The 51st Cosa Budget Act

[Lüc da Schir]

WHEREAS, as per Lex.D.2.1.5,

2.1.5. The Seneschal (or, if the Seneschal is not a Member of the Cosa, an MC designated by the Seneschal) shall be required to submit to the Ziu, in time for consideration by the second Clark of the Cosa, a government bill approved by the whole Cabinet which shall contain the following:
2.1.5.1. a detailed budget listing all planned expenses of the State through the current Cosa, specifying the amounts to be requisitioned for each Cabinet Ministry or Officer of the Royal Household and the purpose of each such expense;
2.1.5.2. any amount of the Treasury to be set aside for investment as directed by the Finance Minister and the investment policy that will be pursued;
2.1.5.3. the total amount in louise of any planned currency minting and printing, and postage issuance to be executed by the Royal Bank & Post during the term of the current Cosa.
2.1.5.4. the total amount in louise of any planned donations proposed to be requested from Talossan citizens towards the upkeep of the State. This section shall not entitle any budget to impose compulsory taxation or mandatory donations of any kind.

WHEREAS the Organic Law directs that each government submit a budget by the second Clark of their Cosa term, and

WHEREAS this bill has been approved by all members of the Cabinet; so


A. Financial Report

THEREFORE, His Majesty's Government reports the following financial report and balance sheet to the Ziu, as certified by the Burgermeister of Inland Revenue on 5 Nov 2017:

Funds:
$891.13 Kingdom of Talossa savings account, held in trust by Burgermeister of Inland Revenue Istefan Perþonest.
$110.33 Kingdom of Talossa PayPal account for online transactions ([e-mail]).

Non-cash assets:
$236.00 Nominal value of 592 0¤20 stamps in circulation
$954.00 Nominal value of 1,923 unsold 0¤20 stamps held by Burgermeister of Inland Revenue
$555.00 Nominal value of 74 ℓ5 coins in circulation (including free replacements for lost)
$1,942.50 Nominal value of 259 unsold ℓ5 coins held by Burgermeister of Inland Revenue

Printing & Minting:
ℓ1,665 ($2,497.50 USD) Production of 333 ℓ5 coins.

Changes to total treasury balance since Feb 26, 2017:
$2,043.25 Combined funds balance Feb 26, 2017

-$1,131.74 Purchase of minted coins

$52.94 Party fees and included donations
-$0.89 PayPal fees on party fees/donations

$8.00 Sale of stamps plus shipping charges
-$0.45 PayPal fees on stamp sales

$320.15 Sale of coins plus shipping charges
-$20.28 PayPal fees on coin sales
-$25.41 Shipping costs paid on stamps/coins

-$25.00 Reimbursement of foreign relations expenditure

-$220.03 Reimbursement for website hosting/domain name fees

$0.92 Interest earned on bank account

$1,001.46 Combined funds balance Nov 5, 2017

FURTHERMORE, the current value of the Louis is 1.50 USD, 1.91 CAD, 1.27 EUR, 1.13 GBP, 1.47 CHF, 1.97 AUD, 2.18 NZD, 166.80 JPY, 9.88 RMB, 20.83 SAR, 27.98 MXN, 1626 KRW.

B. Appropriations Request

FURTHERMORE, His Majesty's Government hereby submits to the Ziu a request for the appropriation of funds from the Royal Treasury totaling 261¤32 ($392.30 USD) for the specific purposes and subject to restrictions as outlined herein:

INTERIOR
Talossaid - 16¤40 ($25)

STUFF
Webhosting reimbursements for the 50th Cosa - 60¤59 ($91.48)
Webhosting costs 51st Cosa - 163¤53 ($245.82)

MISCELLANEOUS
Miscellaneous expenses - ℓ20 ($30)

Total: -261¤32 (-$392.30)

FURTHERMORE, notwithstanding the above allocations, no funds shall be disbursed without a notice of disbursement having first been transmitted to the Ziu at least fourteen days prior to the disbursement, except that disbursements solely for the purpose of postage may be made with no less than 24 hours notice. Notices shall contain details of the purchase and a cost estimate for the purchase, or the total amount paid if seeking funds for reimbursement. Copies of receipts and/or invoices will be provided upon request to Members of the Ziu.

FURTHERMORE, any funds allocated by this section shall be retained in the central fund by the Burgermeister of Inland Revenue until such time as they are disbursed. Funds not disbursed prior to the end of the government term shall remain in the central fund.

C. Fundraiser, Minting, and Other Authorizations

FURTHERMORE, the Minister of Finance, or his appointed deputy shall undertake to create manage and promote a voluntary fundraising campaign to the citizens of Talossa and other interested parties over the course of the term. The targeted amount for the campaign shall be ℓ200 ($300) in accordance with the direction of Lex.D.2.1.5.4. The proceeds of seigniorage, sales of stamps, TalossaWare proceeds, and other contributions shall be included in this total except as provided elsewhere. The expected income for the term is as follows:

Election fees for the 52nd Cosa General Elections - 33¤20 ($50)
Proceedings of sales (Coins/Stamps/Talossaware) - 66¤40 ($100)
Donations to the Kingdom: 83¤20 ($125)
Donations to TalossAID: 16¤40($25)

Total: +ℓ200 (+$300)

D. Investment Policy

FURTHERMORE, His Majesty’s Government hereby directs the Burgermeister of Inland Revenue to continue to invest all held funds into an interest-bearing savings account.


Noi urent q'estadra så
Miestrâ Schivâ, Distain (MC - FreeDem)

designated as per Lex.D.2.1.5 by
Lüc da Schir, Seneschal (Senator - BE)
C. Carlüs Xheraltescù, Finance Minister

on behalf of His Majesty's Government

[Istefan Perþonest]

Um, I'm hoping that "request for the appropriation of funds from the Royal Treasury totaling ℓ1,080 ($1,620 USD)" is a cut-and-paste from last time?

Your actual totals request below is for $392.30, which is 261¤32.

[C. Carlüs Xheraltescù]

Nov 25, 2017 8:18:30 GMT -6 Istefan Perþonest said:

Um, I'm hoping that "request for the appropriation of funds from the Royal Treasury totaling ℓ1,080 ($1,620 USD)" is a cut-and-paste from last time?

Your actual totals request below is for $392.30, which is 261¤32.

Yes, the total should read as quoted in the quote which follows. My apologies.

[Sir C. M. Siervicül]

This budget reflects a deficit of almost 24% in the current term. Does the Government believe that is sustainable, or does it have an expectation that future budgets will return to balance (and if so, how?).

Also, does the $30 "miscellaneous" item include any costs of sale (shipping, PayPal fees, etc.) necessary to recognize the projected revenue? If not, how are those costs being accounted for?

[C. Carlüs Xheraltescù]

Nov 25, 2017 16:28:09 GMT -6 Sir C. M. Siervicül said:

This budget reflects a deficit of almost 24% in the current term. Does the Government believe that is sustainable, or does it have an expectation that future budgets will return to balance (and if so, how?).

Also, does the $30 "miscellaneous" item include any costs of sale (shipping, PayPal fees, etc.) necessary to recognize the projected revenue? If not, how are those costs being accounted for?

No deficit is sustainable for an excessive period of time, that’s why they’re an issue. There are some issues surrounding the duplication of costs as a consequence of domain hosting, I believe. The deficit will be reduced once this is dealt with, as the Government I believe will be during this term. For now, however, we have enough in reserves to keep going. The Government intends to launch a fundraising drive with prizes at some point during this term, which will hopefully see donations rise given the patriotic fervour I know we all feel towards Talossa.

Miscellaneous does indeed cover this for now.