Savings measures approved by the committee in the assembly
The Plan and Budget Commission made a decision in line with the Constitutional Court’s ruling regarding the provision related to "treasury aids to be made from the general budget" among the revenues of the Turkish Standards Institution with the Presidential Decree. According to the proposal, this provision is added to the Law on Some Regulations Regarding the Turkish Standards Institute.
The proposal gives authorization to the Privatization Administration Presidency for the comprehensive and fast sales of vehicles and machinery defined in the Road Traffic Law and transferred to the Ministry of Environment, Urbanization, and Climate Change for the administrations, within the framework of the principles and procedures to be determined. All necessary consultancy services, including the processes and auction procedures, will be carried out in accordance with the Privatization Practices Law, and the expenses will be covered by the Privatization Fund. The remaining amount after deducting expenses from the sales proceeds will be transferred to the Central Accounting Directorate of the Treasury and Finance Ministry for general budget institutions and to the relevant administration accounting unit accounts for others. These transferred amounts will be recorded as income in the general budget or the budgets of the relevant public institutions, as appropriate.
According to the adopted amendment in the Commission, these sales will be carried out through open auctions and/or e-auction methods.
Changes will be made in the Stamp Tax Law so that investment contracts related to investment incentives signed between the Minister of Industry and Technology and investors will be exempt from stamp duty similar to investment incentive certificates. This provision will come into effect on the date of publication of the regulation and will be valid from July 1, 2024.
The provision of the Higher Education Institutions Organization Law, which was cancelled by the Constitutional Court, is being rearranged. According to this, teaching staff positions will be established for universities in line with the reasons for the cancellation.
In line with the adopted amendment in the Commission, changes will be made in the staff table for Ondokuz Mayıs University, and teaching staff members will be added to some university positions.
BOTAŞ and TPAO Provisions
Changes will be made in the Natural Gas Market Law, allowing BOTAŞ to offset any unpaid taxes, funds, administrative fines, late payment penalties, and late payment interest arising from natural gas imports against receivables from the Treasury. Information about the procedures for the execution and conclusion of the procurement process related to the purchase of natural gas by BOTAŞ and other related matters will be determined by the President according to market conditions, confidentiality, reliability, meeting the needs under suitable conditions and in a timely manner, and efficient use of resources.
The provisions related to BOTAŞ and TPAO in the Public Procurement Law will be changed in the scope of natural gas purchases made by BOTAŞ to be exempt from the Public Procurement Law.
Changes will be made in the Public Procurement Law in line with the relevant decision of the Constitutional Court. According to this change, the methods of purchasing natural gas by BOTAŞ, including purchasing methods, will be determined by the President in line with the principles of market conditions, confidentiality, reliability, meeting needs under suitable conditions and on time, and efficient use of resources.
The legislation aims to enable BOTAŞ to benefit from the exceptions provided to the Turkish Petroleum Corporation (TPAO) more comprehensively, including its subsidiaries, under the changes made in the Public Procurement Law. Accordingly, the monetary limit specified in the "exceptions" clause in the Public Procurement Law will not be applied to the procurement of goods and services and construction works carried out by TPAO, BOTAŞ, their subsidiaries, and the companies established abroad for petroleum and natural gas exploration, drilling, production, transportation, storage, and gasification activities.
For purchases made by BOTAŞ, the procurement methods to be applied in accordance with the basic principles will be regulated by a regulation issued by the institution upon the institution’s opinion, and the procurement process, including preparation of documents, submission of offers, evaluation of offers, and conclusion of purchases, etc., including the procedures for the procurement process and framework agreements, will be carried out in part or in whole using the Electronic Public Procurement Platform (EKAP).
External Financing for the Turkish-Japanese University
Changes will be made in the Law on Public Finance and Debt Management to provide a Treasury repayment guarantee for external financing to be provided by the Japanese government or Japanese national institutions to the Turkish-Japanese University established in accordance with the Law on the Establishment of the Turkish-Japanese University without being included in their investment program by the Japanese government. In this context, the Treasury and Finance Minister will be authorized to provide Treasury repayment guarantees within the framework of the Public Receivables Collection Procedure Law regarding Treasury receivables arising from these guarantees.
The proposal aims to strengthen the capital structure of public banks. Accordingly, the Treasury and Finance Minister will be authorized to issue special series of government domestic debt securities in 2024 fiscal year within the Market Stability and Balance Fund of the Turkey Wealth Fund Management Corporation to strengthen the capital of public banks.
Other Measures
The legislation introduces new rules and regulations regarding the responsibilities and duties of tax experts and assistant tax experts working in units affiliated with the Revenue Administration.
In addition, measures will be taken against individuals who do not comply with the savings measures in the management and practices of public institutions by imposing disciplinary measures in accordance with the relevant legislation.
The proposal also includes provisions related to the payments made for the management board, supervisory board, liquidation board, advisory board membership, and commission, committee, and similar bodies of any institution without discriminating between private or public status.
