Opposition city councilor: Value of Bucharest City Hall bike vouchers will drop after taxes

The 5,000 people who have received vouchers for bike purchases from the Bucharest City Hall will have to declare these revenues to the tax agency ANAF, said Ciprian Ciucu, a councilor in the Bucharest General Council (CGMB) representing the National Liberal Party (PNL) opposition party. Thus, the value of a voucher will drop after taxes. Each voucher is worth RON 500 (some EUR 110). “You know what Firea (e.n. Bucharest’s mayor) failed to mention to those who received bike vouchers? That these vouchers represent income and will be taxed according to the law (they can not be classified as social aid, obviously), and that they need to be declared and paid. Those who will not declare them will have to make several trips to ANAF to give explanations. So she’s not giving them RON 500, she’s giving them less money,” Ciucu wrote on his Facebook page. Moreover, Ciprian Ciucu also said that mayor Gabriela Firea would reintroduce the extra 25,000 bike vouchers on CGMB’s agenda, although the project was rejected this week. “It's immoral and shameful to take money from some people and give it to other people to buy bikes,” Ciucu ended his Facebook post. The City Hall launched the “Cyclists in Bucharest” program last month, planning to give 5,000 vouchers worth RON 500 each, which people can use to buy bikes. However, some 30,000 people submitted requests for vouchers. Thus, the Municipality announced that it considers increasing the number of vouchers for bike acquisitions. Irina Marica, irina.marica@romania-insider.com (photo source: Ciprian Ciucu on Facebook)