Zero percent: the authorities will deprive the regions of the opportunity to make money by disrupting projects

In Russia, regions will stop earning on preferential loans. The Ministry of Finance has prepared such a project, and Izvestia has reviewed the document. While the money allocated for infrastructure is kept in the accounts of the subjects in the Treasury, interest drips onto them. Therefore, regions are tempted to keep funds there longer in order to generate income. And the Accounting Chamber has already noted that in all the tested regions the deadlines and the cost of projects were not met. As a result, the authorities decided to cancel the accrual of income for infrastructure money in accounts. Whether this will help build schools and pave roads faster is discussed in the Izvestia article.

How do regions raise money from infrastructure loans

The authorities will deprive the regions of the opportunity to earn on preferential infrastructure loans. The Ministry of Finance has prepared such amendments to the draft government decree.

Currently, the federal center provides a subject of the Russian Federation with a cheap loan for the construction of various facilities (at a rate of 3% per annum for a period of at least 15 years). Until he has spent the money, it is in the account. The Treasury charges income on this balance (as interest on the deposit), explained Maxim Barashev, managing partner of the BBNP law firm and a member of the Moscow branch of Delovaya Rossiya.

Photo: IZVESTIA/Konstantin Kokoshkin

— As a result, the region receives a double benefit: it took out a loan almost for free, and earned from the fact that this money is just lying around. But now the authorities are making changes — funds can be in the account, but they will no longer bring passive income to the budget of the subject," he said.

At the same time, not only credit, but also other money from the region can be stored in accounts at the Treasury. When calculating income, the balances of this loan money will be deducted from the total amount, the expert said.

In January – May 2025, the Treasury transferred 159.9 billion rubles to the budgets of the regions (not only for infrastructure loans). It placed temporarily available money from a single treasury account, and in the first five months of 2025 it received 97.7 billion rubles of income from this. Some of these funds — 24.8 billion rubles — were returned to the regions. The rest went to the federal budget (revenue is divided between the treasury levels according to the established rules). Izvestia sent a request to the Treasury, asking for up-to-date information.

Photo: IZVESTIA/Yulia Mayorova

The changes also suggest that unspent balances of budget loans for the implementation of infrastructure projects will be taken into account when calculating regional incomes, the press service of the Ministry of Finance told Izvestia. In 2026, it is planned to allocate about 150 billion rubles for these purposes, the ministry said. In total, in 2025-2030, the regions will receive 1 trillion rubles of loans for infrastructure. Izvestia asked the regional authorities, as well as the Accounting Chamber, for comments.

Why did the authorities decide to ban earnings on preferential loans

Now the regions are tempted to hold funds in treasury accounts in order to earn more income from investments, explained Sofya Lukinova, head of the legal department of VMT Consult. At the same time, the execution of projects is probably artificially delayed, and deadlines are being disrupted, she noted.

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In addition, income from balances distorts reporting, and it is difficult to control the actual fulfillment of obligations. This reduces transparency in spending budget funds, even to misuse, the expert said.

Photo: IZVESTIA/Eduard Kornienko

— The amendments will eliminate this loophole in the law, there will be no incentive not to spend money quickly, as they will no longer generate income. It is assumed that thanks to this measure, funds will be spent more quickly and for their intended purpose," she concluded.

As Izvestia previously reported, the Accounting Chamber found a violation in the implementation of infrastructure projects in all seven verified regions. Deadlines have shifted for 60% of projects.

For example, in Chuvashia, the cost of the integrated development project of the Dubrava Park residential complex has more than quadrupled, and the deadline for its completion has been postponed from 2023 to 2025. Voronezh did not have time to build a school in time for 650 million rubles. Initially, the facility was supposed to be commissioned in December 2024, but the deadline was postponed to September 1, 2025. However, even after that, the contractor did not complete the work.

— From the point of view of the federal government, money should quickly turn into roads, schools, hospitals, and not settle on accounts. Right now, treasury interest for the regions is, in fact, a side income that can come at the expense of the speed of work on the project," said Oleg Abelev, head of the analytical department at the Rikom—Trust investment company.

Photo: IZVESTIA/Dmitry Korotaev

Receiving interest was a completely legal financial mechanism, and subjects often used income to cover the deficit, he noted. Now the regions will lose one of their liquidity management tools. This may worsen their budgetary difficulties, the expert noted.

At the same time, according to him, the new measures are not able to completely eliminate delays and disruptions. The main problem is poor project management, lengthy public procurement procedures, and underestimation of the complexity of the work, Oleg Abelev believes. Comprehensive measures must be taken to fully improve the situation. The auditors, for example, proposed to introduce responsibility for the subjects for failure to meet targets.