Parliament Passes Bill to Support Underprivileged Households
EghtesadOnline: The Iranian Parliament’s proposal for “supply of essential goods to households” was approved on Wednesday.
As per the decision of lawmakers, the government is tasked with a monthly payment of 1.2 million rials ($4.3) to 20 million people who are not covered by any charity and welfare organization and 600,000 rials ($2.1) to 40 million people of modest means who have a source of inadequate income over the second half of the current year (Sept. 22, 2020-March 20, 2021).
According to Jabbar Kouchakinejad, a member of Majlis Plan and Budget Commission, the budget set for the plan stands at 300 trillion rials ($1.07 billion) for six months.
“If the current economic situation persists, the payments must continue into the next year,” he was quoted as saying by ILNA.
The parliament had been working on the proposal since past few months, despite the government’s repeated assertions of lacking resources to implement such plans.
The parliament declared on Wednesday that the government is allowed to tap into funds it could gain from selling its assets to implement the plan.
The Iranian government is already implementing two cash payments: the Targeted Subsidies Law of 2010 that authorized the reduction of food and energy subsidies to make the direct cash payment of 455,000 rials ($1.6) to each and every Iranian on a monthly basis. The plan has been retained and more than 95% of Iranians currently receive the subsidy.
The other program involves cash payment to people of modest income as compensation for higher gasoline prices that were introduced last year.