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NOTICE

_____

This Bill to be submitted to the National Assembly is published for general information

to the public together with a statement of its objects and reasons.

Dar es Salaam

June, 2011

Dr. Thomas D. Kashilillah

CLERK OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY

AN Act to establish a Parliamentary Budget Office; to provide for a

transparent budgetary procedure and budget oversight; and to providefor other related matters.

ENACTED by Parliament of the United Republic of Tanzania.

PART I - PRELIMINARY

1. (1) This Act may be cited as the Budget Act, 2011. Short title andcommencement

(2) This Act shall come into operation on the date which

the Minister may, by notice published in the Gazette, appoint.

2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires - InterpretationBudget means the process by which Government sets

levels to efficiently collect revenue and allocate the spending

of resources among all sectors to meet national objectives;

Budget Office means the Parliamentary Budget Office

established by section 3;

Commission has the meaning ascribed to it under theNational Assembly (Administration) Act;

compliance report means one of several reports

submitted to the National Assembly by the Minister under section

11;

financial year means the period of twelve months

ending on 30th June of each year;

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standing committee has the meaning ascribed to it under

the National Assembly (Administration) Act;

Minister means the Minister responsible for finance;

Plan means the National Assembly Plan;

public corporate has the meaning ascribed to it in the

Public Corporations Act;

PART II - PARLIAMENTARY BUDGET OFFICE

3.(1) There is established an office to be known as theParliamentary Budget Office in the parliamentary service.

Parliamentary

Budget Office.

(2) The Budget Office shall consist of persons appointed

by the Commission on such terms and conditions applicable to

Parliamentary employees under the National Assembly

(Administration) Act.

(3) A person shall be appointed to the Budget Office who

holds at least a graduate degree or a certified professional

level/qualification from a recognized higher learning institution

either of the following fields:-

(a) finance;(b)economic;(c) tax law;(d)accountancy;(e)public administration and personnel.4. (1) There shall be a Parliamentary Standing

Committee on Budget which shall be composed of all

Chairpersons of other Committees.

(2) The Parliamentary Budget Committee shall be led byChairperson of the Standing Committee responsible for finance

and its Vice Chairman shall be appointed from among

Chairpersons of Parliamentary Oversight Committees.

(3) The Budget Committee shall

(a) focus on the preliminary estimates and the

Parliamentary

Budget Office

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macroeconomic plan and programs and submit

recommendations to the Speaker;

(b)Consider the National Budget and compileamendments after refer them to the relevant

Committees;

(c)Carry on such other functions relating to the Budgetas may be assigned to it by Parliament under this

Act or any other law in force.

5. The functions of the Budget Office shall be to-(a) provide the National Assembly with timely and

objective analysis of the national budget and economy.

Functions of the

Budget Office.

(b)provide budget related information to relevantcommittees;

(c)prepare reports on budgetary projections and economicforecasts and options to reduce the budget deficit;

(d)study budget proposals and trends and whereappropriate, suggest changes in the content or format of

such proposals or trends;

(e)propose, where necessary, alternative scenarios forvarious macro economic variables in respect of any

financial year;

(f) prepare estimates for the expenditure of the NationalAssembly Fund for each financial year in accordance

with the procedure laid down by the provisions of Part

V of the National Assembly (Administration) Act;

(g)perform such other functions as may be assigned to itby the Commission.

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PART III -THE BUDGETARTY PROCESS

National Budget

Plan6. (1) The Minister shall prepare and lay before the National

Assembly a National Budget Plan for a subsequent year.

(2) The Plan shall be laid before the NationalAssembly during its February Meeting every year.

(3) The Plan shall state the broad strategic

macroeconomic issues that will be the basis of the budget of the

succeeding financial year and the medium term and shall include

-

(a) an assessment of the current financial year and theprojected state of the economy for the succeeding

three years.

(b)the macro economic and fiscal policies for thespecified period;

(c) targets for overall revenues, total aggregateexpenditure and domestic and external borrowing

for the succeeding financial year and the medium

term;

(d)the criteria used to allocate or apportion theavailable public resources among the various

programmes;

(e)proposal for financing any deficits for the financialyear;

(f) forecast financial position for the financial year towhich the budget relates and the next two financial

years;

(g)the Governments policy objectives that will guidebudget decisions during the financial year and the

policy areas that the Government will focus onduring the financial year.

Procedure for

adopting the

National

Budget Plan

7. (1) The Plan once laid before the National Assembly

shall be committed to the Parliamentary Budget Committee in

accordance with the procedure laid down in Parliamentary

Standing Orders.

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(2) In considering the Committee shall consult

The Budget Office or any person that it considers necessary and

shall, lay its report before the National Assembly in its

subsequent Meeting.

(3) The National Assembly shall discuss the report ofthe finance committee and make necessary general and specific

recommendations to the Government.

8.(1) The Minister shall, not later than 20th

June of each

year, lay before the National Assembly, the annual estimates of

revenue and expenditure for the subsequent financial year.

Annual

estimates.

(2) The annual estimates laid before the National Assembly

under the provisions of sub-section (1) shall specify all measures

taken by the Government to implement audit recommendations

made by the National Assembly in the previous year.

9. (1) Prior being laid before the National Assembly, the

annual estimates shall be considered by parliamentary standing

committees pursuant to the procedure stipulated under

parliamentary standing orders.

Consideration

of estimates by

parliamentary

committees.

(2) Each standing committee shall consider, discuss and

review the estimates referred to it under the provisions of

subsection (1) in consultation with the Budget Office.

10. (1) Every public corporation shall be required toprepare its budget and submit to its Ministry by the end of April

each year.

Preparation ofbudget by

public

corporations.

(2) The budget referred to under subsection (2) shall

comprise estimates of -

(a) all revenue for the period;(b)capital and recurrent Expenditure.(3) The approved budget by Treasury must be annexed to

the annual estimates of expenditure and revenue listed before the

National Assembly each year.

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PART IV - OVERSIGHT OF THE NATIONAL BUDGET

Monthly

publication of

revenues

11.(1) Within twenty-one days after the end of each

month the Minister shall publish in the Gazette a statement of

actual revenues collected by category and net exchequer issues

by Ministry.

Compliance

report12.(1) The Minister shall, three months after the laying

of the budget before the National Assembly, and every quarter

thereafter, lay before the National Assembly, sequentially and

cumulatively, a compliance report in such form and of such

content as may be prescribed.

(2) Where the National Assembly is not in session on

the date specified under subsection (1), the compliance report

shall be laid before the National assembly on the second day

immediately after the reconvening of the National Assembly.

(3) A compliance report shall -

(a) indicate for the period under review, the extentto which the objectives and targets in the budget

policy statement wee met;

(b)specify the following amounts and comparethem with the corresponding targets for the

period under review -

(i) the actual revenue for the relevant period

and a comparison of the expected;

(ii) the actual expenditure per vote,

distinguishing between capital and current

expenditure for that period, and for the

financial year up to the end of that period.

(iii) actual borrowing for that period, and for

the financial year up to the end of the

financial year.

(4) In the event that objectives and targets were not met,

the compliance report shall so state-

(a)the reasons why such objectives and targets werenot met;

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(b)the remedial measures being undertaken to ensurethat objectives and targets not met will be made

good in the next quarter;

(c)any proposed Government policy decisions thatmay materially affect the objectives and targets in

the budget statement of intent or the countrys

overall fiscal and economic performance.

PART V MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

13. (1) The Permanent Secretary for the time being in-

charge of the Treasury may from time to time request for

information from any public institution that is necessary for

purposes of preparing any report that is required to be prepared by

this Act.

Authority to

obtain

information.

(2) A request under subsection 1 must be in writing and

may provide guidance in terms of the date by which, and the

format in which, the information must be provided and any public

institution, that is so requested, must comply with the request.

14. The Minister shall, on the recommendations of the

finance committee, make such regulations as necessary for the

better carrying out of the provisions of this Act and, withoutprejudice to the generality of the foregoing, such regulations shall

provide for

Regulations.

(a)the contents and form of the various reports requiredunder this Act;

(b)the times in which the quarterly compliance reports shallbe laid before the National Assembly;