Full text: Report on China's central, local budgets (3)

2) Main expenditure items

Central government expenditures amounted to 2.5549 trillion yuan, which is 102.1% of the budgeted figure and an increase of 12.8%. Of this amount, education expenditures came to 135.705 billion yuan, up 8.3%; foreign affairs-related expenditures stood at 47.834 billion yuan, up 32.8%; national defense spending was 886.85 billion yuan, up 10.1%; public security expenses amounted to 158.416 billion yuan, up 7.2%; expenditures on general public services reached 105.619 billion yuan, up 0.5%; and interest payments on debt were 286.69 billion yuan, up 11.3%.

Tax rebates and transfer payments to local governments from the central government came to 5.5181 trillion yuan, which is 98.7% of the budgeted figure and an increase of 6.7%. This includes 508.198 billion yuan in tax rebates, the same as in 2014; 2.84754 trillion yuan in general transfer payments, up 6.8%; and 2.162362 trillion yuan in special transfer payments, an increase of 8.4%, which was mainly due to the addition of one-time investments from central government reserve funds during budget execution.

(2) Budgets for government-managed funds

In 2015, revenue into government-managed funds nationwide came to 4.233014 trillion yuan. Adding in the 65.613 billion yuan carried over from 2014 and the 100 billion yuan raised by local governments through the issuance of special bonds, revenue related to government-managed funds nationwide totaled 4.398627 trillion yuan. Expenditures related to these funds amounted to 4.236385 trillion yuan.

Revenue into central government-managed funds totaled 411.202 billion yuan, which is 94.2% of the budgeted figure and an increase of 5.2%. Adding in the 65.613 billion yuan carried forward from 2014, revenue related to central government-managed funds totaled 476.815 billion yuan. Expenditures related to central government-managed funds came to 435.642 billion yuan, which is 85.7% of the budgeted figure and an increase of 7.5%. Of this, central government expenditures were 302.449 billion yuan and transfer payments to local governments amounted to 133.193 billion yuan. Revenue into central government-managed funds exceeded expenditures by 41.173 billion yuan, which includes 24.817 billion yuan carried forward to 2016; 9.454 billion yuan for statutory replenishment of the Central Budget Stabilization Fund from the portions of the carryover funds of individual government-managed funds that exceeded 30% of their respective funds' revenue; and 6.902 billion yuan in surplus funds from the five items to be transferred from government-managed fund budgets into the general public budget in 2016.

Revenue into funds managed by local governments reached 3.821812 trillion yuan, a decrease of 17.7%. This was mainly due to a significant decline in the revenue from the sale of state-owned land use rights. Adding in the 133.193 billion yuan in transfer payments from central government-managed funds and the 100 billion yuan raised by local governments through the issuance of special bonds, total revenue related to local government-managed funds was 4.055005 trillion yuan. Total expenditures related to local government-managed funds came to 3.933936 trillion yuan, which includes expenditures of 3.28953 trillion yuan related to the proceeds of selling state-owned land use rights.

(3) Budgets for state capital operations

In 2015, budgetary revenue from state capital operations nationwide totaled 256.016 billion yuan, and budgetary expenditures on state capital operations nationwide totaled 207.857 billion yuan.

Budgetary revenue from the central government's state capital operations was 161.292 billion yuan, which is 104.1% of the budgeted figure and an increase of 14.3%. Adding in the 14.398 billion yuan carried forward from 2014, total revenue stood at 175.69 billion yuan. Budgetary expenditures on the central government's state capital operations came to 135.967 billion yuan, which is 80.3% of the budgeted figure and a decrease of 4.2%. This shortfall was mainly due to slower than expected progress in the reform of collectively owned businesses operated by state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and in the reform to relieve SOEs of the burden of providing water, electricity, heating, gas, and property management services to their employees' homes. Of the total expenditures on the central government's state capital operations, 123.537 billion yuan was spent at the central level, which includes 23 billion yuan brought into the general public budget and used for ensuring and improving the people's quality of life as well as 12.43 billion yuan used as transfer payments to local governments. A total of 39.723 billion yuan of budgetary revenue from the central government's state capital operations was carried over to 2016.

Budgetary revenue from the state capital operations of local governments totaled 94.724 billion yuan. Adding in the 12.43 billion yuan in transfer payments from the central government's state capital operations budget, total revenue stood at 107.154 billion yuan. Total budgetary spending on the state capital operations of local governments amounted to 84.32 billion yuan.

(4) Budgets for social security funds

In 2015, revenue into social security funds nationwide totaled 4.466034 trillion yuan, which is 103.6% of the budgeted figure. This includes 3.251848 trillion yuan from insurance premiums and 1.019815 trillion yuan from government subsidies. Expenditures from social security funds nationwide totaled 3.935668 trillion yuan, which is 102.3% of the budgeted figure. Therefore, social security funds were left with a surplus of 530.366 billion yuan in 2015, and the year-end balance reached 5.700233 trillion yuan after this surplus was rolled over.

3. Implementation of major expenditure policies in 2015

Promoting education reform and development

We supported implementation of the second phase of the three-year action plan for preschool education. We put in place mechanisms for guaranteeing compulsory education funding in rural areas as well as the policy of waiving tuition and miscellaneous fees for students receiving compulsory education in urban areas, benefiting approximately 110 million students in rural areas and 29.44 million students in urban areas. We implemented the quality improvement plan for modern vocational education and worked to reshape the vocational education system. We reformed the budgetary appropriation system for institutions of higher learning directly under the central government to guide them in improving their models of development. We worked to guarantee the educational rights and interests of special needs groups through our support for the development of special needs education. We improved government financial aid policies for students, such as study assistance loans and student grants, providing aid to approximately 7.75 million college students, 5.14 million regular high school students, and 2.65 million secondary vocational school students, as well as exempting 10.45 million secondary vocational school students from paying tuition. (mo