In the last days of December of the previous year, a session of the Bolesławiec Municipal Council was held, devoted mainly to matters related to next year’s budget. The budget adopted by the Council totals approximately PLN 35.5 billion on the expenditure side. Planned budget revenues, however, will be considerably lower. The budget deficit is planned to be covered by the budget surplus. This will make it possible to carry out the most important investment projects.
The main sources of budget revenue will be, as in previous years, receipts from property tax, agricultural tax and transport vehicle tax, as well as the municipality’s shares in the revenues of the state budget (corporate and personal income tax). The smallest item on the revenue side, also by now a tradition, is the general subsidy, amounting to approximately PLN 800 million, or just under 4% of budget revenues. Therefore, the general subsidy has no fundamental impact on budget expenditure.
The dominant item in the expenditure structure is spending on continued investments and those planned to begin in the current year, which accounts for as much as 52.8% of the municipality’s total budget expenditure. The Municipal Council has established priorities concerning water supply and gasification projects, as well as the modernization of educational facilities. These are the most important investments. In the budget year, expenditure on the modernization and maintenance of roads was reduced at the Municipal Council’s request.
In pursuit of the previously adopted target structure for providing all rural residents with a full water supply, funds have been secured to continue and complete the construction of the water supply system for Dobra, and to begin two new rural water supply systems for the northern part of the municipality: one covering the villages of Trzebień – Trzebień Mały – Parkoszów, and another specifically for Golnice.
The total budget expenditure on education-related tasks amounts to PLN 9.2 billion, of which only PLN 1.5 billion will cover the costs of the municipality’s own tasks—the maintenance of preschool classes. The remaining funds have been allocated to investment projects—PLN 6 billion—and renovations—PLN 1.7 billion.
The Council consciously decided to carry out tasks within the competence of the government administration, despite the municipality not taking over responsibility for running the schools as of January 1. This decision is a consequence of the policy pursued since the beginning of the Council’s term. The councillors are aware that if substantial budget funds are not allocated now to improving the condition of educational infrastructure, we will feel consequences many times more serious when the schools are taken over.
The budget funds planned for expenditure in the education section this year will be used to continue and complete construction of the gymnasium at the Primary School in Dąbrowa, modernize the Primary School in Trzebień, and carry out major renovations of the schools in Bożejowice and Kruszyn. The latter renovation will be combined with changing the building’s heating system from traditional heating to gas heating.
Approximately PLN 5 billion will be spent on municipal services. The more significant tasks scheduled for this year include completing construction of the gas pipeline for Łaziska, renovating the second section of the wooden bridge over the Bóbr River in Parkoszów, and the municipality’s contribution to the cost of building the missing bus bays along National Roads Nos. 4 and 297. Implementation of the latter project depends on the Regional Directorate of Roads in Jelenia Góra joining the project.
In addition, a special-purpose reserve of approximately PLN 4 billion has been created from the planned budget funds. These funds will be used either to begin a comprehensive project to provide the municipality with telephone service or to build a gymnasium at the Primary School in Ocice. The final purpose
will be determined after talks with Telekomunikacja Polska SA have concluded and will depend on their outcome. We hope that the final decisions will be made in the first quarter of this year.
The remaining budget funds will be used to cover the costs of renovating and maintaining municipal buildings, renovating cultural institutions, paying for electricity for street lighting, contributing to the costs of local public transport, and subsidizing the current operations of Rural Health Centres.
Regardless of the budget proposal, the Council adopted all budget-related resolutions concerning local taxes and fees and the tax on means of transport, and set the purchase price of rye used to calculate the agricultural tax for the first half of the year.
By adopting an ambitious plan of objectives for the current year, the Municipal Council expresses the hope that, by starting most of the tasks in this half-year, it will be possible to complete them successfully and to the satisfaction of the municipality’s residents. This will constitute a worthy conclusion to the Council’s expiring term.
Among other means, through “Głos Bolesławca”, we will keep the residents of our municipality and city informed about the progress in implementing the tasks included in this year’s plan.