On Friday the Sejm approved a law creating a monthly allowance of PLN 300 for village administrators who have served in office for at least two terms, totaling no less than eight years. A stipulation specifies that the recipient must meet an age threshold as well: for women, at least 60 years old, and for men, at least 65. In the voting session, 438 deputies supported the adoption of the law titled the “Law on benefits for exercising the function of village administrator,” with 12 voting against and no abstentions recorded. The Sejm examined four competing proposals: one from the government, another from the Senate, plus plans from Solidarna Polska and the Polish coalition, with the government’s draft considered the leading one.
Subsequently, the Sejm endorsed the amendment proposed by Law and Justice. The approved version states that the cash benefit will be payable to village chiefs who have fulfilled at least two terms of office and eight years of service, a departure from the government’s original draft that proposed a ten-year tenure. The additional monthly allowance remains PLN 300 for those meeting the age criteria, reinforcing the pension-like support for long-serving local leaders.
The financial mechanism envisages that the grant is disbursed at the beneficiary’s request by the chairperson of the Agricultural Social Insurance Fund. Funding comes from the state budget and the benefit is indexed annually on March 1 according to the legal indexation rate. The law sets its budgetary ceiling for expenditures below PLN 74 million for the year 2023. Looking ahead, the projected expenditures are expected to climb gradually, from more than PLN 162 million in 2024 to almost PLN 233 million by 2032. The law took effect on July 1, 2023, and applies to eligible village administrators from that date forward.
With the bill advancing, it is now slated to be considered by the Senate for further scrutiny and potential amendments before final enactment takes place.