China county government censured over illicit tax collection in sign of local fiscal woes
- An investigation by Beijing has found Jing county in Hebei province inappropriately collected taxes from businesses to prop up its under-pressure budget
- China’s State Council says the problem in Jing county is not uncommon among struggling local governments across the country
A county government in Hebei province has been found to have illicitly collected business fees and taxes following a central government investigation, highlighting the mounting financial pressure facing regional economies because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Jing county carried out “unrealistic taxation tasks”, collected taxes in advance and forced businesses to donate in the name of poverty alleviation, the General Office of the State Council said on Sunday.
The county government “blindly” set a tax revenue target of 848 million yuan (US$119 million) for the first half of the year from 16 villages and towns in its jurisdiction, without fully evaluating the impact of the coronavirus on finances, the notice said. The government also published a chart showing the daily progress of tax collection in each town.
Under the current situation of economic slowdown and intensified fiscal budget pressure, some local governments have strong impulse to collect fees and taxes illegally
“Under the current situation of economic slowdown and intensified fiscal budget pressure, some local governments have strong impulse to collect fees and taxes illicitly,” it said.