The main law governing budget processes is the 2001 Organic Budget Law (Loi organique relative aux lois de finances, LOLF), which was fully implemented in 2006. The reform aimed to modernise the State by presenting a budget by missions and about 158 programmes. It also aimed to increase parliamentary powers. Budget information available to Parliament and the public is being enhanced. Annual reports are now prepared so that Parliament can appreciate whether outcomes and programme objectives are being attained. The 2001 LOLF (Art. 50) requires 4-year projections of revenues and expenditures.
There are internal non-legally-binding deadlines for the key steps in budget preparation. The number of days allowed for completing the first readings of the draft budget in Parliament is specified by law: the National Assembly has 40 days (Constitution, Art. 47) and the Senate 20 days (LOLF, Art. 40). Parliament may only alter the composition of proposed State budget spending, by changing the amount allocated to programmes within missions (LOLF, Art. 47). Parliament authorises a maximum amount for expenditure for each programme of the general State budget. Authority to spend is provided for both commitments and cash payments (LOLF, Art. 34). A single budget committee deals with the budget, but members from other sectoral committees attend meetings of the budget committee when expenditures in their specific areas are being dealt with. In the case of disagreement of the committees of the two houses, the Prime Minister may establish a joint committee to resolve the impasse (Constitution, Art. 45).
The roles of the President, the Prime Minister and the Minister of Finance are dependent on the political situation. In normal times, the President of the Republic makes final decisions when budget clashes occur in the Council of Ministers (which happens rarely). In contrast, in times of cohabitation – when the President of the Republic and the Prime Minister are from different political groupings – final budget decisions are taken by the Prime Minister in meetings with Council ministers not attended by the President of the Republic.
The Finance Minister (Ministre de l’économie, de l’industrie et de l’emploi (MEIE) has a colleague of equal rank: the Minister for the Budget, the Public Accounts, Civil Service and the Reform of the State (Ministre du budget, des comptes publics, de la fonction publique et de la réforme de l’État), whose task is to supervise the preparation of the finance law, with the assistance of the finance minister.
All programmes involving official development assistance (ODA) covered by the budget law are grouped together in a comprehensive policy document (document de politique transversale), namely the Document de politique transversal projet de loi de finances.
