BHRT's Debts Growing: Utilities Unpaid, Contributions Owed, All RTV Fee Revenue Goes to Employee Salaries

(Patria) - BHRT General Director Belmin Karamehmedović sent a letter last month regarding the difficult financial situation at the Public Broadcasting Service of BiH to multiple addresses, including members of the Parliamentary Assembly of BiH, the Presidency of BiH, the Chairperson of the Council of Ministers of BiH, the Ministry of Transport and Communications, the Government of FBiH, and the Ministry of Finance of FBiH.

Karamehmedović stated at the beginning of his letter that as of January 1st this year, BHRT spends its entire monthly revenue from the RTV fee on salary payments after the minimum wage increased to 1,000 KM. Patria previously reported that salaries had to be increased for 503 employees who earned less than 1,000 KM.

He also admits that BHRT has not been paying contributions on salaries for employees for years, and the debt to the Tax Administration of FBiH for public revenues amounts to 49.7 million KM. He further stated that they need to settle contributions for employees who have reached retirement age so they can receive their pensions, and this year alone, they need to pay 2.8 million KM.

Karamehmedović informs the relevant institutions that they have stopped paying utility costs, as well as suppliers.

A particular problem is the debt to the EBU, which has set a deadline to settle the debt by February 2026, otherwise they will be forced to block BHRT's account and seek the sale of the Public Broadcasting Service's movable assets. The debt to the EBU amounts to 20,697,135 KM.

Part of the letter from the BHRT General Director

In his letter, the BHRT General Director requests an urgent resolution to its financing issues, either from the surplus revenue of the Communications Regulatory Agency or from the profits of the Central Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina, in the amount of approximately 900,000 KM per month to compensate for the RTV fee revenue that RTRS is not paying them.

"Considering that, according to the latest information, the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina, although it has no obligation and has not undertaken any, will pay the company Viaduct from Portorož the amount of 110.1 million KM due to the termination of the concession agreement for the construction of hydroelectric power plants on the Vrbas River, signed by the Government of Republika Srpska, we expect that for BHRT, whose founder is the BiH Parliament, a method of temporary co-financing will be urgently found, as has been done for cultural and educational institutions," Karamehmedović stated.

This letter was also considered by the Commission for Transport and Communications of the House of Representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly of BiH, but there is no final solution except that the Ministry of Transport and Communications will be asked to form a team to address this issue.

Karamehmedović also attached to the correspondence a ruling by the Constitutional Court of BiH which ruled that RTRS did not have the right to withhold all collected funds from the RTV fee.