Perspective developments of public finance in Italy: a primer

The paper outlines the main current issues concerning Public Finance in Italy. It is divided in three parts. The first part discusses the overall budget policy. Italy is in need to support the recovery from economic crisis, however budget action is limited by European constraints. Different way to go out are discussed. The second part analyzes specific public policies caarried on by the present Government. The third part criticizes the choice which has been done toward fiscal federalism.Public finance, Budget policies, Tax and expenditure policies, Fiscal Federalism, Italy

Tax systems and tax reforms in Europe: Italy

The paper discusses the Italian tax systems, with reference to its development since the 1970s, both in quantitative and institutional features. The principal aspects of main existin taxes are then presented Finally the paper analyzes the distribution of fiscal burde, the recet and planned reforms an future outlook for the improvment of the systemTax Systems Tax Reforms Italy

Economic crisis and taxation in Europe

The recent economic crisis and taxation in the advanced countries - especially in the European nations - are linked in several ways. The tax systems may have exacerbated the crisis, and this raises the question of the need for a better system of taxation in certain economic sectors, especially in the banking sector. It is worthwhile examining the various different effects of the crisis on different kinds of tax revenue, as a result of both the automatic stabilizers and the discretional measures which were adopted to sustain the economies. We are going to show that while the former have had a relatively substantial impact, the latter have been of negligible effect. The paper initially offers a critical overview of the just mentioned topics. The European countries are now faced with a difficult trade - off between further tax reductions to sustain economic recovery, and the raising of taxes in order to help stabilize public budgets and debts. Broadly speaking, the most suggested solution consists in the idea of raising taxes whilst making them more growth - friendly. With this in mind, the paper then reconsiders and compares the latest, authoritative proposals for tax reform which in recent years have been proposed not only by international economic organizations, but also by studies in the field. The longstanding principles of broadening the tax base, reducing rates and simplifying the tax system still appear to be at the order of the day. The idea of shifting the tax burden away from labour and capital, whilst increasing taxes on consumption, properties and environmental resources, has also received large support. It is again suggested that efficiency - induced neutrality should characterize the design of the main taxes. While those political factors that have impeded reforms in recent years are still at work, we should remember that tax systems also have other targets than that of favouring neutrality - efficiency, and that in some countries (including Italy) the most urgent, radical reform required is the downsizing of an abnormal level of tax evasion.Economic Crisis, Taxation, Europe

A family of big brother that do not talk each other

Professor Slemrod’s IFS annual lecture (2006) concerning recent fiscal development in the U.S. is an interesting, thoughtful piece of high level taxation theory. However, I believe a couple of remarks ought to be made here. One is that the lecture sounded somewhat “American” to the ears of a continental European tax scholar. The U.S. Supreme Court is increasingly committed towards defending individuals’ privacy rights, unlike its Europe counterparts. Some Buchanan’s wind blows all around. Furthermore, it is difficult to imagine that tax administrations, which in many countries are rather poor at performing the simplest everyday tasks, could be transformed into well-organised, efficiently run, Big Brother-like organisations. Professor Slemrod expects Oceania to be with us with a decade or two. However, in the long run, globalisation will constrain the modelling of tax systems to a far greater degree than it already does. Several forces are going to shape tax designs consisting of simple, barely progressive taxes, largely applied in a shedular way in the source countries, ,while global income tax will be abandoned. all together. There is going to be an increase in the proportion of taxes based on the benefit principle. The restoration of the residence principle, and the rebuilding of a global, personalised income tax, could result from a rapid rise in the sharing of information among countries concerning revenue earned and taxes paid in different countries by the same tax payers. Back in 1999, Tanzi and Zee had already warned us that a country providing tax information on non-resident taxpayers would become a less attractive option in a world of increasing tax competition. Tanzi and Zee also produced a long list of factors which may make information-sharing ineffective. Similar conclusions were recently drawn by Keen and Ligthart (2006).Taxing power; Privacy; International exchange of tax-information;

Tax systems and tax reforms in Europe: Rationale and open issue for more radical reforms

This paper evaluates tax reforms introduced by EU members since the early 1990 and finds that they have been mostly limited and marginal. The paper suggests more radical reforms, particularly as to taxaion of labour, the main taxez, and the financing of EU.Europe Tax Systems Reforms

Main tax policy issues in the new members of Eu

The paper discusses the main tax policy issus in Eu new members. Particular attention is devoted to the need of harminizing tax systems with what of EU15, to the proliferation of flat taxes and to the Estonian orporation tax model.Tax systems tax reforms EU new members

Tax polici in new EU members: Estonia and othr Baltic states

The paper discusses the fiscal systems of Estonia, Latvi nd Lituania. Quentitative data and instuutionale features are given for the main taxes, and their development since the transition of the early 1990s. Recent tax reforms as well as that planned are examinated together with suggestion for the improvments of Baltics Tax systemsTax Systems Tax Reforms Baltic Countries

Tax system and tax reforms in India

This paper is part of a wider research on South-East Asia countries' taxation carried on under the supervision of. V. Tanzi. India is a federal republic and a big, highly populated and poor country, which however since some years has entered the catching up stage of development and shows impressive rates of GDP growth. General Government budget is structurally imbalanced and public debt stays high. Public spending (about 25 percent of GDP) is mainly devoted to general services, defense, and the support of economic activities, rather than to public health and welfare programs. Total fiscal pressure (about 17 percent of GDP) is in line with per capita GDP and is shared evenly enough between central and states governments. The structure of the tax system is not much beyond the Musgravian "early stage". A complex structure of taxes on goods and services is largely the main heading of the tax system and it is difficultly moving towards a VAT-kind structure. Direct taxes still are in an infant state, both as weight as well as structure. Import duties remain at not negligible levels. Social contributions are entirely lacking. A tax system of a country like India unavoidably raises more than one problem: foremost among these problems appear to be a too large dominance of a complex and obsolete indirect taxation and the fiscal relations among government layers. The road to updating and improving the Indian tax system has been entered since the early 1990s, but the reform is still largely to be accomplished. Introducing VAT ( so successfully adopted in other developing countries ) is the most striking but not the only example.

Tax Systems and tax reforms in Latin America, Part I : country studies, Colombia

This paper is a part of a wider research concerning taxation in the main world economic areas, carried on at the Department of Public economic on the University of Pvia, Italy, directed by L. Bernardi and P. Profeta, under the supervision of Vito Tanzi. The paper illustrates and discusses the Colombian tax ssystems with respect to its structure, developments and reforms until the last chenges of 2007, December.Tax Systems Tax Reforms Colombia

Tax systems and tax reforms in south and East Asia: Overview of the tax systems and main policy tax issues

The paper discusses the main aspects of taxation in South and East Asia. Particolar attention is given to the main issues which emerge from the tax systems of China, India, Japan, Malysia, South Korea and ThailandTax Systems Tax Reforms South East Asia