The decision was reported by The Moscow Times with reference to a regional government decree signed by Deputy Governor Mikhail Isaev. Starting November 1, the regional payment to families of fallen servicemen in Saratov Oblast will be reduced from 1 million to 100,000 rubles.
At the same time, the authorities changed the procedure for submitting applications. Now relatives must apply for the payment within six months from the date of state registration of death, whereas before the period was counted from the day of actual death.
The decision was made against the backdrop of an acute budget deficit in the region. According to the data cited in the publication, the “hole” in Saratov Oblast’s treasury reached 29.2 billion rubles, or 12.7% of expenditures, whereas before the recent changes in the budget it stood at 25.7 billion rubles.
Reductions or complete cancellation of such payments had previously been recorded in at least Ulyanovsk, Omsk, Kemerovo, Orenburg, and Kirov oblasts, Khakassia, Transbaikal, and Bashkortostan. Alexander Isakov, Managing Director of Sber’s Center for Macroeconomic Research, predicted that the total deficit of regional budgets by the end of the year could reach 2 trillion rubles, and compared with 2025 could rise by 500 billion rubles, or 33%.
Research fellow at the German Institute for International Security Affairs Janis Kluge previously noted that payments for deaths at the front had hardly changed throughout the war, but amid the worsening economic situation the regions began to cut this funding. In his assessment, such payments do not play a major role in maintaining the pace of recruiting contract soldiers, which remains the Kremlin’s key task.
Along with the reduction in the regional payment, the authorities of Saratov Oblast introduced 450,000 rubles for prisoners who sign a contract with the Ministry of Defense.
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