TEHRAN – The Iranian Parliament (Majlis) on Monday rejected general outlines of the national budget bill for the next Iranian calendar year 1399, which starts on March 20, ISNA reported.

The bill was rejected during the open session of the parliament with 67 votes in favor, 114 votes against and 3 abstentions.

On December 8, President Hassan Rouhani submitted the administration’s draft of the national budget bill for the next Iranian year to the Majlis.

The proposed budget amounted to about 19.88 quadrillion rials (about $473.3 billion at the official rate of 42,000 rials), with a 14-percent rise from the current year’s approved budget.

The bill has estimated the government’s budget at 5.63 quadrillion rials (about $134.04 billion), 8.2 percent higher than the figure in the present year’s budget.

According to the submitted bill, revenues from exporting oil, gas and gas condensate are estimated at 454.9 trillion rials (about $10.83 billion), down 66 percent from 1.37 quadrillion rials (about $32.61 billion) approved in the current year’s budget.

The government has envisioned various strategies for compensating the next year’s budget deficit due to the fall in oil revenues.

MA/MA