NIK has checked how the airport border crossings operate. In the audited period the Ministry of the Interior allocated more than PLN 92 million in 2008 and nearly PLN 107 million in 2012 to finance them. According to NIK, this is much too little for the current needs. For instance, 25 percent of the necessary amount was missing in 2008, whereas in 2011 it was almost 20 percent.
Besides, the Ministry of the Interior does not analyse the needs of individual airport border crossings. Instead, it allocates funds automatically, based on the data from past years. In this way it does not consider specific conditions of individual crossings or calculation of expenditures. NIK finds it hard to understand, the more so because the Minister has access to relevant information (obtained from governors). In reality it is used only to estimate the consequences of legislative changes, though.
The long-term practice of co-financing crossings from the state specific reserve is questionable as well. Despite the fact that a Working Group on the Estimation of Costs of Airport Border Crossings was set up in 2007, the results of its works have not been considered to date. NIK has strongly criticised the lack of attempts to identify and estimate costs related to operation of the airport border crossings.
NIK auditors detected a big mess as regards settlements between the state bodies - represented by governors - and airport administrators. Because of inconsistent provisions of law, the latter apply their own rates and principles when renting space and equipment for the border control. Besides, the law does not require that the airport administrators isolate the costs of border crossings’ operation in accounting records. As a result, it is impossible to arrive at real maintenance costs of border crossings in individual airports. In extreme cases the administrators may use it and file claims against the State Treasury. For instance, that was the case in Cracow where things ended up in a court dispute. NIK points out that administrative bodies are in an unfavourable position in such disputes because of unclear legal status.
According to NIK, agreements with airport administrators should be concluded by border control services (Border Guard, customs service), not by governors - as it has been to date. The Polish SAI finds it critical to make fast and comprehensive changes to the law to eliminate problems with settlements between the state bodies and airport administrators. It turns out that works on amending the State Border Protection Act, which the Ministry started in 2008, have been carried out for nearly five years.
