On Thursday, March 5, the executive submits for approval a series of important changes in the field of gambling, taxation and employment. After the Government meeting, Bogdan Ivan, the Minister of Energy, will present, together with Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan, a draft law on the extension of the gas price ceiling
The executive is to adopt an emergency ordinance amending GEO no. 77/2009, with an emphasis on protecting players.
Stricter rules for gambling
Among the proposed changes are: the unification of the self-exclusion procedure for online games and those in physical locations; the introduction of a buffer period of 18 months, during which the self-excluded person cannot withdraw his consent; establishing clear durations of self-exclusion – 6 months, 12 months or an indefinite period; strict procedures for identifying those requesting self-exclusion, to prevent abuses; clear differentiation between general self-exclusion and simple restriction of access to certain services (“business interruption”).
ONJN and the operators will have the obligation to actively inform the players about the counseling and treatment services available.
Adjustments in the fiscal-budgetary legislation
The government will also approve an emergency ordinance that modifies several normative acts, including Law no. 239/2025 regarding the recovery of public resources. The measures aim at: strengthening fiscal discipline; extending the applicability of Article V, by removing the condition regarding holding control; necessary technical correlations in the context of the new rules.
Updating the Fiscal-Budgetary Responsibility Law
Another project aims to amend Law no. 69/2010 to align it with the new European economic governance framework.
The changes concern public accounting standards, deficit and debt reporting, the quality of macroeconomic forecasts and the role of the Fiscal Council.
Measures to combat unemployment
The executive will also discuss an emergency ordinance to amend Law no. 76/2002 regarding the unemployment insurance system. The document starts from problems such as long-term unemployment, especially among young people and poorly qualified people, the difficulty of professional reintegration of ex-prisoners, the lack of specialized labor in certain regions and the reduced efficiency of some active employment measures.
The project proposes the modernization of intervention tools, the diversification of measures for vulnerable groups and the acceleration of the digitization of public employment services.
Investments in the digitization of MAI
The government will also approve the substantiation note for the “MAI Digital” project, valued at 487 million lei. The initiative aims to modernize the public services of the Ministry of Internal Affairs through digital solutions and e-government, in line with European standards.
Agreement in principle for financing in the field of energy
On the agenda is also a memorandum regarding the contracting of reimbursable financial assistance from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, intended for Romania’s strategic projects in the energy sector.
The government could extend the gas price cap
We remind you that Bogdan Ivan, the Minister of Energy, announced on Antena 3 CNN that on Thursday, after the Government meeting, he will present, together with Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan, a draft law by which the price of gas for the population will remain at 0.31 lei/kWh for another year.
The minister explained that the document had been prepared previously, but was updated in the context of the current international crisis, in order to protect Romania from fluctuations on the foreign market.
“It is a project from a week ago that was updated in this context of crisis and that will ensure that Romanians will not pay more than 0.31 lei/kWh, what they pay today, for another year. We’re talking about an efficient mechanism which we prepared for the post cap removal period from March 31 and which we updated in the context of the crisis“, said Bogdan Ivan.
He emphasized that the aim is to maintain the current price level for domestic consumers. “We ensure that the prices will not be higher than they are today for domestic consumers, namely the capped price until March 31 of 0.31 lei per kilowatt. (…) But the goal is that the price does not increase for home consumers in the next year”, the minister also said.
