Addressing the nation on television last night, President Leonel Fernández announced measures to control government spending. The President authorized a freeze on government payroll spending to levels of May of this year. The President ordered department heads of central and autonomous government institutions to reduce non-priority expenditures. He ordered that heads of government institutions establish the priority of works under construction. Moreover, he announced measures to restore credit worthiness to the government, by way of a system of improved budgetary execution. He announced the creation of the Commission of Budgetary Follow-up with caps on expenses established for each trimester. The commission will be head by the Technical Secretary of the Presidency, and the members are the Minister of Finance, Administrative Secretary of the Presidency, and the directors of the Budget and Planning Departments.
