Goran Marić and Slaven Dobrović at Lider’s Conference 48 Hours – Meeting of Mayors and Entrepreneurs

Goran Marić, Minister of State Property, and Slaven Dobrović, Minister of Environmental Protection, will address pressing issues regarding the activation of state property and waste management at Lider’s Conference 48 Hours – Meeting of Mayors and Entrepreneurs. At the conference, which will take place from November 23 to 25 in Pula, the details of the tax reform and its impact on local government units will be elaborated by the Chief State Treasurer and Assistant Minister of Finance Ivana Jakir Bajo and the Deputy Director of the Tax Administration Marijana Vurajić Kudeljan.

State Property

Croatia has had various institutions and models for managing state property over the past 25 years, but none have met their objectives, and state property remains underutilized. Therefore, as announced by the Government, the establishment of the Ministry of State Property should enable the resolution of a number of issues related to unused state ownership, and local government units should also play a role in this process.

The first steps of the new ministry will be presented at Lider’s conference by Minister of State Property Goran Marić, who announces that the activation of state property will bring economic growth and higher revenues to the budget.

Waste Management

The Ministry of Environmental Protection has received the ‘green light’ from the European Commission for the framework of the new Waste Management Plan for the period from 2016 to 2022, thus improving the existing system based on the previous Plan and the construction of 13 waste management centers. The improvement of the waste management system will enable Croatia to fulfill its EU obligations, meaning it will not have to pay penalty fees.

In Pula, we will provide answers to all questions related to efficient waste management – Minister of Environmental Protection and Energy Slaven Dobrović will present his plans and requirements from cities, and the Director of the Environmental Protection Fund Ljubomir Majdandžić will also discuss waste management possibilities.

Tax Reform

The package of tax laws that is expected to come into effect on January 1, 2017, will require adjustments from local government. Possible gaps in the budgets of local government units due to changes in income tax and the abolition of tax relief for the purchase of the first property have sparked intense debates in the Parliament. At the 48 Hours Conference – Meeting of Mayors and Entrepreneurs, we will hear a thorough analysis of the effects of tax reform on local government from Ante Baje of the Institute of Public Finance, while the Chief State Treasurer and Assistant Minister of Finance Ivana Jakir Bajo and the Deputy Director of the Tax Administration Marijana Vurajić Kudeljan will provide more insights into its practical application.

Among others, mayors of Zaprešić, Pula, Velika Gorica, Jastrebarsko, Umag, and Rijeka will speak at the conference, and you can find out more about the conference here.