PRAGUE, Dec. 19 (Xinhua) -- The Czech Chamber of Deputies on Wednesday approved the state budget bill for 2019 with a deficit of 40 billion crowns (1.77 billion U.S. dollars).
The approved deficit is 10 billion crowns (441.74 million U.S. dollars) lower than that projected for 2018.
The budget projects the overall state expenditures at 1,505 billion crowns (66.48 billion U.S. dollars) and revenues at 1,465 billion crowns (64.71 billion U.S. dollars). It estimates a 3.1 percent economic growth, an average inflation rate of 2.3 percent, and an unchanged unemployment rate of 2.3 percent.
The government expects to collect almost 769 billion crowns (33.97 billion U.S. dollars) in taxes in 2019, about 40 billion more than for this year.
The budget supports the addition of 327 million crowns to the chapter of investments in social services and the shifting of 600 million crowns in support of construction of municipal apartments and schools. It also shifted 100 million crowns from the climate protection chapter to the wages of police and firefighters.
Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis said in the bill's first reading that the budget would improve the lives of citizens and would help entrepreneurs and self-employed people. Finance Minister Alena Schillerova said the draft budget reflects the government's priorities.
For the main spending priorities, the government has set the raising of the average monthly old-age pension by about 900 crowns and the raising of the wages in some professions, mainly teachers, as of January 2019. Further priorities are the increase in the sum going to universities, sports and investments.
The approved budget will now be signed by Czech President Milos Zeman. Czech Senate does not deal with the approval of the state budget bill. (one U.S. dollar = 22.638 crowns)
