Aggregate Land Tax Changing into Provincial-level Tax

The government and the Uri Party are pushing to change the aggregate land tax (a local tax) into a provincial-level tax, following the property tax, in the upcoming commencement of the National Assembly in June or the regular session in September.

A pivotal official of the Uri Party announced yesterday, “We are consulting with the government on having the metropolitan city or the province itself to take charge over collecting the aggregate land tax as well as the property tax for buildings instead of the local government leader.”

Following this, the official said, “The revised bill for the local tax law will be presented as early as June 17 in the National Assembly opening or at the latest, in the regular session in September. If this takes effect, the metropolitan city mayor or the provincial governor will take overall management in collecting and distributing the property and aggregate land tax, wiping out the regional egoism.”

He also stressed, “Our party is taking these measures to set our foot down on Seoul Kangnam Council repulsing to the government raising the property tax and lowering the increased rate themselves. This can prevent the district leader from taking advantage of the situation of reducing the tax as a means of maintaining his popularity among the people, and close the gap in the regional disparity through the tax in the long run.”

On this matter, Lee Hahn-koo, vice chairman of Grand National Party’s policy planning committee, criticized, “Their (Uri Party) intention is nothing but shaking the tax collection system and to scold the local governments repulsing to the government’s tax policies. A side effect in which the government controls the local economy, which is the basic fundamental of the local government, can arise.”

Meanwhile, the Uri Party announced that based on the tax collection at the end of 2001, the property tax was 700 billion won and the aggregate land tax was 1.4 trillion won, covering approximately eight percent of the national local tax.

Young-Hae Choi yhchoi65@donga.com