PARLIAMENT RATIFIES FY07 BUDGET

UNCLAS PORT AU PRINCE 001880 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR WHA/CAR EB/IFD S/CRS SOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD STATE PASS TO USAID FOR LAC/CAR INR/IAA (BEN-YEHUDA) COMMERCE FOR SCOTT SMITH TREASURY FOR JEFFERY LEVINE WHA/EX PLEASE PASS USOAS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV ECON HA SUBJECT: PARLIAMENT RATIFIES FY07 BUDGET REF: PAP 1842 ¶1. The Haitian parliament ratified the executive's FY07 budget, with some modifications per ref. The chamber passed the budget September 27 by a vote of 40 out of 53 deputies present; the senate passed the budget one day later with a unanimous vote of 27 senators. At this point, parliament passes the ratified budget to the executive, either to be approved and published, or re-modified and returned to parliament. According to Senator Kelly Bastien of the finance commission, finance minister Daniel Dorsainvil is not satisfied with the changes, but is under pressure from President Rene Preval to approve the budget and publish it as is, given the start of FY07 on October 1. ¶2. President Preval's economic advisor Gabriel Verret told econoff September 29 that the executive, though largely satisfied with the budget's rapid ratification, is disappointed with the reallocation of about 900 million Haitian gourdes (about USD 25 million) from the public intervention fund. The parliamentarians reallocated the funds to the feasibility study of creating a national army and to their own "pork barrel politics," according to Verret. Also, Verret complained that the parliamentarians did not specify from where the 900 million Haitian gourdes should be removed. (The public intervention fund was intended for a number of projects, including energy funds.) Verret confirmed that Dorsainvil's initial reaction was to reject the budget, but that the executive will most likely approve it as is. SANDERSON