The senators, mostly from the right, approved this Thursday in committee some twenty amendments to the draft amending budget for 2022, the second part of measures to support purchasing power that will arrive on Monday at the hemicycle of the Luxembourg Palace.

The first part, the “emergency” bill for purchasing power, has been discussed since Thursday morning in this same chamber. The modified budget project opens 44,000 million euros in credits, including 9.7 to finance the renationalization of 100% of EDF.

The senators approved in committee 21 amendments by the general rapporteur of the budget Jean-François Husson, according to a press release from the Finance Commission. Specifically, they want to make permanent the increase to 7,500 euros in the exemption ceiling for the tax on overtime, voted by the National Assembly for 2022.

An envelope for food banks

Currently, overtime is exempt from taxes up to a maximum of 5,000 euros per year, with a maximum of 220 hours worked in a year, not including branch, company or specific collective agreement.

They replaced the exceptional back-to-school bonus of 100 euros, reserved for social minimums, with “an exceptional ‘impulse’ increase” of 150 euros for beneficiaries of the activity bonus.

They have also provided an “exceptional provision of 40 million euros” for food banks, “subject to significant supply difficulties, especially due to inflation.”

The tax on “super profits” on the table on Monday

The rapporteur has not questioned the controversial suppression of the audiovisual license fee. But the senators limited to December 31, 2024 the allocation of a fraction of the VAT collection to ensure the financing of public broadcasting, “this period giving time for the implementation of a true reform of the sector.”

They still decided to “improve the device” to support the most financially weakened municipalities. The very delicate question of the possible establishment of a tax on the “super profits” of large companies will remain to be addressed on Monday. Slightly rejected last weekend by the National Assembly, this “exceptional contribution of solidarity” will be taken to the Senate by the centrist group.

The centrist senators will propose applying to companies whose net profit would have been 20% higher in 2021 than the average of the three years 2017, 2018 and 2019, a contribution of 20% calculated on the difference between the two amounts.