The state budget is always there to be updated! This is an unyielding law for each cabinet minister at the end of the year except for one - the finance minister. For any finance minister the implementation of the consolidated budget is the supreme goal. Having a clean balance at the end of the year is the ultimate accomplishment of a finance minister yet always a thorn in the flesh of the rest of his colleagues in an office. The current year 2015 makes no exception and Finance Minister Vladislav Goranov has announced it bitterly.

The 2015 state budget has been updated by over 880 million leva, a sum which will be used to cover unforeseen expenses for staff of the law-enforcement ministries and other institutions and for financing of European projects through the National Fund and the Agriculture Fund. The proposed update exceeds by 50 million leva the expected better revenue performance of 832.8 mln leva. An additional 387.8 million leva will go further in the budgets of the two law-enforcement ministries to meet unforeseen personnel costs, mainly for the payment of benefits.

Most funds, or 180 million leva, will be allocated to the Ministry of Interior, of which 120 million leva for staff and 60 million leva for maintenance. It provides for an increase of funds for salaries and social security contributions amounting to 80 million leva, including payment of overtime when conducting specialized police operations for coping with the migratory pressures and the activities related to the protection of public order and providing the security of citizens in the country, increased salaries and social security contributions related to the new size of the minimum wage. Moreover, the sum of 40 million leva is earmarked for payment of benefits to retired employees. In early October, Interior Minister Rumyana Bachvarova has requested for the payment of benefits an updated budget to the tune of 21 million leva but Finance Minister Goranov has announced that he will not allocate money because of uncompleted reforms in the department. The total necessary allocated costs for the Ministry of Interior amount to 60 million leva, as 40 million of them are obligations to suppliers of electricity and heat, fuels, water, telecommunications and postal services, expertise, consulting services and more.

The Ministry of Defense is more “modest” and will receive an additional 57.2 million leva, of which 48 mln leva are for personnel and 9.2 million leva for maintenance. Besides salaries and compensation, the department needs additional funds for spare parts and military equipment.

The Agriculture Fund will receive an additional 370.7 million leva. The reasoning states that "the funds are required for pre-financing costs for European programs and funds, as well as additional national co-financing." The finalization of the projects from the old programming period on the one hand does not lead to loss of EU funding, and the other one – this will not require the engagement of additional national resources for the completion of projects in the coming years. In a word, these funds will not be lost fiscally and will be utilized according to European rules.

However, a bitter aftertaste remains that the allegedly better revenue performance with more than 800 million leva did not really lead to reducing the budget deficit and the money has somehow got lost inside the mysteries of unreformed sectors.

English Rossitsa Petcova