The law also considers increasing borrowing to pay the operations "related to food sovereignty, preservation of social investment, security and integral defense, as set forth in the Constitution."  Initially, additional borrowing was authorized only to pay "extraordinary expenses as a result of disasters or to refinance or restructure the public debt."  The preamble of the draft law discussed by the National Assembly (AN) states that oil prices "have not recovered enough as to keep the investments in the oil industry or secure budgets. The 2009 budget is premised on $69 per barrel (sic). Such an average will hardly be attained in 2009."

The Executive Office substantiated the change approved by the AN in a first session. "The restrictions contained in article 81 of the Organic Law of the Public Sector Financial Administration would imply for the 2009 budget a dramatic reduction of social investment and a setback in the fields of education, health and infrastructure. They would also force a strong reduction of investment in production, with a negative impact on jobs (…) and adversely affecting the demand. The purpose is to keep the gross domestic product in the black and avoid recession."

• "The crisis has touched not a single hair in Venezuela; this does not mean though that it cannot touch one, or even two hairs," said President Hugo Chavez when announcing the "anti-crisis measures."

Debt a la carte: The draft special law on supplemental indebtedness was also discussed. It is intended to cope with the expenditure budget and the debt service by adding $10.2 billion to an allocation of $5.7 billion set forth in the Umbrella Law as borrowing capacity. Based on the data provided by the National Budget Office to the AN, the reduction from $60 to $40 in oil prices under the 2009 budget meant a 51% drop in oil income.  The contribution was curtailed from 11.05% of the GDP in a scenario of $60 per barrel to 5.26% of the GDP. To sum up, the Treasury will stop receiving $18.7 billion on account of oil revenues.

Like a balm, the Executive Office told the AN that the 3% increase in the VAT, from 9 to 12%, will yield additional $3.2 billion, that is, $19.4 billion in the aggregate for 2009. Nevertheless, Minister of Planning & Development Jorge Giordani reported last weekend that the additional share as a result of the VAT increase would total $4.2 billion. The expenditure for debt service, in the face of the foreseen public borrowing, heightened by 24%, from $7.3 billion to $9.0 billion, as reported to the AN National Budget Office. Current receipts would drop from $72.3 billion to $52.9 billion, or 21.3%. Discretionary earnings (borrowing) would account for 21.9% out of total revenues.