XIX Congress of the CPSU (b) - (October 5-14, 1952). Documents and Materials

October 6, (Morning session)

Presiding N.S. Khrushchev.

At the meeting, the report of the Central Auditing Commission of the CPSU (b) is heard. Then the congress goes on to discuss the reports of the Central Committee of the CPSU (b) and the Central Auditing Commission of the CPSU (b).

P.G. Moskatov

Report of the Central Auditing Commission of the CPSU (b)

Comrades! The report of the Central Committee of the All‐Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks) reported to the congress about the great victories of our party and the Soviet people and the ways of further economic, political and cultural development of our country.

I have been instructed to report to the Congress on the activities of the Central Auditing Commission, which, according to the Charter of the All‐Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks), must systematically check the state of the financial economy of the party, the organization of the apparatus, as well as the speed, correctness of the passage and consideration of documents, letters, statements, complaints in the central offices of our party.

I. During the reporting period, the Central Committee of the party carried out measures aimed at further improving financial discipline and accountability in party organizations; complete centralization of the party budget was carried out, covering all funds of party bodies, right down to the primary party organizations; control and audit work has been significantly improved.

In connection with the increase in the number of members of the party, the increase in the network of party bodies and the expansion of their publishing activities, the volume of financial and budgetary work has also significantly increased.

The income part of the partyʹs budget in 1951 increased 2.6 times as compared with 1939. As before, the revenue side of the budget is made up mainly of membership fees and income from the sale of products of the publishing houses of party organs, and the receipt of funds in the form of membership fees is much higher than other revenue items of the budget.

The increase in the total monetary amount of membership dues was the result of a significant increase in the size of the party and an increase in wages in the country. As you know, the timely payment of membership dues is one of the requirements of the Party Charter, one of the expressions of party discipline, the organizational connection of the communists with the party.

The Central Committee of the CPSU (b) has repeatedly drawn the attention of local party bodies and revision commissions of district committees, city committees and regional party committees to the need to improve work on the reception and registration of membership fees. In its decision ʺOn Strengthening Budget Discipline and Financial Control in Party Organizationsʺ, the Central Committee obliged party committees to consider every quarter question about the receipt of membership dues, reporting on them and eliminating the shortcomings identified by the audit commissions in this matter.

The procedure established by the Central Committee, obliging the secretaries of the primary party organizations to personally accept membership fees, provided a significant improvement in this work. The Central Auditing Commission has data that indicate that the overwhelming majority of members and candidates of the party, in accordance with the Charter of the All‐Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks, pays membership fees on time. Proper control has been established over the course of payment of membership fees. Local party bodies regularly report to the Central Committee on the receipt of membership fees and the procedure for their payment by party members and candidates. Reports on the receipt of membership fees are reviewed by party committees, which take measures to eliminate the identified deficiencies.

However, there are also primary party organizations that do not monitor the timely payment of membership fees by members and candidates of the party, do not pay attention to the fact that some communists are late with the payment of contributions, do not explain the importance of accurate payment of membership fees to the party treasury.

The task of the party bodies is to further ensure the timely payment of membership fees by each communist, strictly observe the established procedure for accepting membership fees and reporting on them, giving due attention to this area of organizational and party work.

Another important source of revenue for the party budget is receipts from the revenues of the publishing houses of the party organs. In 1952, these receipts have increased almost sixfold compared to 1940 and now account for 12 percent of the entire revenue side of the budget.

The task of the party organs is to continue to develop publishing activities in every possible way and to improve the work of publishing organizations.

II. The second part of the report of the Central Auditing Commission draws up a report on the expenditure side of the budget, on measures to ensure budgetary discipline and further improve the organization of the financial economy in party bodies.

First of all, it should be noted two features characterizing the expenditure side of the budget. First, the main expenditure item of the budget is meeting the needs of local party organizations. The proportion of these allocations is increasing from year to year. Suffice it to say that in 1952 the funds allocated for the needs of local party organizations amounted to 91 percent of all‐party budget expenditures. At the same time, it should be borne in mind that the remaining 9 percent of the budget, which make up the expenses of the central institutions of the party, is largely spent on training and retraining of the leading personnel of regional, territorial and republican organizations. Secondly, significant funds from the budget are directed to the political education of the communists, to expand the propaganda of the ideas of Marxism‐Leninism. For example, in 1952, expenditures for these purposes amounted to about 20 percent of the entire party budget.

The following educational institutions are supported by the Partyʹs budget: under the Central Committee of the All‐Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks) ‐ the Academy of Social Sciences; Higher Party School; one‐year retraining courses for the first secretaries of regional committees, regional committees of the All‐Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks) and the Central Committee of the Communist Parties of the Union republics, chairmen of regional executive committees, regional executive committees and chairmen of the Councils of Ministers of the Union and autonomous republics; Leninʹs courses with two years of study; correspondence department of the Higher Party School; one‐year courses for leading party and Soviet workers; sixmonth retraining courses for city committee secretaries for district party committees; under the regional committees, regional committees and the Central Committees of the Communist Parties of the Union republics ‐ two‐year party schools, nine‐month retraining courses for party and Soviet workers, and under the Central Committee of the CP (b) of Ukraine and the Central Committee of the CP (b) of Georgia ‐ republican three‐year party schools. A total of over 35 thousand people study at the listed educational institutions. More than 400 thousand propagandists of our party have been retrained at various courses held over the past 5 years.

From the financial budget of the Party, significant funds are annually spent on replenishing the libraries of city and district Party committees with literature.

Serious measures were taken by the Central Committee during the reporting period to expand the material and technical base of publishing houses of party bodies. The reconstruction of printing houses and the purchase of the necessary printing equipment enabled our party publishing houses to expand their work, to dramatically increase the circulation of newspapers and magazines. For example, we can say that in comparison with 1939, the circulation of the newspapers Pravda and Komsomolskaya Pravda has almost doubled. During the same period, the one‐time circulation of eighteen magazines published by the Pravda publishing house increased by one and a half times.

Large funds for the reporting period were allocated to local party bodies for the restoration, overhaul and construction of buildings for district committees, city committees, regional committees, regional committees of the All‐Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks, the Central Committee of the Communist Parties of the Union republics, as well as for the construction of buildings for party schools. The implementation of these measures made it possible for our party to improve the situation with the deployment of local leading party bodies and their educational institutions.

All this allows the Central Auditing Commission to conclude that the funds of the partyʹs budget were directed by the Central Committee to meet the most urgent needs of the local and central organizations of our party.

It is known that strict adherence to budgetary discipline has always been the main condition for the correct conduct of the partyʹs financial economy. During the period under review, an improvement was achieved in the organization of the financial economy of party bodies. The work of further strengthening the financial economy of the party was facilitated by the directives adopted by the Central Committee during this time to establish strict control over the correct spending of budget funds. The Central Committee of the All‐Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks) ordered the regional committees, regional committees and the Central Committee of the communist parties of the union republics to take the necessary measures to economically spend the funds allocated from the party budget.

A systematic check of the correctness of the financial management of local party bodies has been established. Annually, by the forces of the control and instructor apparatus of the regional committees, regional committees and the Central Committee of the communist parties of the union republics, the organization of this case is checked by at least 90 percent. city and district party committees. In the same direction, a lot of work is being done by local audit commissions, which over the past time have repeatedly checked the financial and economic activities of all Central Committees of the Communist Parties of the Union republics, regional committees, regional committees, city committees and district party committees.

Local party organizations have become more concerned with the financial economy of party publishing houses. At present, industrial financial plans and financial reports of party publishing houses, as a rule, are considered by regional committees, regional committees, and the Central Committee of the Communist Parties of the Union republics. In 1951, the industrial financial plans and reports of 35 regional, regional and republican publishing houses were considered in the Administrative Department of the Central Committee of the AllUnion Communist Party of Bolsheviks with the participation of directors of publishing houses and representatives of the corresponding regional committees, regional committees and the Central Committee of the communist parties of the union republics.

The Central Auditing Commission, based on an analysis of the financial statements of local party bodies, acts of regional, regional and republican audit commissions and survey materials, can report to the 19th Party Congress that the leading party bodies for the most part correctly manage the financial economy of the party, strictly observe budgetary discipline.

At the same time, there are facts when certain local party bodies allow cost overruns, arbitrarily switch funds from one budget item to another, and do not ensure proper accounting and financial reporting. Some audit commissions poorly perform their duties, rarely check the financial and economic activities of party bodies, poorly control expenditures on individual budget items, as a result of which there have been facts of cost overruns for administrative and economic needs, and the funds allocated for personnel training, propaganda and campaigning , sometimes remained underutilized.

The Central Committee pays great attention to questions of regulating the staff of the party apparatus. During the reporting period, there were repeated reductions in the staff of the party apparatus. The constant attention of the Central Committee to the regulation of the staff of party bodies made it possible not only to keep the staff of the party apparatus as a whole at the level of 1939, but even to reduce them somewhat, despite the large numerical increase in the party during this time.

In order to further improve the financial and economic activities of the party bodies, it is necessary to continue to work to strengthen the budget, decisively reduce unproductive expenses and use funds economically. Local audit commissions must timely conduct audits of the financial and economic activities of party bodies, paying special attention to the quality of audits on issues within the scope of their activities, and establish systematic control over the timely implementation of their proposals based on the results of the audit. It is our duty to continue to show prudence in spending money in the future, to observe the strictest financial discipline, to conduct the financial economy of the Party in an exemplary manner, unswervingly guided by the instructions of the Central Committee, Comrade Stalin. (Applause.)

III. Checking the work of the party apparatus with regard to the speed and correctness of the course of affairs, the Central Auditing Commission established that during the reporting period there was a further strengthening of the party apparatus, an increase in the political and cultural level of party cadres, and an increased sense of responsibility for the assigned task.

An important function of party bodies is to keep track of the numerical composition of the party, and organize and manage the party economy. After the 18th Congress, the Central Committee of our Party continued to perfect and improve this work. New instructions were developed ʺOn the registration of members and candidates of the CPSU (b)ʺ and ʺOn the procedure for registering and issuing party tickets and candidate cards of the 1936 model.ʺ By these instructions, responsibility for the correct registration of the composition of regional and city party organizations, for keeping party documents and issuing party cards and candidate cards is personally entrusted to the first secretaries of the district and city party committees.

The Central Committee systematically checked and assisted local party organizations in improving the organization of the party economy, registering members and candidates for party members, registering and issuing party documents. On these issues, the Central Committee checked 63 regional committees, regional committees, and the Central Committee of the Communist Parties of the Union republics. The materials of the check were discussed in the Central Committee of the All‐Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks) and appropriate decisions were made on them.

During wartime and in the post‐war period, there was a large movement of party members and candidates from one organization to another, which could not but affect the state of registration of the communists. Party organizations in recent years have done a great job of putting things in order in the registration of party members and candidates and in the party economy. District committees, city party committees and political agencies checked the registration documents with the actual composition of the party members and candidates, the corresponding changes were made to the registration cards, which occurred in the registration data of the communists.

The constant attention of the Central Committee of the party to the registration of members and candidates for members of the CPSU (b), reports on the composition and movement of party organizations regularly submitted to the Central Committee of the CPSU (b) in uniform forms provide the party with complete clarity on the issue of the quantitative and qualitative composition of its ranks. These reports are discussed and approved by the bureaus of regional committees, regional committees, and the Central Committee of the communist parties of the union republics.

At the same time, it should be noted that some city committees, district party committees do not timely admit communists to the party register, delay the sending of registration cards to the new place of work of party members and candidates, and admit communists who arrived without absentee ballots. The secretaries of a number of city and district party committees themselves do not speak personally with the arriving communists, their party documents are not verified with registration cards, and they are admitted to the party registration and deregistered in absentia. In some party organizations, the issuance of party documents to party members and candidates is out of time. Some Party organizations are not yet conducting a proper fight against the facts of the Communistsʹ careless attitude towards Party documents, as a result of which there are cases of loss of Party cards and candidate cards.

Such omissions cannot be tolerated in the work of party organizations. It must be remembered that well‐organized accounting, the strictest observance of the established procedure for issuing and storing party documents, increased responsibility, increased vigilance of the leaders of party organizations in this matter should protect the party from the penetration of random and hostile elements into its ranks.

Comrades, the Central Committee of the Party and the secretaries of the Central Committee are receiving numerous letters, proposals and statements from workers, collective farmers, industry and agriculture specialists, scientists, teachers, doctors, officers and soldiers of the Soviet Army, disabled workers and warriors, students of various educational institutions for a wide variety of issues that are often of state and public importance. Filled with a desire to help our party and the state to carry out certain measures, to eliminate the existing facts of distortions in the work of individual links of the party and state apparatus, economic and other organizations, Soviet people turn to the Central Committee of the CPSU (b), knowing that their requests and proposals will be are carefully reviewed here.

The Central Auditing Commission reports to the congress that all letters received by the Central Committee of the CPSU (b) are carefully considered by the leading officials of the Central Committee apparatus. Responsible workers of the Central Committee leave for the field to check many letters and applications. Several statements and letters were the subject of discussion in the Central Committee. In addition, in the apparatus of the Central Committee of the CPSU (b), measures were taken that made it possible to strengthen control over the passage of letters and their consideration, as well as to improve the registration of all correspondence, which makes it possible to quickly issue any information on documents received by the Central Committee of the party. Much work is being done with letters, statements and complaints from the working people in the local Party organizations. But, unfortunately, not all local party bodies properly consider incoming letters and complaints. There are also cases when letters received are sent to certain organizations and their execution is not controlled.

Party organizations must eliminate the existing shortcomings in the consideration of letters and statements of workers, guided by the repeated instructions of our party, Comrade Stalin about the need for careful attention to the analysis of letters from workers, letters of members and candidates for party members who have the right to address any question and statement to any party authority up to the Central Committee of the party.

Comrades! The Communist Party and the Soviet people face new world‐historical tasks ‐ the task of further implementing the great ideas of Lenin and Stalin

Under the leadership of Comrade Stalin, our Party is leading the Soviet people along the broad and true road to communism. (Stormy, prolonged applause.)