Parliament passes campaign financing repayment law amendment

Lawmakers on Tuesday approved a law amendment obliging parties that receive less than one percent of votes cast for party lists in the general election to repay the state funding provided for their campaign.

The amendment, submitted by governing Fidesz and requiring a two-thirds support in the 199-seat assembly to pass, was approved with 184 votes cast in favour by lawmakers of ruling Fidesz, the opposition Socialists and radical nationalist Jobbik.

Fidesz’s original proposal set the threshold for repayment at 0.5 percent, which was bumped up to one percent by parliament’s legislative committee at the initiative of a Socialist lawmaker.

The amendment to the campaign financing law also establishes that any member of the “main governing body” of a party concerned should be liable to repay these amounts from their own assets if the party fails to make the repayment by the deadline set by law.

Source: MTI