University funding: How much money Miley’s vetoed law would cost the state

law of university funding vetoed by the president xavier mileyA day after the massive march against that decision, the fiscal cost for the rest of the year will be between $738,595 million and $811,569 million.

in opposition Congress They hope to hold a meeting in the coming days to overturn the government’s veto and implement a rule to strengthen universities’ budgets. Talks have intensified with the ruling party Pro Avoiding legislative setbacks and not refusing to go Justice,

Broadly speaking, the law contemplates restitution based on variation Consumer Price Index (CPI) of index A bi-monthly update will be carried forward on the items allocated to universities and with the increased relaxations given so far in 2024. It also proposes to increase the salaries of teaching and non-teaching staff so that they reach the level by December 2023. In real terms, so that they can follow inflation on a monthly basis.

a report of Congressional Budget Office (CPO) The legislation is estimated to cost $738,595 million over the remainder of 2024, equivalent to 0.14 points of GDP. At universities, they point out that the magnitude of this expenditure is equivalent to one month of financial surplus, a third of the cost of the retirement reform vetoed by Miley or the state would stop collecting for the reform that would benefit those in need. Will benefit what they paid for private property.

The President warned on several occasions that he would veto any legislation passed by Congress that included additional spending that jeopardized the objective of maintaining fiscal balance. this is what they did today Decree 879/2024 It was published in the Official Gazette with the signatures of all the ministers.

Among the main reasons for the decision, Casa Rosada stated, among other things, that the project “does not have budget forecasts or resources to be used for its financing, it contains technical problems that make its systematic implementation impossible, and It materially influences the economic policy objectives established by the national government.

Among the texts of the decree it was also noted that ultimately “implementing the provisions of the above bill will result in additional spending of approximately $811,569,000,000 (eight hundred eleven thousand five hundred sixty-nine million pesos).”

The document indicates that “in the execution of the budget Education Secretarydepend on Ministry of Human CapitalDoes not include credit required to meet expenses associated with an approved bill. For this reason, its implementation “will require additional contributions from the national treasury.”

Second Federal University March In the 10 months of Miley’s mandate, it was crafted in rejection of the presidential veto of legislation that reorganized the financing of higher education institutions, but also amidst demands for adjustments in operating expenses and salaries of both teachers and non-teachers. -Of teachers.

If one looks at data on “cash-based” spending, i.e. payments actually made by the national public sector, the cuts in transfers destined for universities are undisputed. In the first eight months of the year, transfers declined by 33.5% compared to the same period last year, equivalent to a decline of $746,585.89 million. Argentine Institute of Fiscal Analysis (Iraf),

It is important to highlight that the government manages items at its discretion because in the absence of approval last year, the 2023 budget was extended, but the expenditure estimates proposed by the executive branch for 2025 indicate a continuation in the path of adjustment. In the best cases, realignment of funding for higher education institutions is not expected.

He Ibero-American Center for Research in Science, Technology and Innovation (CIICTI) It was highlighted that the project budget 2025Which still must be debated in Congress, is estimated at $3.8 billion for 62 national universities and their dependencies. “The departure will reduce the university’s budget by 34.4% over two years,” he said.

According to a report by the Argentine Association of Budget and Public Financial Administration (ASAP), spending on universities will increase in real terms by 0.8% next year compared to the current year, which will not compensate for these years’ decline. The guidance envisages that inflation will be 18.3% for the full year in 2025.

Consultant empiria It was calculated that transfers to universities planned for 2025 would be equivalent to 5 points of GDP, reaching the lowest level in the last 20 years and one of the lowest in three decades.

In universities, they point out that operating expenses account for only 10% of the budget, while 90% corresponds to salary expenses.

In that sense, with regard to the salaries of teachers and non-teaching staff, Ciicti pointed out: “The budget of activities 12 and 13 of Program 26, which express the salary mass applied to teaching and non-teaching salaries in universities, After falling by more than 30 real points in 2024, its decline will continue in 2025. The real cumulative contraction in this biennium is 37.2%.

National Federation of University Teachers (Konadu) He assured that the loss of accumulated purchasing power compared to December is 9.2%. As detailed, a first class assistant with single-time dedication (nine hours a week) and ten years’ seniority, who received $132,035.51 in December, started receiving a gross salary of 232,531.90 pesos in August. The decline compared to November is 23.71% as the surge in inflation in December due to devaluation is not considered.

The veto decree published this morning highlights that the nominal salary increase for employees of education institutions since December was 87% and 78% higher than that of state employees respectively. But it also considers that inflation had accumulated 144% over the same period.