When MPs turn into Santa Claus: Romania's Parliament votes special pensions for local representatives

Romania’s Senate adopted on Monday, December 21, the law that grants special pensions for mayors, deputy mayors, city council presidents and deputy presidents. 86 senators voted for the law, one voted against, and 30 senators from the National Liberal Party (PNL) decided not to vote and left the room. The Chamber of Deputies had adopted the law in November. The special pension would add to the normal pension once the local representatives reach retirement age. The allowance would amount to 55% of the gross monthly income multiplied by the number of terms. For example, a mayor’s salary varies between RON 2,000, in villages, and RON 5,000, in big cities such as Bucharest. In this case, the mayor’s special pension will be between RON 1,100 and RON 2,750 multiplied by the number of terms. The mayor of a big city, who had served two terms, will thus get RON 5,500 per month plus his normal pension. Senate’s President Calin Popescu Tariceanu said yesterday, before the vote in the Senate, that he hadn't decided if he supported the law or not, but he pointed out that local representatives had “ridiculous wages” and, considering this, people shouldn’t be surprised by the level of corruption in Romania’s local administration. The low salaries in public administration are one of the reasons why the local administration doesn’t manage to attract competent people, according to Tariceanu, quoted by Mediafax. On December 15, the Romanian MPs also voted a law that grants special pensions for senators and deputies. An MP who served one term should get an extra allowance of RON 1,550 per months once he reaches retirement age. If he served two terms, he should get an extra amount of RON 3,100 monthly. Romanian MPs vote special pensions for themselves Diana Mesesan, diana@romania-insider.com