Romanian Senate Rejects Decree Cutting Heating Aid For Owners Of Multiple Homes

The decree was initially endorsed by the Senate's budget committee and the administration committee, with the amendment setting a level of RON5,000 for bank deposits, instead of RON3,000.

The report, however, was rejected with 100 votes against, three votes in favor and one abstention. Subsequently, Senate Chairman Mircea Geoana put up for vote the draft law adopting the decree, which received 50 votes in favor, 53 votes against and one abstention.

According to the Senate's Regulation, Geoana put up for vote the draft rejecting the decree, which was rejected with 52 votes in favor and 48 votes against.

The decree stipulates that people who own more than one home, cars with an engine capacity exceeding 1,600 cubic meters, namely, light vehicles, any type of trucks and trailers, motorboats, water scooters, yachts buses and minivans, are not entitled to receieve heating subsidies. The decree also cuts heating subsidies for people who own farming machinery, such as tractors, self-propelled harvesters, far processing equipment, such as oil presses, cereal mill, wood processing devices- sawmills, chainsaws or other hydraulic, mechanic or electric wood processing devices.

Romanian Labor Minister Ioan Botis, who upheld the adoption of the decree in the Senate, said the Government targets a whole new philosophy regarding social aid in Romania. He said almost 11 million people, which is half the country's population, currently benefit from heating subsidies.

Senators of the opposition harshly criticized the decree, arguing that almost everybody living in hilly and mountainous areas has a chainsaw. They stressed it is not fair to deny heating subsidies for an 80-year old man who owns a chainsaw.

The decree still has to be debated in the Chamber of Deputies.

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