Final assent of the Chamber of Deputies to the decree on fiscal responsibility: it is law

Final go-ahead in the House on the collective liability. There were 140 yes votes, 68 abstentions, including the PD, and 33 against. The bridging measure, already approved by the Senate, is now law. After the Senate Chamber gave the green light, without amendments, to the decree that postpones from 30 April to 31 December 2025, the deadline for the provision limiting public officials' liability to damages caused only by conduct carried out with malice; a 'shield' that covers damages caused by active conduct, thus excluding those resulting from omission or inertia. The measure also provides for the retroactive application of the discipline for acts committed in the period between 30 April and 12 May. In the Senate, the majority groups voted in favour, while the Iv, Avs, M5S and PD groups had declared a vote of abstention. The rule, which is temporary in nature, aims to reduce the 'fear of signing' among public officials, incentivising action and reducing the risk of omissions.

The Decree-Law on Fiscal Liability is an Italian legal provision concerning the liability of public employees and administrators for damage caused to the Treasury, i.e. the budget of the State or public entities. In the Italian legal context, erarial liability is a form of special civil liability that applies when a person, in the exercise of public functions, causes financial damage to the public administration through fault or malice. These matters are judged by the Court of Auditors. In recent years, in particular with Decree-Law No. 76/2020 (the so-called Simplification Decree), important limits and temporary changes have been introduced to the erarial liability, mainly with the aim of facilitating administrative action and reducing the 'fear of signing' on the part of public managers.

With the amendment to the legislation, liability is limited to wilful misconduct: managers and public officials are no longer liable for gross negligence, but only if they act with direct intent to cause damage. In the case of omissions or inaction, the liability of the state remains extended to gross negligence, in addition to wilful misconduct.