Karácsony said the city will pay HUF 33 billion of the HUF 58 bln it owes for the contribution, fielding a question from news agency MTI.
"We can't pay the rest and we don't want to either," he said.
Budapest will contest the scale of the contribution in court, arguing that the tax is illegal because the constitution prohibits deductions of local councils' own revenue, he added.
He noted that the HUF 58 bln solidarity tax is HUF 25 bln more than the scale of state support the city gets to provide public services.
He said some measures in a "survival program" drafted by the deputy mayor will be debated by the city council at a meeting in the coming week. The measures include deferring HUF 15 bln in operating expenditures until the fourth quarter and clearing the Budapest Public Transport Center (BKK) to take out a HUF 24 bln loan, he added.
Development spending, including monies for the renovation of the landmark Chain Bridge, would also be deferred till Q4, he said.
Producing journalism that is worthy of the name is a costly business. For over 30 years, the publishers, editors and reporters of the Budapest Business Journal have striven to bring you business news that works, information that you can trust, that is factual, accurate and presented without fear or favor.Newspaper organizations across the globe have struggled to find a business model that allows them to continue to excel, without compromising their ability to perform. Most recently, some have experimented with the idea of involving their most important stakeholders, their readers.
We would like to offer that same opportunity to our readers. We would like to invite you to help us deliver the quality business journalism you require. Hit our Support the BBJ button and you can choose the how much and how often you send us your contributions.
