dated July 9, 1999 of the Government regarding the restructuring of debt of shareholding enterprises and the transfer and lease of enterprises, the extension of tax payment for goods sold on credit, and other issues, the Ministry of Finance will provide separate guidance.

This Circular takes effect from the date of signature. During implementation, if there are difficulties or obstacles, ministries, sectors, and localities are requested to promptly report to the Ministry of Finance for coordinated solutions.

Pham Van Trong

(Signed)