CONSTITUTION OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI
Title VII
PUBLIC FINANCE
The finances of the Republic are decentralized. Financial management is the responsibility of the Minister concerned. The Executive, assisted by an Interdepartmental Council, draws up the law that sets the portion and nature of public revenues allocated to the territorial divisions.
No Government levy may be established except by law. No charge or tax, whether imposed by a Department, a Municipality, or Communal Section, may be established without the consent of its territorial divisions.
No preferential tax treatment may be established.
No tax exemption, increase, decrease or elimination may be established except by law.
No pension, bonus, allotment or subsidy charged to the Public Treasury may be authorized unless provided by law. Pensions paid by the State are indexed to the cost of living.
Subject to special provisions thereon, the holding of two or more salaried public offices at the same time is strictly forbidden, except posts in education.
Procedures for preparation of the budget and its execution are determined by law.
Enforcement of the Law on the Budget and on Public Accounts is monitored by the Superior Court of Auditors and Administrative Disputes and by the Budget Office.
National monetary policy is set by the Central Bank jointly with the Minister of Economics and Finance.
An autonomous public agency with legal personality and financial autonomy performs the functions of a Central Bank. Its regulations are determined by law.
The Central Bank has exclusive authority to issue as legal tender throughout the territory of the Republic, paper money representing the monetary unit, and coins, according to the name, weight, description, amount and use set by law.
The budget of each Ministry is divided into chapters and sections, and must be voted upon Article by Article.
Amounts to be drawn on budget allocations may in no case exceed one-twelfth of the appropriations for a particular month, except in December, because of bonuses paid to all Government employees and officials.
General accounts of receipts and expenditures of the Republic shall be kept by the Minister of Finance according to an accounting method established by law.
The General accounts and budgets stipulated in the preceding Article, accompanied by a report from the Superior Court of Auditors and Administrative Disputes must be submitted to the Legislative Houses by the Minister of Finance no later than fifteen (15) days after the opening of the legislative session. The same applies to the annual balance sheet and statement of operations of the Central Bank, and to all other accounts of the Haitian State.
The Government fiscal year begins on October 1 of each year and ends on September 30 of the following year.
Each year the Legislature issues:
a) The statement of receipts and expenditures of the Government for the preceding year, or years;
b) The Government General Budget containing the rough estimates and the portion of funds allocated to each Ministry for the year.
However, no proposal or amendment may be introduced into the Budget when it is being voted upon, without provision of the ways and means therefore.
No increase or reduction may be made in the allocation of Government funds, except by amendment of the laws relating thereto.
The Legislative Houses may refrain from doing any legislative work until the above documents are submitted to it. They shall refuse to grant the Ministers discharge when the accounts submitted do not in themselves, or by supporting documents, provide the necessary data for verification and evaluation.
Examination and payment of the General Administration Accounts and all accounts of public funds are effected according to the method established by law.
ARTICLE 231-1:If for any reason whatever the Legislative Houses do not act upon the budget for one or more Ministerial Departments before they adjourn, the budget or budgets of the Departments concerned shall remain in force until a new budget is voted on and adopted.
In the event that, through fault of the Executive Branch, the Budget of the Republic has not been voted upon, the President of the Republic shall immediately call a special session of the Legislative Houses for the sole purpose of voting on the Government budget.
Autonomous agencies and enterprises and entities subsidized wholly or in part by the Public Treasury shall be governed by special budgets and salary and wage systems approved by the Executive Branch.
For the purpose of maintaining constant and careful supervision over Government expenditures, a fifteen-member Parliamentary Committee with nine (9) Deputies and six (6) Senators shall be elected by secret ballot at the beginning of each regular session, to report on the management of Ministers, in order to enable the two (2) Assemblies to give them discharge.
This Committee may engage the services of specialists to assist it with its monitoring functions.
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