Accordo 10 dicembre 1998

Agreement between the Government of the Republic of Hungary and the Baptist Church of Hungary, 10 dicembre 1998.

Preamble

The Government of the Republic of Hungary (hereinafter referred to as Government) and the Baptist Church of Hungary (hereinafter referred to as Church; together referred to as Parties), based on the regulations of Act CXXIV/1997 on the Financial Conditions of the Religious and Public Purpose Activity of Churches, hereby conclude an agreement.
The Government highly respects the historical traditions of the Church, its Hungarian mission dating back to 1523 together with its 475th anniversary, as well as the efforts generated by its faith to promote the moral and intellectual rise of the nation, its participation in the Hungarian fights for independence, its role played in the emergence of the middle class and the joining of the European culture, its service in the field of protecting and developing the identity and culture of the nation.
The Government is pleased to acknowledge that the Baptist Church of Hungary maintains educational, cultural, social and other public institutions and thus participates in the fulfilment of public duties and in the promotion of the public good.
The Government welcomes the efforts of the Church contributing to the purpose that the Republic of Hungary would be an honoured member of the community of the European nations, and further that the Republic of Hungary should support the efforts of Hungarians living outside the borders to protect and develop their identity and culture, and would be able to cooperate with all the peoples and nations of the world.

1. The Church, in accordance with the regulations of Act XXXII/1991 on the Settlement of Ownership of Former Real Properties of the Churches, has compiled a list of those former real estates, which shall not be claimed in kind. The value of the buildings written on the list has been assessed by a legal expert. The list contains the following buildings:
– Gyomaendrőd, Bajcsy Zsilinszky str. 48., Petőfi str. 40/1 (topographical lot number 407 408), HUF 2 (two) million,
– Budapest, district XI., Alsóhegy str. 13 15. (topographical lot number 4889), HUF 119 (one hundred and nineteen) million,
altogether: in the value of HUF 121 (one hundred and twenty-one) million.
The Government shall accept the list mentioned in point 1. as the value assessed by the expert.

2. The Parties agree to transform the value established in point 1. into a source of annuity, which shall be spent on the financing of the religious and public purpose activity of the Church. In accordance with Section 3 of Act CXXIV/1997, the rate of annuity shall be 4.5% of HUF 848 million between 1998 and 2001 (in 1998 this amount was HUF 5.445 million), and as of 2001, this rate is 5%, which shall be supplemented by the Government to amount HUF 20 million as of January 1, 1999.

3. Based on the aforementioned Act, the amount of the herein defined annuity shall be increased annually, in a rate corresponding to the pace of average devaluation of the Forint calculated on the annual planning of the central budget and shall be modified in a rate corresponding to the actual devaluation, following the adoption of the Act on the Execution of the Central Budget.

4. The annual allowance shall be made available quarterly by the 10th day of the first month of the given quarter. Necessary corrections shall be transferred in one amount by the last day of the month following the passing of the Act on the Execution of the Central Budget.

5. Payment of the annuity shall be due until the termination of the Church without a legal successor.
By the fulfilment of the contents of the present Agreement the Church shall deem satisfied its claim for real estate regulation and compensation based on section 2, subsection (5) of Act XXXII/1991.

6. Government shall provide subsidies from the central budget for the investment and reconstruction works of public education, higher educa¬tion, social and health care institutions maintained by the Church.
Government shall provide state subsidies for Church higher education institutions in accordance with the effective legislation.
The Government grants support from the central budget on the same grounds and to the same extent to state funded students of higher educa¬tion institutions of the Church as to state funded students of public high¬er education institutions.
The number of state funded students which shall be agreed upon annually , cannot be less than the number of state funded students in the 1998/99 school year.

7. Parties state that the provisions of article 2 of present Agreement, concerning the completion of annuity defined above the value of the real properties serving the basis of annuity, shall come into force upon the due amendment of the relevant regulations of Act CXXIV/1997. The Government undertakes to initiate these amendments at the Parliament of the Republic of Hungary. Other parts of the Agreement shall come into force and may be implemented following the signing of the Agreement.