GOOD GOVERNANCE, PARLIAMENTARY OVERSIGHT + FINANCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY

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1 GOOD GOVERNANCE, PARLIAMENTARY OVERSIGHT + FINANCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY The Role of the Legislature in the Budget Process Rick Stapenhurst, World Bank Institute

2 Outline of Presentation Background Factors Shaping Role of the Legislature in the Budget Process The Constitution Timing Committees Access to Information Political Dynamics Conclusions

3 Heart of Executive-Legislative Relations : The Budget Process Planning Public Accountability INTERNAL Budgeting System Accounting Audit Budgeting Independent System Revenue & Audit/Evaluation Cash/Debt Expenditure Managerial Reporting Management System Internal Financial CONTROLS Reporting

4 Key actors in the budget process The finance ministry or treasury is to coordinate and drive the budget process in accordance with schedule. Spending departments are ultimately responsible for expenditures within their jurisdiction. President/Prime Minister and Cabinet make fundamentally political decisions about tradeoffs. The role of the legislature is to scrutinize and authorize revenues and expenditures. Independent supreme audit institutions audit government accounts for compliance and performance. Other actors may include the media, civil society organizations, donors and international financial institutions.

5 Stages of the annual budget process Finance ministry or treasury issues guidelines to spending departments or agencies Spending departments submit draft budgets Negotiation and final decisions by executive Budget tabled in the legislature Consideration by parliamentary committee(s) Parliament accepts, amends or rejects the budget Funds apportioned to spending departments to implement activities Finance ministry monitors spending Request for legislative approval of adjustment budget if necessary Supreme audit institution assesses departmental accounts and performance Audit reports published and reviewed by parliament Drafting Legislative Implementation Audit Before beginning of relevant fiscal year Fiscal year starts and ends Following end of fiscal year

6 Constitutional framework Some legislatures face constitutional restrictions on their right to introduce financial legislation. The legislature s legal powers to amend financial legislation might be restricted. Some constitutions provide for executive veto authority of the kind that requires extraordinary majorities to be overridden by parliament. A package veto allows a president to veto a piece of legislation in its entirety. E.g. US. A line item veto or partial veto on the other hand allows a president to delete individual items in a financial bill. This allows for greater selectivity. E.g. Chile.

7 Legislative powers to amend the budget Budgetary powers Number of countries Percentage of total Unlimited powers to amend the 32 40% budget Reductions of existing items only 17 21% Rights not specified 15 19% Increases must be balanced with 13 16% commensurate cuts elsewhere May reduce expenditure, increase 4 5% only with permission of government Total % Source: Inter-Parliamentary Union (1986: Table 38A).

8 Nature of Review Restrictions on the right of the legislature to modify the executive budget proposal? All Countries OECD Morocco Jordan Yes 56 % 44 % No 44 % 56 %

9 Nature of Review What form does restriction take? All Countries OECD Morocco Jordan No change, only approve/reject 14 % 9 % No net increase spending 60 % 54 % Executive must approve 5 % 0 % Other 23 % 36 %

10 Timing of the budget International experience suggests that a minimum of three months is required for meaningful legislative analysis and scrutiny (OECD Best Practices). The budget should also be tabled sufficiently in advance of the fiscal year to which it relates. On occasions the timely passage of the budget may not be possible, and for such cases the constitution or legislation typically define a reversionary budget.

11 Nature of Review How far in advance of the beginning of the fiscal year does the executive present its budget to the legislature? Time (months) All countries OECD Morocco Jordan < 2 28 % 30 % 2 to 4 56 % 56 % 4 to 6 13 % 11 % > 6 3 % 4 %

12 Role of parliamentary committees Legislative committees are the engine room of the legislature. Where the committee stage is underdeveloped, the budgetary role of the legislature tends to be weak. There are several models: A single budget committee makes decisions without input from other committees. In a two-tier system the budget committee decides on expenditure totals and sectoral committees departmental budgets. There is no budget committee, but sectoral committees scrutinize departmental budgets.

13 Internal Management What committee structure manages the budget? All countries OECD Morocco Jordan Single budget committee 48 % 46 % Single budget committee, sectoral committee input 15 % 15 % Single budget committee for aggregate spending, sectoral committees for sector spending 18 % 15 % Sectoral committees only 5 % 8 % Other 15 % 8 %

14 Internal Management Committee Meetings are Public? All countries OECD Morocco Jordan Yes 50 % 46 % No 50 % 54 %

15 Case study: a new role for committees in the Swedish Parliament Before the 1990s, the budget process in the Swedish Parliament focused on individual appropriations with little consideration of the aggregate effect of parliamentary action. Parliament recognized the need for change in the early 1990s during a fiscal crisis, and established a commission to formulate a reform proposal. The reformed process has three key steps: 1. Parliament fixes aggregate expenditures and revenues in a Spring Fiscal Policy Bill, which is tabled in April and approved in June. 2. Following the tabling of the budget in September, the Finance Committee discusses and recommends the allocations for each of 27 expenditure areas, such as justice, communications etc. 3. Once the House has approved the division of aggregate expenditures, sectoral committees allocate funding to individual appropriations within their expenditure areas. The sectoral committees are permitted to change the composition of appropriations but must remain within the agreed total for their expenditure area. The budget is approved in December, before the beginning of the fiscal year in January.

16 Nature of Review Legislature establish hard ceilings before debate on details? All countries OECD Morocco Jordan Yes, hard ceilings 20 % 30 % No, but nonbinding debate on aggregate 37 % 30 % No 44 % 41 %

17 Access to information Legislative decision making needs to be based on comprehensive, accurate, appropriate and timely information. In a number of countries, the budget document itself contains little narrative that outlines the policies underlying tax and spending proposals. Many budgets do not sufficiently relate expenditures to policy objectives. Parliamentary budget offices are important sources of independent expertise. The OECD has developed Best Practices for Budget Transparency that deal with the availability of budget information.

18 OECD Recommendations A comprehensive budget includes performance data and medium term projections. A pre-budget report states explicitly the government s longterm economic and fiscal policy objectives, and its economic assumptions and fiscal policy intentions for the medium term. Monthly reports show progress in implementing the budget, including explanations of any differences between actual and forecast amounts. A mid-year report provides a comprehensive update on the implementation of the budget, including an updated forecast of the budget outcome for the medium term. A year-end report should be audited by the audit institution and released within six months of the end of the fiscal year. A pre-election report illuminates the general state of government finances immediately before an election. A long-term report assesses the long-term sustainability of current government policies.

19 Expert Advice Number of professional staff supporting budget committee? Number Staff All countries OECD Morocco Jordan None 5 % 4 % 2 to 5 44 % 46 % 5 to % 15 % > % 35 %

20 Expert Advice Specialized budget research office supporting legislature? Number staff All countries OECD Morocco Jordan < % 12 % 10 to 25 2 % 4 % > 25 8 % 12 % No 72 % 72 %

21 Do political parties in legislature receive funding for special budget staff support? All countries OECD Morocco Jordan Yes, funded by legislature 27 % 20 % Yes, funded by parties 14 % 16 % No 59 % 64 %

22 Political dynamics Budgeting takes place in a broader political context. Secure legislative majorities enhance the predictability of voting outcomes. Minority and coalition governments may have to make more concessions in order to ensure legislative support. Party majorities only ensure predictability of legislative voting behavior when they are matched with tight party discipline. Role of electoral system.

23 Concluding remarks A number of factors combine to determine the role and impact of the legislature in the approval stage of the budget process. A legislature needs sufficient constitutional powers over budgets, in particular amendment powers. Thorough review of financial proposals requires time for scrutiny and a properly timed budget process, where the budget is tabled sufficiently in advance of the beginning of the fiscal year. Furthermore, parliamentary expertise on the budget is most likely to develop in specialized committees. Legislative decision making also should be based on full access to relevant and high quality information Formal powers may not be utilized unless the legislature has a degree of political independence from the executive.