The Social Fund budget covers all pensions, benefits and other citizen benefits, says Sergey Chirkov, Chairman of the Social Fund, today, at the State Duma session discussing the draft Fund budget for the next year.
According to Mr. Chirkov, the total Fund expenditures for the next year tally up to RUB 18.7 trillion. That is +10.3% compared to the current year. Pensions will take up the largest portion of that amount. RUB 11.9 trillion (about 64% of the total spending) will go toward insurance pensions, while over RUB 904 billion will be disbursed to cover government-funded pensions.
When presenting the draft budget to MPs, Mr. Chirkov emphasized that the Fund's pension and social welfare expenditures are growing year to year.
Starting from January 1, 38 million people will have their insurance pensions raised by 7.6%, which is above the inflation rate, Mr. Chirkov informed. As a result, the average insurance pension on retirement will exceed RUB 27,000 which is RUB 1,900 more than the year prior. Social pensions for 3.5 million citizens, including disabled children and people with lifelong disabilities, will be raised by 6.8%, bringing the average pension amount for these groups of individuals up to RUB 24,500.
Starting next year, the Social Fund will accept the responsibility for paying regional pension supplements, with RUB 101.6 billion earmarked for it. 1.4 million retirees will receive the supplements.
The next year's budget also provides for adjusting insurance pensions paid to mothers with many children, as their total employment record will include the periods of care for their fifth and subsequent children. Over 470,000 women will have their pensions adjusted up by nearly RUB 2,000 on average. The cost of the adjustment provided in the budget comes up to RUB 10.9 billion.
Over RUB 2.5 trillion will be allotted for family and children's protection next year, up by RUB 165.1 billion compared to the current year.
The maternity capital amount will be RUB 737,200 per one child and RUB 974,200 for two children. The unified allowance payments for parents and mothers-to-be are planned at RUB 1.7 trillion.
On top of that, annual family payments to working parents with two or more children are also provided for families paying income tax and earning 1.5 subsistence rate per family member at the highest. Expected cost for the first year of that payment is at RUB 119.1 billion, to be paid to 7 million parents.
This year, as instructed by the President, the Social Fund started paying maternity and childbirth benefits to full time university and college students. These benefits have already been provided to about 1,500 pregnant young women. RUB 1.3 billion is to be paid next year to 13,500 female students.
As Head of the Social Fund informed, RUB 1.4 trillion are also earmarked in the budget for temporary disability and maternity insurance payments. Maximum insurance benefit amounts will also go up. The maternity and childbirth benefits, for instance, will grow to RUB 955,836, allowance for children up to 18 months for working parents – to RUB 83,021.18/month.
The draft budget for the next year has more money earmarked for preventive occupational safety measures: over RUB 42.1 billion in total, RUB 6.3 billion more than in the current year. 52,100 insured entities will get support.
The financing for another key area of the Social Fund's operation, the rehabilitation of servicemen participating in the special military operation, will also grow by RUB 1.2 billion the next year. That money will, among other things, pay for veterans and their accompanying persons' travel to the place of treatment.
In conclusion, Mr. Chirkov pointed out that the draft budget for the Social Fund is balanced, all the government's obligations to citizens are being covered in full and will keep being covered going forward. After the discussion, the State Duma approved the first reading of the draft budget.