Local Taxation Bill : Reform Strengthens Financial Autonomy

Accelerating the decentralisation process is amongst the priority policies of government. The putting in place of Regional Councils in December 2020 is a case in point that indicates government’s willingness to include the population in the decision making process by bringing them closer to decentralised authorities; Regional Councillors. Up till now, these decentralised authorities did not really enjoy financial autonomy, owing to the fact that the December 15, 2009 law that governed taxation within the decentralisation context had a significant number of its provisions obsolete. To this effect, a proposed government bill on local taxation has been tabled in Parliament. Besides seeking to bridge the gaps of the aforementioned law, the documents also aims to strengthen the financial autonomy of regional and local authorities so as to better meet the requirements of the December 24, 2019 law to institute the General Code of Regional and Local Authorities.
With the bulk of the financial resources for the apt functioning of regional and local authorities coming from subsidies from the State, the proposed bill seeks to lighten the burden on the State by providing these officials with mechanisms of generating income through local taxes. It states the kind of taxes to be collected at the decentralised level and the modus operandi.  The instrument clearly states that the taxation services of the State shall be responsible for the administration of all taxes devolved to local authorities. To this end, proceeds of Council taxes collected by the State shall be derived from: business licence tax, licence fees, comprehensive tax, land tax, immovable property conveyance fee, motor vehicle stamp duty, forest royalty, stamp duty on advertising, tourist tax, and special excise duty to finance waste collection on behalf of regional and local authorities. Local taxes on their part shall include, Council taxes, additional Council taxe...