Justified but not controlled aid, rent exemptions granted blindly, favors granted to certain public service delegates, the regional chamber of accounts has just issued a report on the economic interventions of the metropolis of Lyon during the health crisis. .
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Appropriate help...
In all, the economic interventions of the metropolis of Lyon during the health crisis amounted to 114 million euros (81€ per inhabitant), of which 101 million were allocated to additional aid to the national solidarity fund (FSN) , 4.7 million for the reduction of two-thirds of the property contribution for companies and 2.8 million for the contribution to the United Region Fund created by the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region during the crisis.
All of this aid was backed by national and regional mechanisms to facilitate their collection.
In all, 44,500 companies in the metropolis have received additional aid from the DSF of 1,000 euros per month and 2,115 have benefited from subsidies and repayable advances granted by the regional fund.
... But without any control
However, the judges of the regional chamber of accounts deplore that the metropolis has not "
given itself the means to take stock of the economic aid paid
".
In response to the chamber's provisional observations, the president of the metropolis, Bruno Bernard, indicated that an evaluation had "not
appeared to be a priority in view of the a priori non-recurring nature of the health crisis and the exceptional measures put in place to respond to them within the framework of exceptional legislation
".
This was not to the taste of the magistrates who recalled "
that any use of public money justifies taking stock of it
".
In the same vein, the latter have urged the metropolis to approach the tax services and the judicial prosecutor's office, which have put in place a policy to fight against fraud to obtain the repayment of unduly paid aid.
“
The metropolis has not requested the services of the State on this point either,
deplores the report.
A company identified by the State as having to reimburse aid from the solidarity fund should also reimburse the metropolitan aid received according to the same eligibility criteria.
This would suppose that the State transmits the corresponding files to the metropolis.
It would be difficult to understand that the lists of beneficiaries and their bank details could have been transmitted to the region and then to the metropolis, but that the list of unduly paid aid could not be.
»
Warned on this point, Bruno Bernard told the judges that "
the feasibility of this recommendation (would) be assessed by the services
", while noting that the number of files concerned seemed low.
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Leases managed blind
Like many landlords, Greater Lyon has granted rent exemptions during confinement.
On April 23, 2020, the metropolis, then managed by David Kimelfeld, voted an exemption from rent corresponding to the next three monthly installments and reducing the annual rent due in 2020 by 25% to relieve companies.
In all, 390 professional tenants from the community were targeted by this measure valued at 1.315 million euros.
However, the report shows that the metropolis has, once again, “
not attached this first rent exemption to conditions relating to the administrative closure of the premises or a drop in turnover
”.
An "
unconditional discount practiced by the illegal metropolis according to the Council of State
", he adds.
In response, the metropolis argued that “
the urgency did not allow it to analyze the impact of the crisis on the financial situation of the beneficiaries of the 510 leases concerned
”.
Not enough for the magistrates of the chamber who point the finger at certain beneficiaries whose name alone should have alerted the community.
This is the case for Total (€13,263 in rent exemptions), GDF Suez (€11,311), Sanofi (€8,152) or Eiffage (€4,614) which have not been the subject of any control of the consequences of the crisis on their finances.
In response to the chamber's provisional observations, the Total and Engie-GDF groups indicated that they had not requested the aid granted.
Total has also reimbursed the metropolis for this aid and Engie-GDF has declared itself ready to do so as soon as the metropolis sends it the "
missing invoices
" corresponding to the exempt rents.
SNCF (€64,921), France Television (€4,125) and La Poste (€3,576), three companies in which the State is a 100% shareholder, also benefited from these exemptions.
“
Companies whose turnover has not necessarily decreased with the crisis have also benefited from a 25% reduction in annual rent, for example a funeral marble factory and two pharmacies”, deplore the judges
.
Furthermore, the rent exemptions granted to tenants in mainland France did not oblige them to pass them on to their potential sub-tenants.
Also, SNC Quick Invest France benefited from rent exemptions of up to €56,000 between April 2020 and May 2021, without being legally obliged to pass on this reduction to the restaurant tenant.
Largesse filled by the new majority during the second confinement.
Favors for GL Events
The regional chamber of accounts devotes part of its report to the public service delegation management (DSP) of the congress center of the international city in Lyon.
A DSP granted to the events giant GL Events which was the subject of an amendment adopted by the environmental majority at the end of 2020 to reduce the fixed part of the 2020 operating fee from 1,053 million to 250,000 €.
A drop of 803,000 euros which had "
a significant financial impact
" for the community, note the judges, but which remains below the requests of the company which had requested "
a total exemption from royalties, to reimburse the co-ownership charges ( 450 k€) from the delegate and above all to grant him the indemnity of 2.16 M€ claimed under the theory of hardship
”.
The report thus estimates that "
State aid has enabled the delegatee to reconnect with significant profits from 2021. A posteriori, it appears that the profits for the years 2019 and 2021 could have compensated for the 2020 losses of the delegatee, even without help from the metropolis
.
However, if the community "
could have waited longer
" before signing this amendment, the judges consider that on the date of the deliberation, the decision of the metropolis was "
appropriate from an economic point of view but also in terms of management of public funds.
»
A low impact on the finances of the metropolis
Taking into account all the loss of revenue and additional expenditure generated by the health crisis, the impact of this crisis on the self-financing of the Lyon metropolitan area has been moderate (around 60 million euros).
In 2012, gross cash flow even exceeded its 2019 level, thanks also to a sharp rise in transfer taxes.
The additional aid to the solidarity fund (101 million euros) resulted in a sharp increase in investment expenditure in 2020, financed by borrowing.
However, after an increase of 172 million euros in 2020, the high level of self-financing capacity made it possible to return in 2021 to a level of debt lower than that of 2019.
The economic aid put in place to deal with the health crisis has therefore had a limited and essentially transitory effect on the financial situation of the metropolis of Lyon
”, concludes the regional chamber of accounts.