Indexation of housing and communal services tariffs in Moscow will be lower than projected inflation

Tariffs for housing and communal services in Moscow will be indexed by 9% from December 1, which is lower than the inflation forecast by the Ministry of Economics at 13.9% for the year, informs TASS with reference to the Moscow Department of Economic Policy and City Development.

“The cumulative increase in the cost of utilities will amount to the 9% established at the federal level, which is almost 5 p.p. below the level of inflation – according to the forecast of the Ministry of Economic Development of Russia, the average annual inflation in the country will be 13.9%,” they said.

The relevant package of documents was considered and adopted today at a meeting of the Presidium of the Moscow government. Housing rates will be indexed from 1 January.

The decision to postpone the indexation of housing and communal services tariffs from July 1, 2023 to December 1 of this year earlier in September accepted Minek. This means that tariff indexation will not be carried out for more than a year and a half. The department clarified that such a measure was caused by “the need for uninterrupted operation and development of the housing and communal services infrastructure throughout the country,” as well as for updating heating mains, water pipelines and other infrastructure facilities.

In Moscow, at the same time, the indexation of all social payments will be 10%, the Moscow Department of Economic Policy and City Development emphasized, and all existing benefits and subsidies for housing and communal services remain. Today, 3.5 million people use benefits, and 0.5 million people use subsidies. In addition, the standards for the cost of housing and communal services for calculating subsidies to citizens will be revised, all Muscovites whose expenses for housing and communal services in the total family income are more than 10% can receive subsidies, the department recalled. The growth of transport tariffs will average 8%, the department added.

On July 1 of each year, tariffs for housing and communal services are indexed in Russia, on average they grow by 4%, but the final indexation value depends on the specific region. For this year, indexation indicators were determined in November 2021. The most significant increase in the cost of housing and communal services was in Chechnya (by 6.5%), St. Petersburg (by 6.3%), Sevastopol, Crimea and Tatarstan (by 6.2% everywhere ). In Moscow, Yakutia and Dagestan, tariffs are indexed by 6%.

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