Page:British and Foreign State Papers, vol. 144 (1952).djvu/373

 253. The Nation shall not contract loans except by virtue of a law approved by two-thirds of the total number of members of each co-legislative body, in which at the same time the permanent revenues necessary for the payment of interest and amortization are voted.

254. The Nation guarantees the public debt, and, in general, every operation which implies economic liability for the national Treasury, provided it was contracted in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution and the law.

255. All revenues and expenditures of the Nation, with the exception of those mentioned later, shall be provided for and fixed in annual budgets, and shall be in force only during the year for which they were approved.

The monies, special funds or private patrimonies of bodies authorised by the Constitution or by law, and devoted to social security, public works, development of agriculture and industrial, stock-raising, commercial or professional activities, and in general to the development of the national wealth, are excepted from the provisions of the preceding paragraph. These funds or their taxes shall be delivered to the autonomous body and administered by it, in accordance with the law which created them, subject to audit by the Tribunal of Accounts.

Expenses of the Legislative and Judicial Branches, those of the Tribunal of Accounts and those of the interest and amortizations of loans, and the revenues by which they are to be covered, shall be permanent in character and shall be included in the fixed budget that shall be effective until revised by special laws.

256. For the purposes of protection of the general and national interests, in any line of production, as well as of the professions, obligatory associations or producers can be established by law, which shall determine the manner of constitution and the functioning of the national bodies and of the regional ones that are necessary, in such manner that at all times they shall be governed by a majority of their members, with full authority; likewise granting them the right to meet the needs of their organised action by dues that will be imposed by the operation of the said law.

The budgets of these bodies or co-operatives shall be audited by the Tribunal of Accounts.