Spending Plan
The European Semester 2024 is set to play a significant role in shaping budget planning for the years 2024 and 2025. This process includes the implementation of recovery and resilience plans and the introduction of new EU Fiscal Rules, which form part of the European Commission's Spring Package for 2024.
The new fiscal rules, prioritizing expenditure growth in fiscal rule monitoring, will come into effect as of April 30, 2024. These rules are integral to the European Semester 2024, which also includes country-specific reference paths for permissible expenditure growth. These paths were transmitted by the European Commission in June 2024, along with the Spring Package.
The European Commission's Spring Package, transmitted in June 2024, provides guidance for budget development in 2024 and 2025. The Budget Service, responsible for producing analyses on the annual budget, the federal financial framework, long-term budget forecasts, and all submissions within the European Semester, provides valuable information on the current budget situation and the challenges it poses for budget planning from 2025 onwards.
The European Semester 2024 is also responsible for analysing the National Reform Programme 2023, including measures taken to implement country-specific recommendations. The Austrian Stability Program 2022 to 2026, prepared by the Austrian Federal Ministry of Finance, and the analysis of the overall budget development until 2026 according to the Austrian Stability Programme 2023, are both relevant to this process.
It's worth noting that the European Semester 2024 is not mentioned as setting out the framework for budget planning from 2024 to 2025, nor does it provide a reference for permissible expenditure growth for these years, apart from the transmitted country-specific reference paths.
The Fiscal policy guidelines proposed by the EC for 2023 were described within the context of the European Semester 2022. The implementation status of these guidelines, along with the recovery and resilience plans, will be closely monitored as part of the European Semester 2024.
In conclusion, the European Semester 2024 and the new EU Fiscal Rules are crucial components in the budget planning process for 2024 and 2025. The transmittal of the Spring Package and the country-specific reference paths by the European Commission in June 2024 marks the beginning of this important process.
