Román Rodríguez agrees with the Fecam the advance of 103 million euros and the elimination of the conditions on the use of 50% of the 303 million euros of the Canary Islands Municipal Financing Fund
The Ministry of Finance, Budgets and European Affairs of the Government of the Canary Islands will advance this year to July the payment of 103 million euros to the municipalities charged to the Canary Islands Municipal Financing Fund, according to what the vice president of the Executive and head of this regional department said today. , Román Rodríguez, who met with the president of the Canary Islands Federation of Municipalities (Fecam), Mari Brito, and the vice-president and financial manager of this body, Óscar Hernández, together with the vice-minister of Finance, Fermín Delgado.
Rodríguez also announced that the Government will eliminate, also for this year, the obligation of local corporations to allocate half of the Fund to investments, with which they will be able to use these resources for expenses related to the needs due to the health, social and economy of Covid-19.
The municipalities receive 303 million euros annually from the Canary Islands Municipal Financing Fund, in two delivery periods, in April (already transferred) and December. With the agreement adopted today, the corporations will receive in July 103 million of the 200 million that they would lack to receive; The remaining 97 million will be received at the end of the year, as planned.
The vice president explained that these two measures will alleviate the financial tensions of local Canarian corporations, which «like the rest of the public administrations, are suffering the consequences of the health crisis and the paralysis of economic activity, with a precipitous drop in income.
«All citizens and all administrations are facing great difficulties, but probably in the case of city councils they are more visible because they constitute the first trench to combat the effects of the crisis and where citizens go before,» he said.
Rodríguez framed the agreement reached today with the Fecam in «a deep and sincere process of cooperation and institutional loyalty between the Government and the municipalities, for the benefit of the citizenry.»
The vice president specified that the changes agreed for this year, both the advance and the elimination of conditions, will have the force of law and that they could even be substantiated through the figure of the decree-law.
The Government of the Canary Islands can face this disbursement thanks to the imminent transfer, by the State, of 400 million euros corresponding to the liquidation of the regional financing, destined to pay for health, education and social services.