From July 1, 2012, new tariffs for housing and communal services were established in Russia. In Moscow they grew by an average of 9.7%, in other regions the increase was from 7 to 15%. Another rise in prices for resources provided by housing and communal services took place on September 1, 2012. In addition, in the near future, a serious reform of the payment system for these services is expected.
The Russian government has adopted a law on a step-by-step plan for the introduction of a social rate of consumption of certain utilities. The norm will be considered the minimum, sufficient for life, as well as affordable volume of water, electricity, heat, etc. The services that will be provided within the framework of this norm are going to be subject to minimum tariffs, for everything else you will have to pay about 70% more.
In 2013, social norms for electricity consumption will be introduced as part of a pilot project in 8-15 regions. And in 2014, all Russians will pay for electricity at social tariffs.
The government has not yet decided on the exact number of kilowatt-hours included in the social norm for Russians. At a meeting of the Duma, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said that when calculating the consumption rates of a particular resource, it is necessary to take into account climatic and other factors. So, for example, in the Arctic and in the south of the country, the social norms of electricity should be different.
The size of the social norm will also depend on the type of area (urban or rural), the number of residents, etc. The introduction of social tariffs for electricity will be the first step in reforming the housing and communal services system. Whether this reform will affect gas supply and heating depends on how successful the pilot project is.
The introduction of social norms for the consumption of natural resources, according to officials, will reduce the costs of cross-subsidization and the financial burden on business. At a meeting in the Kremlin, the Prime Minister of the Russian Federation also called on all citizens to install gas and water meters. According to Dmitry Medvedev, it is high time for Russians to learn how to control the consumption of natural resources and treat them more carefully.
According to experts, these measures are unlikely to correct the current situation in the country: now the debt of Russians to suppliers of water, electricity and gas amounts to more than 300 billion rubles, and continuing tariff increases can only significantly increase this figure.
