Question 36

Does the Executive’s Budget Proposal or any supporting budget documentation present alternative displays of expenditures (such as by gender, by age, by income, or by region) to illustrate the financial impact of policies on different groups of citizens, for at least the budget year?
 * a. Yes, at least three alternative displays of expenditures are presented to illustrate the financial impact of policies on different groups of citizens.
 * b. Yes, two alternative displays of expenditures are presented to illustrate the financial impact of policies on different groups of citizens.
 * c. Yes, one alternative display of expenditures is presented to illustrate the financial impact of policies on different groups of citizens.
 * d. No, alternative displays of expenditures are not presented to illustrate the financial impact of policies on different groups of citizens.
 * e. Not applicable/other (please comment).

Guidelines
Question 36 asks about “alternative displays” of expenditures that highlight the financial impact of policies on different groups of citizens. As discussed above, expenditures are typically presented by at least one of three classifications — administrative, functional, and economic classifications (see Questions 1-5) — and by individual program. In addition, governments can provide alternative displays to emphasize different aspects of expenditure policies and to show who benefits from these expenditures. The United Nations supports gender-responsive budgeting, which can include a gender budget presentation, to promote gender equity and women’s rights. See: http://gender-financing.unwomen.org/en. Other alternative displays can show how expenditures flow to different regions of a country, or how expenditures benefit different income groups.

For example, in India, the annual budget includes funds for the Scheduled Caste Sub-Plan (SCSP), a program designed to assist traditionally marginalized classes (or castes). See PDF 2, page 4, of India’s 2011 Executive’s Budget Proposal (Annual Financial Statements). For an example in Spanish, see the page of Mexico’s 2014 Executive’s Budget Proposal where funds specifically allocated to indigenous populations are shown.

For the purpose of answering this question, the alternative display can cover all expenditures or only a portion of expenditures. For instance, it can show how all program expenditures are distributed according to geographic region or it can show how selected expenditures (such as the health budget or the agriculture budget) are distributed to different regions. Similarly, if a country presents estimates of policies intended to benefit the most impoverished populations (see Question 52) then that should be considered an alternative display for purposes of answering this question.

To answer “a,” the Executive’s Budget Proposal or supporting documentation must include at least three different presentations that illustrate the financial impact of policies on different groups of citizens for at least the budget year. To answer “b,” the Executive’s Budget Proposal or supporting documentation must include at least two different alternative displays of expenditures. A “c” applies is only one type of alternative display of expenditure is presented. Answer “d” applies if no alternative display of expenditure is presented.