On Tuesday, March 4, the Joint Commission of Parliament changed its stance and once again approved the payment of cash subsidies to all Iranian households in 1394 (2015) just like in 1393 (2014). Ismail Jalili, a member of the Joint Commission, told the Mehr News Agency that this commission rejected the new proposal from the government and voted to revert to the government's initial bill, approving cash subsidies for all households in the coming year. The government of Hassan Rouhani had removed a clause from the 1394 budget bill that required the government to identify and exclude high-income deciles from the list of cash subsidy recipients. However, the Joint Commission of Parliament opposed this request from the government during the review of the budget bill on February 3, approving that households with monthly incomes above 2.5 million tomans would be deprived of cash subsidies. Following this, Akbar Izadi, head of the Targeted Subsidy Organization, criticized the Joint Commission's decision, stating that information regarding 7 to 15 million subsidy recipients is not available in any database, making it impossible to identify high-income families, and that implementing the Joint Commission's decision would be 'very problematic and would increase social costs.' On March 3, the Tasnim News Agency reported that Clause 21 of the 1394 budget bill, which pertains to the method of cash subsidy payments, was discussed in the open session, but Ali Larijani, the Speaker of Parliament, suggested that due to ambiguities regarding this clause, the matter should be referred to the Joint Commission for revision before returning to the open session. Iraj Nadimi, a member of the Joint Commission, stated on Tuesday that the government had proposed new suggestions, including extending the cash subsidy payment period from 30 days to 35 days to increase revenue for targeted subsidies. The government also claimed it could eliminate cash subsidies for two million wealthy individuals next year using existing methods, but the Joint Commission rejected both proposals. Ismail Jalili, another member of the Joint Commission, also mentioned that the government suggested that cash subsidies for ineligible households be removed at the discretion of the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs. Instead of cash subsidies, eligible households could benefit from housing loan interest or be given participation bonds with a minimum three-year maturity. However, the Joint Commission rejected all of the government's new proposals and instead approved cash subsidies for all households in 1394, similar to 1393. The new resolution of the Joint Commission must now return to the open session of Parliament.
The Joint Commission of Parliament Votes for Cash Subsidies for All Iranian Households
The Joint Commission of the Iranian Parliament has voted to continue cash subsidies for all households in 1394, rejecting the government's proposal to limit these subsidies to lower-income families. This decision comes amid ongoing debates about the budget and the challenges of identifying high-income households for subsidy exclusion.
👥 Key Players
📰 What Happened
The Joint Commission of the Iranian Parliament voted to continue cash subsidies for all households in 1394, rejecting the government's proposal to limit these subsidies to lower-income families. This decision highlights ongoing debates about budget management and subsidy distribution in Iran.
- The Joint Commission opposed the government's plan to exclude high-income households from receiving cash subsidies.
- The government struggled to provide accurate data on high-income families, complicating subsidy management.
💡 Why It Matters
📚 Background
Iran has a history of providing cash subsidies to support low-income families, but economic pressures have led to debates over the sustainability and targeting of these subsidies.
🏷️ Entities Mentioned
Translated from the original and edited for English readers. View original source →
Translation confidence: 85%