KAZAN -- Budget revenues in the Russian republic of Tatarstan fell by almost half in the first quarter of 2009 due to the global financial crisis, RFE/RL's Tatar-Bashkir Service reports.
According to the head of the Federal Tax Department in Tatarstan, Marat Safiullin, the shortfall can be attributed to a drop in VAT and other taxes collected on natural resources in the republic.
Tatarstan is known as one of Russia's most developed regions and is home to major industrial facilities.
However, the world economic crisis has caused companies to reduce their operations.
Russia's major truck-producing company, KamAZ, located in Tatarstan, plans to decrease the volume of its output by 26.5 percent this year.