TEHRAN - Iranian parliament’s ad hoc budget review committee submitted its report on the administration’s budget bill for the next Iranian calendar year (starting March 20) to the parliament (Majlis), IRNA reported on Sunday.

According to Ali-Asghar Yousefnejad, a member of the body, the report includes the views of the committee members on the next year’s budget bill.

Majlis Presiding Board has now referred the committee’s report to the regulations deputy for further considerations and assessment, the official said.

After receiving the committee report, the parliament members have 10 days to announce their final verdict about the budget bill.

President Hassan Rouhani presented the administration’s draft of the 19.88 quadrillion rials (about $473.3 billion at the official rate of 42,000 rials) budget bill in early December 2019.

In late February, Majlis rejected general outlines of the national budget bill stating that the bill is not compatible with the country’s current economic conditions.

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.

EF/MA