A Balance Sheet is not an Income Statement Act

[Breneir Tzaracomprada]

Whereas, someone experienced in accounting and finance has informed that a balance sheet is not an income sheet, and

Whereas, this should probably be fixed in El Lexhatx.

Therefore, be it enacted, that C 1.5.6.3 which currently reads as:

1.5.6.3. a balance sheet which clearly lists all expenses linking them to the relative sheet items in the budget bills approved in the Cosa,

Is amended to read as:

1.5.6.3. an income statement which clearly lists all expenses linking them to the relative sheet items in the budget bills approved in the Cosa,

[Baron Alexandreu Davinescu]

Seems like there might be some other changes we want to add in, like making the disbursement notices part of el Lexh. Maybe Uc might want to add on here?

[Miestră Schivă, UrN]

Disbursement notices = useless bureaucracy and form-ticking which the last 3 Cabinets got along perfectly well without. The problem with Talossa for years has been too much paperwork and form-filling required to administer the State, and the TNC's response is... more paperwork and form-filling! So no-one but really enthusiastic amateur bureaucrats will ever want to stand for office again.

[Baron Alexandreu Davinescu]

I would argue that the people very recently voted for increased transparency, after prolonged and public debate.

The expenditure notices serve a pretty important purpose. The people deserve to know how much and how their money is being spent.

And of course, regardless of whether or not you approve of a law, you're still supposed to obey it. Even the government isn't supposed to be above the law.

[Ian Plätschisch]

The issue is that sometimes it is very inconvenient if not impossible to wait two weeks before spending the money, and it seems unnecessary given that the spending was already authorized.

Perhaps you could at maximum require a disbursement notice at the time the money is spent?

[Baron Alexandreu Davinescu]

The law you sponsored also provided for reimbursement after 2 weeks. So in those rare instances where money has to be spent immediately, that can still happen. And then 2 weeks later, whoever spent the money can be reimbursed. But to be honest, I can't really think of a lot of circumstances where the money has to be spent on such short notice. Maybe BHAID contributions? And there have been other surprises. But things like domain registration, hosting fees, advertising campaigns, purchase of trophies or materials... Those all seem like we have at least two weeks' notice. I do absolutely have sympathies about this, though, and so I think that a lot of flexibility should be accorded and a lot of understanding extended. Stuff's going to happen!

The problem, though, is that we need to actually know how much is being spent. We know how much is authorized, but also often only a fraction of that gets disbursed. It's a basic function of democracy that the people need to know not just how much is allocated, but how much the treasury actually gets spent and on what. This is one of the fundamental things that the TNC campaigned about, and this transparency is really important.

The budget is a plan, not a receipt.

[Ian Plätschisch]

I'm still failing to see the benefit of the two week notice period, even if in principle it could usually be followed. It provides no additional documentation benefit over immediate notice.

[Üc R. Tärfă]

I was thinking on something a slightly little more comprehensive than this bill... The seneschal is just a little too enthusiastic to hopper everything ;D

I'm still failing to see the benefit of the two week notice period, even if in principle it could usually be followed. It provides no additional documentation benefit over immediate notice.

The benefit is the ability of the Ziu to block the disbursement. The notices in advance are useful only for some categories of expense, but not for everything, in that case I agree it's a useless bureaucracy (like the American shutdowns...).

[Ian Plätschisch]

The notices in advance are useful only for some categories of expense, but not for everything, in that case I agree it's a useless bureaucracy (like the American shutdowns...).

Heh, those are only useless because they don't shut down enough

In our case I am not sure there is anything so controversial that the Ziu needs to be able to block something that was appropriated a couple months ago.

[Baron Alexandreu Davinescu]

In purely practical terms, if we look back at past budgets and the current proposed one, we can see that money must often be appropriated for broad or vague purposes. It is sensible to require a government to create a financial plan before a third of the term is done, but it's not possible to investigate every possibility or plan out every decision in that time.

Logically, this means that budgets often have speculative elements - your own budget had several such. Down the line, actual decisions have to be made and specific choices for expenditures are set: a budget for advertising is one thing, but the Ziu cannot and should not be expected to simply be in a position to approve all possible expenditures for advertising. Budgets aren't supposed to be blank checks.

If we want to revise the budgeting process wholesale, I'm fine with that. But as it stands, Uc is right: the legislature deserves the chance to be heard on the specifics of our spending, and so we need procedures in place to make that possible.

Furthermore, the people have a right to know how much money is actually spent. I have no idea how much money was spent during the last term. That is a big problem.

[Baron Alexandreu Davinescu]

I wonder if this should be folded in with Tric'hard's notion of some reporting reform, as well?  Maybe we should aim for another financial reform omnibus, -- seems to be tradition to do one per term.

[Breneir Tzaracomprada]

I wonder if this should be folded in with Tric'hard's notion of some reporting reform, as well?  Maybe we should aim for another financial reform omnibus, -- seems to be tradition to do one per term.

This is an excellent idea. My bill was just a wording edit in El Lex but if it can become something much more substantial I am supportive.