The Bucharest Court ruled in favor of The Foundation For The Defense Of Citizens Against State Abuses (FACIAS) in a lawsuit concerning the transparency of public spending by the National Agency for Protected Natural Areas (ANANP). The court's decision requires the state agency to publish the gross salaries of its management and the performance indicators on which these salaries are based.
The victory comes after ANANP refused to provide complete information in response to a request made under the law on free access to public information. As a result, FACIAS took the institution to court, and the Bucharest Tribunal ruled that ANANP must clearly and in detail disclose two essential sets of information: the gross remuneration paid to each member of the management for the period 2022–2024 and the performance indicators used to evaluate the agency's activity.
This action is part of the campaign "Turn off the waste tap!", initiated by FACIAS to combat the lack of transparency in the spending of public funds and to show citizens the criteria used to reward managers in state institutions and companies.
The court's decision has not only legal value, but also symbolic value, as it obliges a public institution to take responsibility towards citizens when managing public money. The ANANP's initial refusal to provide this data raises legitimate questions about how the protection of natural areas, a strategic area for Romania's sustainable development, is managed.