Finally a concrete measure to help businesses, especially those small and medium companies who are in difficulty not only due to the lack of bank credit but also, and often above all, due to late payments by the Public Administration. On April 4, the Senate approved the decree law on tax simplifications with a significant amendment presented by Senator Baldassarri which allows companies to discount invoices issued in the bank for the supply of goods or services to the PA so as to have the necessary liquidity to keep the company going. A simple thing that is common practice between individuals, but that so far with the public sector it was not possible. For what reason?
As has been stated for several months, the debts of public administrations towards companies amount to a figure of around 80 billion Euros. Someone says that payment delays have even increased, and that therefore debts are reaching now the 100 billion. In order to be able to discount these credits in the bank with the pro-solvendo formula, the entity that made the purchase must accept the invoice issued by the company, i.e. certify that the invoice is real and that it corresponds to what the creditor actually must have similarly to what happens between private individuals. So far, the State Accounting Office had opposed having this certification put in place, saying that in this way a new public debt would emerge to be considered in the overall state deficit and in the public debt, which would therefore appear to be much greater. Instead, now the Accounting Office has changed its opinion and has realized that the simple certification of the invoice does not change the accounting records of public bodies and therefore does not change the calculation of the overall deficit and debt.
Thus, when the law that passed the House for final approval will be published in the Official Gazette, companies will be able to go and have their invoices authenticated by the public administrations and then take them to the bank to obtain the liquidity necessary for the life of the company in advance, pending actual payment by the debtor who has in any case acknowledged the validity of his debt.
In a moment of severe liquidity crisis it is a breath of fresh air which is essential for many companies to live which are suffering not only from the crisis which is reducing their turnover, but also from the lack of money with which to meet the payment of their employees, their purchases and also of taxes which, contrary to payments, the State demands without delay.
Of course there are still many technical issues to be resolved, primarily those related to duration of the loan and its cost. It would be desirable for the banks to reach an agreement with the main business associations to establish a procedure fast enough to accept invoices duly signed by the PA, and to set non-punitive cost conditions for businesses that already have to fight a tough battle for survival. After having lost so many years in absurd bureaucratic technicalities, there is no more time to lose.
