The Comptroller-General's Department plans to expedite the disbursement of state investment budgets in the last quarter of fiscal 2023 because they have been below target the past three quarters, says comptroller-general Kulaya Tantitemit.
In the first three quarters of fiscal 2023 (October 2022 to June 2023), the disbursement of state investment budgets accounted for only 50% of the total investment budget, compared with the 57% target.
She said the department appointed a special working group to accelerate the budget disbursement of each government agency as well as provide advisory services for timely disbursement according to the spending plan, while taking prompt action if any obstacles are encountered.
For fiscal 2023, the government set budget expenditure at 3.19 trillion baht with a target for state budget disbursement of 93% of the total budget.
A maximum level of 98% (2.35 trillion baht) was set for the total current expenditure of 2.40 trillion baht, while a minimum level of 75% (517 billion baht) was estimated for the total investment expenditure of 689 billion baht.
In the first three quarters of fiscal 2023, state budget disbursement tallied 72% of the total budget.
The projection for the end of this fiscal year is the government will be able to disburse the budget according to the target, particularly if the investment budget is spent based on the target to support economic growth, said Ms Kulaya.
With a new government still to be formed, the department expects the draft budget for fiscal 2024 starting on Oct 1 will likely be delayed.
According to budgeting laws, the government is allowed to use the 2023 Budget Expenditure Act, which pertains only to current expenditure and excludes investment expenditure, she said.
