The kremlin Is Turning Fines Into a New Source of Oil: the rf’s Budget Is Relying on Repression

The state budget of the rf is shifting to new “high-tech” sources of funding. kremlin bureaucrats have decided to no longer tie the state treasury solely to global oil prices, but instead to rely on penalties and fines imposed on violators of all kinds of rules and regulations.

The rf ministry of finance’s projections are striking in their “foresight”. In 2026, the rf’s budget is projected to receive 300 billion rubles from fines and penalties; in 2027 – 312 billion; and in 2028 – 324 billion. In total, this is one and a half times more than during the previous three-year period. Thus, moscow is officially shifting its repressive system onto a commercial track.

Turning administrative penalties into a source of budget revenue requires a serious “state-oriented” approach. No experienced russian official will rely on random violations or simply undisciplined drivers. The system requires guaranteed, planned revenue, so other state institutions are being actively involved in the process.

One such precedent could be the russian supreme court’s ruling on the construction of townhouses and duplexes on garden plots. The judges have clarified that on land designated for “gardening” (i.e., at dachas), only single-family homes for seasonal residence may be built. This means that townhouses and duplexes do not fall under this regulation. Consequently, the authorities may deem such buildings illegal and force the owners to demolish them at their own expense. All losses will be borne solely by the former owners. In this regard, the system may offer russians an amnesty, under which certain fines paid to the budget (and other penalties) will serve as punishment for violators.

Given that in russia, most cottage communities and suburban residential complexes are built precisely on former agricultural land with “horticultural” status, law enforcement agencies will have a vast field of opportunity for action. To understand the scale of the issue: in moscow region alone, the number of such cottage communities ranges from 1,700 to 2,400.