During 2014 the Regional Development Ministry of the Russian Federation will for the first time estimate the impact of federal investments on the gross regional product of Russia’s territorial subjects, and will also estimate the impact of development institutes. The analysis will be carried out in virtue of the data of 2013.

The gross regional product (GRP) – is goods, works and services, made within the territory of particular subdivision of Federation. According to the head of the Regional Development Ministry Igor Slyunyaev, under GRP qualitative assessment it is necessary to give special priority to the real sector. It means to estimate the participation of the material production in the GRP (which goods are manufactured within the territory of the region, which plants were opened during the previous year).

The corresponding assessment has never been conducted until now, that is why it caused many contradictions. Thus, for instance, at year-end 2013 Russia exported the mineral resources and raw materials for a total amount of RUR 8,7 trillion. At the same time according to Russian Federal State Statistics Service, the largest region-exporter of raw materials and mineral resources in Russia is not Yakutia, as many people may think, but Moscow, due to the fact that the majority of tax payers are registered for tax purposes there. RUR 735 billion in terms of money of mineral extraction are accounted by for Moscow. But to what extent this figure reflects the state of affairs in Moscow economy, where the share of material production is extremely low, remains doubtful.

The head of the Regional Development Ministry also notes that only 9 territorial subjects of the RF out of 83 are donors, others are recipients. This trend is an alarming one, as it leads to decrease of the capital expenditure. Thus, the share of capital expenditure in consolidated budget as of the year-end 2012 amounted only to 11% (by comparison in 2007 – 24%). In Minister’s opinion, this indicator will amount 9% at the end of 2013.

The next major problem noted by Slyunyaev is the debt load of the regional budgets. As of year-end 2013 the joint debt volume of regional budgets amounted to RUR 1.45 trillion, that is five times more than it was in 2007. At the same time the consolidated revenues of regional budgets amounted to RUR 8.7 trillion.

Talking about the ways of solution of the current problems, the minister states, that in the first place it is significant to concentrate our attention on creation of the real economy sector in the field of the material production and capital investments. As it is the road construction of roads, bridges, utility lines, schools, hospitals, plants and factories, which give the most multiplicative effect. The overheads volume should be simultaneously decreased. At the year-end 2012 this indicator amounted to RUR 500 billion.

The second significant measure is revenue mobilization into the budget system and business output from the shade. According to Slyunyaev, one third of the national economy is out of tax liabilities at the moment and it doesn’t work for the budget system. For example, the land tax that generates budget revenue for regions is collected only on 50-60%. The Minister adds that the problem may be solved by virtue of simultaneous cadastral and tax registration having balanced cadastral, market and collateral value on land property and premises. Although corresponding measure is not popular, it is realized in many countries.

Thus, the key objectives that are set before the Regional Development Ministry are territorial and strategic planning on the basis of results obtained during investigation. More accurate estimates of GRP will help to avoid the mistakes in future when planning the budget and solving major economic problems.

Today, in a period of financial uncertainty, when the economy of the country shows negative signs of slowdown and the debt burden on banking sector increases, the Ministry of Finance of the RF simplifies the access to the credit histories of the citizens, either for the citizens themselves who has taken out a loan, or for legal persons.

At the present time under the current Federal law «About credit histories», a borrower has an opportunity to get the mentioned data free of charge once a year, for the repeated requests he will have to pay to the Credit history bureaus (CHB).

At the moment the new initiative of the Ministry of Finance is at the stage of discussion, the law «About Consumer credit (loan)» passed at the end of December will come into effect on the 1st of July 2014. According to new legislation, not only banks, but also other creditors are obliged to convey information on the borrower to the CHB, with no concurrence required from him. Informational part of the credit application, where a person fills out the details about himself, from now on will be accessible to legal entities and IE, who has entered into a relevant contract with the CHB. Besides, the credit history of the borrower will contain not only the whole information on the loan provided, but also request denials and about their reasons. Such data will be interesting as well for financial institutions, as, for example, for employers hiring new employees.

It should seem, commonsense initiative of openness and accessibility of information with the purpose of the business safety, security of a bank from citizens not in good faith has to be approved, however it raises the question which remains open: how protect the right-minded citizens from underhand dealing with their personal documentary materials or using of them by questionable legal entities and individual entrepreneurs (IE)?