Position Paper 37/2024 edited by C. Ferretti, P. Lattarulo
The spending review is back, and once again the rules laid down by the center seem to have little dialogue with the administrations to which they are directed. Downstream of 175 billion in super bonus spending and 123 billion in PNRR debt and in view of the introduction of European fiscal rules, the residual margins of maneuver for the country’s fiscal policies are minimal and difficult to recover, however. Thus, the Budget Law for 2024 (Paragraphs 533-535) asks local governments for a contribution to public finance of 200 million annually for municipalities and 50 million annually for provinces, valid for the five-year period 2024-2028, for regions with ordinary statutes and islands. The cut affects 0.5 percent of net current spending and will have to be commensurate with two components: firstly, current spending itself (net of Mission 12, i.e., Social Expenditure), and secondly, it will have to “take into account” PNRR resources allocated as of 12/31/2023. Each municipality will, therefore, have to contribute by reducing (or rationalizing?) current spending – overall, in fact, the cuts will also affect social services – in proportion to past levels, i.e. without any reorganization design to ensure the sustainability of the cuts for the purpose of maintaining the level of services. On the other hand, contributing to the lower resources is the NRP, which is known to consist of investments and new infrastructure, nurseries, schools, land protection, digitalization
