Deputies want to allow officials to give expensive nesting dolls

The cost of the presentation should not exceed 10 thousand rubles.

The deputies of the State Duma offer an original way to protect folk art crafts. On December 27, they submitted a bill to the lower house of parliament, according to which it is forbidden to give souvenirs worth no more than 10 thousand rubles to officials, provided that these are products of folk art crafts.

Today, the cost of an ordinary gift to a state or municipal employee, if given in connection with an official position or with the performance of official duties, cannot exceed three thousand rubles. This provision does not apply to cases of donation in connection with business trips, protocol and other official events. In this case, a valuable gift becomes the property of the institution where the person works.

Legislators propose to make an exception to the rule for handicrafts due to the fact that due to the reduction in the flow of foreign tourists, the incomes of craftsmen have noticeably decreased. And if from January to September of the year before last, guests from abroad made 4.3 million visits to Russia for tourism purposes, then according to the results of three quarters of this year – only 147.4 thousand.

In addition, due to inflation, the cost of consumables and wages for manufacturers of handicrafts has increased markedly, which has led to an increase in the price of products. Having lost the lion’s share of buyers among foreign tourists, the craftsmen lost them in the face of local donors.