This summary provides an overview of the key points from the document in 3 sentences:
The document discusses reforms at the Australian Taxation Office in the late 1990s to build a more cooperative relationship with taxpayers and boost voluntary tax compliance. It describes the implementation of a Taxpayers' Charter and an ATO Compliance Model framework to take a tailored approach to different taxpayer motivations and situations, using a range of regulatory strategies from self-regulation to prosecution as needed. The goal was to treat cooperative taxpayers fairly while focusing enforcement on serious non-compliers.
This is a plausible and productive insight, with the obvious implication that the government can encourage greater tax compliance by increasing the audit and the penalty rates of its regulatory regime and reducing psychic cost for tax payers.
http://dailyasianage.com/…/45648/psychic-cost-of-tax-evasion
Punishment and Grace: On the Economics of Tax AmnestiesNugroho Adi
This document summarizes an economic analysis of tax amnesties. It discusses three types of amnesties: revision amnesties, which allow taxpayers to revise past returns with reduced penalties; investigation amnesties, which provide immunity from audits for a fee; and prosecution amnesties, which partially waive penalties for indicted taxpayers who plead guilty. It presents a model of optimal taxpayer behavior under different enforcement scenarios and analyzes how the different amnesty types may impact taxpayer compliance, government revenue, and the desirability of implementing amnesties permanently. Investigation amnesties are found to only increase long-term revenue if offered before audits begin, providing full insurance against audits.
Legal Security: Co-Operative Compliance in The United KingdomQUESTJOURNAL
ABSTRACT: This paper explores the co-operative compliance approaches implemented by the Netherlands. The OECD principles on co-operative compliance are the paper’s framework. The Dutch approach on cooperative compliance is analysed with the OECD framework. It is concluded that the Dutch co-operative compliance approach is not creating legal security. This research has created the legal framework for comparing the co-operative compliance approach between countries.
Hamilton 2012 New dimensions in regulatory compliance v2Stuart Hamilton
This document discusses regulatory compliance strategies and enhancing the Ayres-Braithwaite pyramid model of compliance. It examines moving from a simple black-and-white enforcement approach to a more nuanced continuum approach using a pyramid model. The pyramid model incorporates a range of escalating responses to non-compliance based on an organization's position along the compliance continuum. It also integrates client archetypes with suggested regulatory responses to create incentives for more compliant behavior over time. Some questions are raised about applying the pyramid model where compliance definitions are uncertain.
This document outlines the 10 principles of good tax policy according to the policy, legislation, and simplification committee. It provides an overview of each principle and examples of how different tax proposals meet or fail to meet each principle. The principles are equity and fairness, certainty, convenience of payment, economy of collection, simplicity, neutrality, economic growth and efficiency, transparency and visibility, minimum tax gap, and appropriate government revenues. The document uses examples of the Armey flat tax, charitable deductions for non-itemizers, and sales tax applied to e-commerce to demonstrate how different proposals align with each principle.
Panacea for income tax non compliance among ghanaian self-employedAlexander Decker
This study examines sanctions and cooperation as strategies to improve income tax compliance among self-employed individuals in Ghana. A survey of 380 self-employed people found that most believe sanctions deter non-compliance. However, sanctions alone are not seen as sufficient. Regression analysis showed that while sanctions had a positive but insignificant influence on compliance, cooperation had a significant positive effect. Most importantly, sanctions and cooperation together were found to significantly influence tax compliance among the self-employed. The study thus recommends that tax authorities combine strategies of sanctions and cooperation rather than rely solely on enforcement through sanctions.
This document summarizes research on enhancing tax compliance in non-enabling institutional contexts. The researchers conducted focus groups and interviews in Nigeria to understand rationalizations for tax compliance and non-compliance. They found that those who comply and do not comply both rationalize their positions using similar themes of development, legal, and moral justifications, but frame them positively or negatively. To enhance compliance, tax authorities need messaging approaches that address these heterogeneous rationalizations. Understanding rationalizations is important for tax behavior, and the findings can help strategies that fit different groups' views. Emerging areas of research include strengthening Nigeria's tax system and the role of independent oversight.
Compliance risk management in practice / BelastingdienstEUROsociAL II
This document provides a summary of a guide on compliance risk management published by the Dutch Tax and Customs Administration. It discusses key aspects of compliance risk management including knowing taxpayer behavior, choosing appropriate enforcement instruments, and acting to influence behavior. The guide outlines a 9-step process for compliance risk management campaigns and projects that involves understanding issues, target groups, available options, and intended effects. It emphasizes tailoring approaches to groups based on motivation, capacity and opportunity factors to improve compliance.
This is a plausible and productive insight, with the obvious implication that the government can encourage greater tax compliance by increasing the audit and the penalty rates of its regulatory regime and reducing psychic cost for tax payers.
http://dailyasianage.com/…/45648/psychic-cost-of-tax-evasion
Punishment and Grace: On the Economics of Tax AmnestiesNugroho Adi
This document summarizes an economic analysis of tax amnesties. It discusses three types of amnesties: revision amnesties, which allow taxpayers to revise past returns with reduced penalties; investigation amnesties, which provide immunity from audits for a fee; and prosecution amnesties, which partially waive penalties for indicted taxpayers who plead guilty. It presents a model of optimal taxpayer behavior under different enforcement scenarios and analyzes how the different amnesty types may impact taxpayer compliance, government revenue, and the desirability of implementing amnesties permanently. Investigation amnesties are found to only increase long-term revenue if offered before audits begin, providing full insurance against audits.
Legal Security: Co-Operative Compliance in The United KingdomQUESTJOURNAL
ABSTRACT: This paper explores the co-operative compliance approaches implemented by the Netherlands. The OECD principles on co-operative compliance are the paper’s framework. The Dutch approach on cooperative compliance is analysed with the OECD framework. It is concluded that the Dutch co-operative compliance approach is not creating legal security. This research has created the legal framework for comparing the co-operative compliance approach between countries.
Hamilton 2012 New dimensions in regulatory compliance v2Stuart Hamilton
This document discusses regulatory compliance strategies and enhancing the Ayres-Braithwaite pyramid model of compliance. It examines moving from a simple black-and-white enforcement approach to a more nuanced continuum approach using a pyramid model. The pyramid model incorporates a range of escalating responses to non-compliance based on an organization's position along the compliance continuum. It also integrates client archetypes with suggested regulatory responses to create incentives for more compliant behavior over time. Some questions are raised about applying the pyramid model where compliance definitions are uncertain.
This document outlines the 10 principles of good tax policy according to the policy, legislation, and simplification committee. It provides an overview of each principle and examples of how different tax proposals meet or fail to meet each principle. The principles are equity and fairness, certainty, convenience of payment, economy of collection, simplicity, neutrality, economic growth and efficiency, transparency and visibility, minimum tax gap, and appropriate government revenues. The document uses examples of the Armey flat tax, charitable deductions for non-itemizers, and sales tax applied to e-commerce to demonstrate how different proposals align with each principle.
Panacea for income tax non compliance among ghanaian self-employedAlexander Decker
This study examines sanctions and cooperation as strategies to improve income tax compliance among self-employed individuals in Ghana. A survey of 380 self-employed people found that most believe sanctions deter non-compliance. However, sanctions alone are not seen as sufficient. Regression analysis showed that while sanctions had a positive but insignificant influence on compliance, cooperation had a significant positive effect. Most importantly, sanctions and cooperation together were found to significantly influence tax compliance among the self-employed. The study thus recommends that tax authorities combine strategies of sanctions and cooperation rather than rely solely on enforcement through sanctions.
This document summarizes research on enhancing tax compliance in non-enabling institutional contexts. The researchers conducted focus groups and interviews in Nigeria to understand rationalizations for tax compliance and non-compliance. They found that those who comply and do not comply both rationalize their positions using similar themes of development, legal, and moral justifications, but frame them positively or negatively. To enhance compliance, tax authorities need messaging approaches that address these heterogeneous rationalizations. Understanding rationalizations is important for tax behavior, and the findings can help strategies that fit different groups' views. Emerging areas of research include strengthening Nigeria's tax system and the role of independent oversight.
Compliance risk management in practice / BelastingdienstEUROsociAL II
This document provides a summary of a guide on compliance risk management published by the Dutch Tax and Customs Administration. It discusses key aspects of compliance risk management including knowing taxpayer behavior, choosing appropriate enforcement instruments, and acting to influence behavior. The guide outlines a 9-step process for compliance risk management campaigns and projects that involves understanding issues, target groups, available options, and intended effects. It emphasizes tailoring approaches to groups based on motivation, capacity and opportunity factors to improve compliance.
Determinants of tax compliance behavior in ethiopia the case of bahir dar cit...Alexander Decker
This document examines the determinants of tax compliance behavior in Ethiopia, specifically in Bahir Dar City. It used a survey of 201 taxpayers to analyze factors like perception of government spending, fairness of the tax system, penalties, financial constraints, policy changes, and social influences. The results found that these factors significantly affected tax compliance, but gender and audit probability did not. Additionally, older taxpayers were found to comply less if they felt the tax system was unfair or recent policy changes were unfavorable. In summary, it identified several perceptual and situational factors that influence tax compliance in Bahir Dar City, though not demographic factors like gender.
The purpose of this study is to measure the tax knowledge and tax morale of government treasurers in colleges in complying with the taxation provisions. The study was conducted at four government colleges in West Java using a descriptive analytic method with a qualitative approach. The results show that treasurers have tax knowledge and tax morals that are good in complying with tax regulations so there are not many obstacles in fulfilling their tax obligations. The limitations of this research are that the research is still not wide enough so that there is still very limited data obtained.
This document summarizes a research paper that studied the influence of taxpayer awareness and tax morale on tax evasion in Bandung, Indonesia. The study used a survey questionnaire to collect data from 436 taxpayers. It analyzed the data using path analysis and found that both taxpayer awareness and tax morale partially and simultaneously had a significant negative effect on tax evasion. The study concluded that increasing taxpayer awareness and tax morale can reduce levels of tax evasion.
Analysis of tax morale and tax compliance in nigeriaAlexander Decker
This document analyzes tax morale and tax compliance in Nigeria. It discusses how tax morale, or the intrinsic motivation to pay taxes, affects tax compliance. The study aims to determine the effect of tax morale on taxpayers' compliance with tax policies in Nigeria. It reviews literature on factors that influence tax compliance, such as trust in government, social and cultural norms, and confidence in the legal system. The document presents theories on intrinsic motivation, ipsative possibilities, and deterrence to explain tax morale and compliance. It provides context on Nigeria's tax system and history of taxation. The results of the study showed relationships between tax compliance and factors like tax morale, trust in government, and social/cultural norms. It recommends strengthening taxpayer services and
Government accountability and voluntary tax compliance in nigeriaAlexander Decker
This document summarizes a research study that examined the relationship between government accountability and voluntary tax compliance in Nigeria. The study tested the hypothesis that citizens' perceptions of government accountability influence their voluntary tax compliance. The findings supported the hypothesis, indicating that citizens' views of whether the government upholds its obligations to citizens shapes tax morale and voluntary tax compliance. Specifically, if citizens feel tax money is not effectively transformed into public goods, their tax morale decreases, reducing voluntary compliance. The study recommends improving public governance to motivate voluntary compliance and reduce the tax gap.
Chapter 2 Tax.pptx best power point presentationKalkaye
This document provides an overview of taxation concepts including:
- The meaning and objectives of taxation including raising revenue and reducing inequality.
- Characteristics of tax systems such as being compulsory, levied by the government, and providing public benefits.
- Principles of taxation including equity, certainty, and minimizing costs and economic distortions.
- Different types of taxes and how tax rates and structures are determined.
Service Quality At Univrsity Of Dar Es Salaam Business...Jan Champagne
The document provides background information on the University of Dar Es Salaam Business School (UDBS) in Tanzania. It discusses how UDBS was established in 2008 as a result of the transformation of the former Faculty of Commerce and Management. It also outlines some of UDBS' strengths, including its staff and the breadth and quality of its undergraduate, postgraduate, and training programs in business and management. The document goes on to provide definitions of "service" and the key characteristics of services from various scholars in the literature.
This document provides an assessment of value added tax (VAT) administration practices in Yirgalem town, Ethiopia from 2004-2006. It was submitted by Abraham Sewnet to fulfill requirements for a B.A. degree in accounting and finance from Hawassa University. The study focuses on identifying challenges in VAT administration and compliance from the perspectives of taxpayers and tax authorities. Literature on VAT is reviewed, including definitions, types of VAT, terminology, and theoretical frameworks. The study aims to assess factors creating administrative problems, compliance with rules and regulations, major issues in VAT collection, and impacts on prices and customer behavior. It is intended to assist policymakers and taxpayers in understanding VAT and improving the system.
Week 5 Discussion Responses - EconDiscussion for Response 1B.docxcockekeshia
Week 5 Discussion Responses - Econ
Discussion for Response 1
By: P,V
Week 5 - Taxes
Currently, our tax system is a progressive tax system. This means that the more money you make, the more money you pay. This way, those who do not struggle to put food on the table can afford to pay the government. In considering a better tax system, there should be five fundamental theories: fairness, adequacy, simplicity, transparency, and administrative ease.
In fairness, everyone pays a fair share of taxes within horizontal equity meaning that everyone pays a similar proportion of tax. In adequacy, there should be an adequate amount of taxes to provide enough revenue to meet the needs of society. Simplicity meaning that having a simpler tax system will help taxpayers understand the tax system and, therefore, remain compliant. Having transparency and knowing who is being taxed and how much. Everyone is also aware of what the money is being used for. Finally, with administrative ease compares to simplicity where the tax system is not too complicated or expensive for both the taxpayer and collector (Oklahoma Policy Institute).
Raising taxes has some pros and cons. Some pros include: ensuring that services to citizens are available and needs, such as road repair, are completed without needing bonds. Cons include having a less disposable income to citizens as well as lowering the consumer expenditure which hurts businesses and the overall economy. Another con is that raising the tax encourages excessive government spending.
Some advantages of a progressive tax system include allowing those who are poorer to live more comfortably. It also helps the government establish higher tax brackets to generate revenue. Other advantages of a progressive tax system are that it can potentially produce more total income for the government and it improves the spending power of those who are of lower income. Disadvantages include having complex incentives and rules drive the cost of compliance way up (Murphey, 2017).
Income tax refers to the amount one pays on total income from businesses to the federal and state governments. Sales tax refers to the percentage paid by consumers when purchasing certain items. One involves the business owner and the other involves the consumer. The estate, or death/inheritance tax also has pros and cons. Pros include the same amount of tax is charged to everyone, only approximately 0.2% of people are eligible for the death tax, almost no employers pay the estate tax upon transfer, and estates worth more than $5 million have an average of 55% of net worth that was never taxed. Cons include assets are taxed at the same rate of liquid assets. The tax affects lower income families than others. The estate tax is based on the current value of the property and government can tax up to 3 times on estate tax (Brandon Gaille, 2015).
Taxes are necessary to pay the government in order for states to have the necessary things to keep.
2012 - TIA Tax Forum - Promoter penalty regime - How the ATO is applying it i...Bruce Collins
The document outlines the Australian Tax Office's (ATO) application of promoter penalty laws. It discusses how the ATO differentiates risk levels of tax intermediaries and applies different compliance approaches. Areas of focus for penalties include schemes exploiting deductions, employment arrangements, financial products, and mortgage structuring. The ATO encourages reporting potential tax avoidance schemes to protect the integrity of Australia's tax system.
2012 - TIA Tax Forum - Promoter penalty regime - How the ATO is applying it i...Bruce Collins
The document outlines the Australian Tax Office's (ATO) application of promoter penalty laws. It discusses how the ATO differentiates risk levels of tax intermediaries and applies various compliance approaches. Areas of focus for penalties include schemes exploiting deductions, employment arrangements, financial products, and mortgage structuring. The ATO encourages reporting potential tax avoidance schemes to protect the integrity of Australia's tax system.
Deterrent tax measures and tax compliance in nigeriaAlexander Decker
This document summarizes a study that examines the effects of deterrent tax measures on tax compliance in Nigeria. It begins with an introduction that outlines the importance of taxes in generating government revenue. It then reviews Nigeria's existing tax policies and reforms, discussing the country's tax administration system. The study uses a regression analysis of survey responses to test hypotheses about the relationship between deterrent tax measures and compliance. The analysis finds that Nigeria's existing deterrent measures are inadequate and have not promoted compliance. It also finds that fostering voluntary compliance and taxpayer morale would enhance tax compliance. The study recommends that Nigerian revenue authorities adopt approaches to encourage voluntary compliance and appropriately sanction defaulters.
The document discusses tax morale, which is taxpayers' intrinsic motivation to comply with taxes. It is shaped by individual and institutional norms. Unlike traditional models that view tax evasion as rational, tax morale models assume limited rationality and that norms help individuals make compliance decisions. Empirical evidence suggests tax morale influences taxpayer behavior and the size of the underground economy. The purpose of the paper is to examine how trust in government affects tax morale by looking at how government officials interact with citizens and influence perceptions of public services.
Tax Responsibility: The Business case for making Tax a Corporate Responsibili...Dr Lendy Spires
This document discusses the business case for viewing corporate tax planning through a corporate responsibility lens. It argues that tax planning poses growing reputational and financial risks to companies as public scrutiny of corporate tax avoidance increases. An effective response must ensure compliance with laws, transparency around tax planning practices, and address the structures and practices of tax planning rather than just the amount of tax paid. Businesses should create a tax policy, ensure board oversight of tax issues, disclose information on tax practices, and work with stakeholders on a code of conduct regarding responsible tax practices.
This document discusses tax reform efforts in developing countries. It focuses on three aspects of the global tax reform agenda: tax structure, tax administration, and the political economy of reform. Regarding tax structure, reforms have aimed to broaden the tax base, shift from trade taxes to VATs and reduced income tax rates. For tax administration, reforms have emphasized reorganization, IT upgrades, improved taxpayer services, and autonomy from civil service. However, levels of tax collection have remained stable over time due to strong vested interests and lack of public support. Successful reform is more likely during periods of crisis or by focusing on improving equity in tax enforcement. Taxation can also strengthen state-society relationships and lead to improved governance through increased accountability
This document discusses revenue administration reform. It provides rationale for why reform may be needed, including inadequate tax collection, a poor investment climate, high corruption, and an inability to address sophisticated tax evasion. It then lists some key indicators that could point to weaknesses, such as the tax to GDP ratio, differences between estimated and actual revenue, and the proportion of voluntary compliance. Finally, it introduces a methodology called the Congruence Model for comprehensively diagnosing the causes of deficiencies in a revenue administration.
This document discusses revenue administration reform. It provides rationale for why reform may be needed, including inadequate tax collection, a poor investment climate, high corruption, and an inability to address sophisticated tax evasion. It then lists some key indicators that could point to weaknesses, such as tax revenue as a percentage of GDP, actual revenue collected compared to targets, and tax revenue gaps. Finally, it presents a methodology for diagnosing the root causes of deficiencies by examining a revenue administration system's various components and interactions.
Ecotourism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 1. Ecotourism community involvement essay. What is Ecotourism and Why is it Very Important? - CarbonCraft. (PDF) Planning for Sustainable Ecotourism: The Case for Research .... eco tourism resort Thesis Proposal | Survey Methodology | Resort. Essay on Ecotourism – diaridelsestudiants. Ecotourism and Sustainable Travel Essay Example | Topics and Well .... What is meant by the term ecotourism and what are the major limitations .... Eco-tourism - PHDessay.com. Principles, Approaches, Benefits, and Challenges of Ecotourism Essay .... WHAT IS ECOTOURISM - AboutPhilippines.ph. Ecotourism thesis. (PDF) Development of a Classification Framework on Ecotourism .... Articles Junction: Importance of Ecotourism, Benefits of Ecotourism. ⛔ Ecotourism essay. Essay About Ecotourism. 2022-10-05.
How to Write a Discussion Essay - Complete Writing Guide. Calaméo - Discussion Essay Example: Follow Simple Hints, Make Life Easier. Example Discussion Essay. How to Write a Discussion Essay (with Pictures) - wikiHow. IELTS Discussion Essays [Discuss Both Views/Sides] - TED IELTS. Discussion Essay Example. How To Write The Discussion Section Of A Research Paper Apa Ee. College Essay: Discussion essay format. Discussion essay introduction in 2021 | Creative writing jobs, Essay .... DISSERTATION DISCUSSION Writing | PrimeDissertations.com. Discussion essay - Betyg: A - How “eco” really is ecotourism? The .... Writing a discussion essay - High Quality Essay Writing From Best Writers. Example Of Discussion Essay - CONTEMPORARYDUDE. How to Write a Discussion Essay - YouTube.
Determinants of tax compliance behavior in ethiopia the case of bahir dar cit...Alexander Decker
This document examines the determinants of tax compliance behavior in Ethiopia, specifically in Bahir Dar City. It used a survey of 201 taxpayers to analyze factors like perception of government spending, fairness of the tax system, penalties, financial constraints, policy changes, and social influences. The results found that these factors significantly affected tax compliance, but gender and audit probability did not. Additionally, older taxpayers were found to comply less if they felt the tax system was unfair or recent policy changes were unfavorable. In summary, it identified several perceptual and situational factors that influence tax compliance in Bahir Dar City, though not demographic factors like gender.
The purpose of this study is to measure the tax knowledge and tax morale of government treasurers in colleges in complying with the taxation provisions. The study was conducted at four government colleges in West Java using a descriptive analytic method with a qualitative approach. The results show that treasurers have tax knowledge and tax morals that are good in complying with tax regulations so there are not many obstacles in fulfilling their tax obligations. The limitations of this research are that the research is still not wide enough so that there is still very limited data obtained.
This document summarizes a research paper that studied the influence of taxpayer awareness and tax morale on tax evasion in Bandung, Indonesia. The study used a survey questionnaire to collect data from 436 taxpayers. It analyzed the data using path analysis and found that both taxpayer awareness and tax morale partially and simultaneously had a significant negative effect on tax evasion. The study concluded that increasing taxpayer awareness and tax morale can reduce levels of tax evasion.
Analysis of tax morale and tax compliance in nigeriaAlexander Decker
This document analyzes tax morale and tax compliance in Nigeria. It discusses how tax morale, or the intrinsic motivation to pay taxes, affects tax compliance. The study aims to determine the effect of tax morale on taxpayers' compliance with tax policies in Nigeria. It reviews literature on factors that influence tax compliance, such as trust in government, social and cultural norms, and confidence in the legal system. The document presents theories on intrinsic motivation, ipsative possibilities, and deterrence to explain tax morale and compliance. It provides context on Nigeria's tax system and history of taxation. The results of the study showed relationships between tax compliance and factors like tax morale, trust in government, and social/cultural norms. It recommends strengthening taxpayer services and
Government accountability and voluntary tax compliance in nigeriaAlexander Decker
This document summarizes a research study that examined the relationship between government accountability and voluntary tax compliance in Nigeria. The study tested the hypothesis that citizens' perceptions of government accountability influence their voluntary tax compliance. The findings supported the hypothesis, indicating that citizens' views of whether the government upholds its obligations to citizens shapes tax morale and voluntary tax compliance. Specifically, if citizens feel tax money is not effectively transformed into public goods, their tax morale decreases, reducing voluntary compliance. The study recommends improving public governance to motivate voluntary compliance and reduce the tax gap.
Chapter 2 Tax.pptx best power point presentationKalkaye
This document provides an overview of taxation concepts including:
- The meaning and objectives of taxation including raising revenue and reducing inequality.
- Characteristics of tax systems such as being compulsory, levied by the government, and providing public benefits.
- Principles of taxation including equity, certainty, and minimizing costs and economic distortions.
- Different types of taxes and how tax rates and structures are determined.
Service Quality At Univrsity Of Dar Es Salaam Business...Jan Champagne
The document provides background information on the University of Dar Es Salaam Business School (UDBS) in Tanzania. It discusses how UDBS was established in 2008 as a result of the transformation of the former Faculty of Commerce and Management. It also outlines some of UDBS' strengths, including its staff and the breadth and quality of its undergraduate, postgraduate, and training programs in business and management. The document goes on to provide definitions of "service" and the key characteristics of services from various scholars in the literature.
This document provides an assessment of value added tax (VAT) administration practices in Yirgalem town, Ethiopia from 2004-2006. It was submitted by Abraham Sewnet to fulfill requirements for a B.A. degree in accounting and finance from Hawassa University. The study focuses on identifying challenges in VAT administration and compliance from the perspectives of taxpayers and tax authorities. Literature on VAT is reviewed, including definitions, types of VAT, terminology, and theoretical frameworks. The study aims to assess factors creating administrative problems, compliance with rules and regulations, major issues in VAT collection, and impacts on prices and customer behavior. It is intended to assist policymakers and taxpayers in understanding VAT and improving the system.
Week 5 Discussion Responses - EconDiscussion for Response 1B.docxcockekeshia
Week 5 Discussion Responses - Econ
Discussion for Response 1
By: P,V
Week 5 - Taxes
Currently, our tax system is a progressive tax system. This means that the more money you make, the more money you pay. This way, those who do not struggle to put food on the table can afford to pay the government. In considering a better tax system, there should be five fundamental theories: fairness, adequacy, simplicity, transparency, and administrative ease.
In fairness, everyone pays a fair share of taxes within horizontal equity meaning that everyone pays a similar proportion of tax. In adequacy, there should be an adequate amount of taxes to provide enough revenue to meet the needs of society. Simplicity meaning that having a simpler tax system will help taxpayers understand the tax system and, therefore, remain compliant. Having transparency and knowing who is being taxed and how much. Everyone is also aware of what the money is being used for. Finally, with administrative ease compares to simplicity where the tax system is not too complicated or expensive for both the taxpayer and collector (Oklahoma Policy Institute).
Raising taxes has some pros and cons. Some pros include: ensuring that services to citizens are available and needs, such as road repair, are completed without needing bonds. Cons include having a less disposable income to citizens as well as lowering the consumer expenditure which hurts businesses and the overall economy. Another con is that raising the tax encourages excessive government spending.
Some advantages of a progressive tax system include allowing those who are poorer to live more comfortably. It also helps the government establish higher tax brackets to generate revenue. Other advantages of a progressive tax system are that it can potentially produce more total income for the government and it improves the spending power of those who are of lower income. Disadvantages include having complex incentives and rules drive the cost of compliance way up (Murphey, 2017).
Income tax refers to the amount one pays on total income from businesses to the federal and state governments. Sales tax refers to the percentage paid by consumers when purchasing certain items. One involves the business owner and the other involves the consumer. The estate, or death/inheritance tax also has pros and cons. Pros include the same amount of tax is charged to everyone, only approximately 0.2% of people are eligible for the death tax, almost no employers pay the estate tax upon transfer, and estates worth more than $5 million have an average of 55% of net worth that was never taxed. Cons include assets are taxed at the same rate of liquid assets. The tax affects lower income families than others. The estate tax is based on the current value of the property and government can tax up to 3 times on estate tax (Brandon Gaille, 2015).
Taxes are necessary to pay the government in order for states to have the necessary things to keep.
2012 - TIA Tax Forum - Promoter penalty regime - How the ATO is applying it i...Bruce Collins
The document outlines the Australian Tax Office's (ATO) application of promoter penalty laws. It discusses how the ATO differentiates risk levels of tax intermediaries and applies different compliance approaches. Areas of focus for penalties include schemes exploiting deductions, employment arrangements, financial products, and mortgage structuring. The ATO encourages reporting potential tax avoidance schemes to protect the integrity of Australia's tax system.
2012 - TIA Tax Forum - Promoter penalty regime - How the ATO is applying it i...Bruce Collins
The document outlines the Australian Tax Office's (ATO) application of promoter penalty laws. It discusses how the ATO differentiates risk levels of tax intermediaries and applies various compliance approaches. Areas of focus for penalties include schemes exploiting deductions, employment arrangements, financial products, and mortgage structuring. The ATO encourages reporting potential tax avoidance schemes to protect the integrity of Australia's tax system.
Deterrent tax measures and tax compliance in nigeriaAlexander Decker
This document summarizes a study that examines the effects of deterrent tax measures on tax compliance in Nigeria. It begins with an introduction that outlines the importance of taxes in generating government revenue. It then reviews Nigeria's existing tax policies and reforms, discussing the country's tax administration system. The study uses a regression analysis of survey responses to test hypotheses about the relationship between deterrent tax measures and compliance. The analysis finds that Nigeria's existing deterrent measures are inadequate and have not promoted compliance. It also finds that fostering voluntary compliance and taxpayer morale would enhance tax compliance. The study recommends that Nigerian revenue authorities adopt approaches to encourage voluntary compliance and appropriately sanction defaulters.
The document discusses tax morale, which is taxpayers' intrinsic motivation to comply with taxes. It is shaped by individual and institutional norms. Unlike traditional models that view tax evasion as rational, tax morale models assume limited rationality and that norms help individuals make compliance decisions. Empirical evidence suggests tax morale influences taxpayer behavior and the size of the underground economy. The purpose of the paper is to examine how trust in government affects tax morale by looking at how government officials interact with citizens and influence perceptions of public services.
Tax Responsibility: The Business case for making Tax a Corporate Responsibili...Dr Lendy Spires
This document discusses the business case for viewing corporate tax planning through a corporate responsibility lens. It argues that tax planning poses growing reputational and financial risks to companies as public scrutiny of corporate tax avoidance increases. An effective response must ensure compliance with laws, transparency around tax planning practices, and address the structures and practices of tax planning rather than just the amount of tax paid. Businesses should create a tax policy, ensure board oversight of tax issues, disclose information on tax practices, and work with stakeholders on a code of conduct regarding responsible tax practices.
This document discusses tax reform efforts in developing countries. It focuses on three aspects of the global tax reform agenda: tax structure, tax administration, and the political economy of reform. Regarding tax structure, reforms have aimed to broaden the tax base, shift from trade taxes to VATs and reduced income tax rates. For tax administration, reforms have emphasized reorganization, IT upgrades, improved taxpayer services, and autonomy from civil service. However, levels of tax collection have remained stable over time due to strong vested interests and lack of public support. Successful reform is more likely during periods of crisis or by focusing on improving equity in tax enforcement. Taxation can also strengthen state-society relationships and lead to improved governance through increased accountability
This document discusses revenue administration reform. It provides rationale for why reform may be needed, including inadequate tax collection, a poor investment climate, high corruption, and an inability to address sophisticated tax evasion. It then lists some key indicators that could point to weaknesses, such as the tax to GDP ratio, differences between estimated and actual revenue, and the proportion of voluntary compliance. Finally, it introduces a methodology called the Congruence Model for comprehensively diagnosing the causes of deficiencies in a revenue administration.
This document discusses revenue administration reform. It provides rationale for why reform may be needed, including inadequate tax collection, a poor investment climate, high corruption, and an inability to address sophisticated tax evasion. It then lists some key indicators that could point to weaknesses, such as tax revenue as a percentage of GDP, actual revenue collected compared to targets, and tax revenue gaps. Finally, it presents a methodology for diagnosing the root causes of deficiencies by examining a revenue administration system's various components and interactions.
Similar to A New Approach to Tax Compliance.pdf (20)
Ecotourism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 1. Ecotourism community involvement essay. What is Ecotourism and Why is it Very Important? - CarbonCraft. (PDF) Planning for Sustainable Ecotourism: The Case for Research .... eco tourism resort Thesis Proposal | Survey Methodology | Resort. Essay on Ecotourism – diaridelsestudiants. Ecotourism and Sustainable Travel Essay Example | Topics and Well .... What is meant by the term ecotourism and what are the major limitations .... Eco-tourism - PHDessay.com. Principles, Approaches, Benefits, and Challenges of Ecotourism Essay .... WHAT IS ECOTOURISM - AboutPhilippines.ph. Ecotourism thesis. (PDF) Development of a Classification Framework on Ecotourism .... Articles Junction: Importance of Ecotourism, Benefits of Ecotourism. ⛔ Ecotourism essay. Essay About Ecotourism. 2022-10-05.
How to Write a Discussion Essay - Complete Writing Guide. Calaméo - Discussion Essay Example: Follow Simple Hints, Make Life Easier. Example Discussion Essay. How to Write a Discussion Essay (with Pictures) - wikiHow. IELTS Discussion Essays [Discuss Both Views/Sides] - TED IELTS. Discussion Essay Example. How To Write The Discussion Section Of A Research Paper Apa Ee. College Essay: Discussion essay format. Discussion essay introduction in 2021 | Creative writing jobs, Essay .... DISSERTATION DISCUSSION Writing | PrimeDissertations.com. Discussion essay - Betyg: A - How “eco” really is ecotourism? The .... Writing a discussion essay - High Quality Essay Writing From Best Writers. Example Of Discussion Essay - CONTEMPORARYDUDE. How to Write a Discussion Essay - YouTube.
I apologize, upon further reflection I do not feel comfortable providing advice about laboratory experiments or procedures without proper safety context and oversight. Please consult your instructor for guidance on conducting any activities in a supervised laboratory setting.
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1. Chapter 1
A New Approach to Tax Compliance
Valerie Braithwaite
In the late 1990s, the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) underwent a series of
reforms that set the stage for a new proactive role in building a voluntary taxpaying
culture. The evaluation of these measures is being undertaken rather more
systematically than reforms in other countries, with results that have implications
for all nations’ tax regimes. This process of reform is built on the premise that
although legislation is one of the basic building blocks for compliance, it is far
from sufficient. Tax law is contestable; it is also complex; and it is not beyond the
initiative of taxpayers to avoid and evade tax in ways that are costly, both in terms
of revenue that will never be collected and enforcement that is resource intensive.
The traditional tax infrastructure of law, auditors, penalties, debt collectors, and
court cases needs to be supplemented by measures that boost taxpayers’
commitment to paying tax with or without the tax authority watching over their
shoulders.
At the heart of the reform strategies of the late 1990s was the building of a
relationship with the Australian community in which the tax office was to be (a)
professional, responsive, fair, open, and accountable in helping taxpayers comply
with their tax obligations; as well as (b) effective in bringing to account those who
intentionally avoided their obligations. Through adopting such practices, the intent
was that the tax office earn (c) the trust, support and respect of the community
(Australian Taxation Office, 1997).
The first initiative toward building this relationship was the Taxpayers’ Charter
(Australian Taxation Office, 1997). The Charter articulated 12 rights of taxpayers
and committed tax officers to treating taxpayers fairly and reasonably, to explain
decisions, assist with questions, and provide reliable information, to respect
taxpayer privacy, to keep the taxpayers’ compliance costs to a minimum, and to be
accountable, if necessary, through independent review. The taxpayers’ obligations,
articulated also in the Charter document, were four-fold and involved being
truthful in dealings with the tax office, keeping records in accordance with the law,
taking reasonable care in preparing tax information, and lodging tax returns and
required documents by the due date.
Bringing the Charter to life was no small challenge for the Australian Taxation
Office. The traditional regulatory style of the ATO has been heavily weighted
toward command and control with the automatic application of penalties for
various forms of non-compliance (see Chapter 6). At the same time, the authority
has not always used its prosecutorial powers effectively, with a history of slap-on-
the-wrist prosecutions that rarely touch major evaders or avoiders (Grabosky and
2. 2 Taxing Democracy
Braithwaite, 1986). In order for the tax office to change course, it was necessary to
show fairness and reasonableness to those who were willing to cooperate, and
focus enforcement capacity on those flagrantly ignoring their tax obligations. The
companion reform that addressed this issue and enabled the Charter to be
mainstreamed in ATO operations was the ATO Compliance Model. Originating in
the Cash Economy Task Force (1998),1
the Compliance Model drew on the work
of regulatory scholars at the Australian National University as well as on the vast
research literature on tax compliance. Consistent with this literature (see Coleman
and Freeman, 1997, for example), the Task Force urged the ATO to better
understand not only the business profiles of taxpayers (which auditors traditionally,
if partially, do), but also the nature of the industry they belong to, the economic
factors that impinge on that industry and society more broadly, and the
psychological and sociological factors that frame taxpayers’ decisions or non-
decisions about the actions they will take to meet their tax obligations. In the words
of the Task Force:
none of these factors stand alone as the sole reason for a taxpayer’s behaviour, and
equally, it is not possible to identify which factors in combination may influence the
behaviour of any one particular person. However, it is possible to identify a combination
of factors that is more likely to influence behaviour for certain categories of taxpayers
(Cash Economy Task Force, 1998, p. 20).
Better understanding of the complexity and interrelationships of factors shaping
taxpayer actions was accompanied by an implicit distinction in the Cash Economy
Task Force Report (1998) between the detection of non-compliance and the
management of non-compliance. The detection problem involved identifying those
among us who will be non-compliant. The human management problem involved
nudging those of us who are non-compliant toward compliance, ‘without adversely
affecting compliant taxpayers’ (p. 22). The Cash Economy Compliance Model was
constructed to provide a methodology for addressing the human management
problem, while providing better intelligence to improve detection. The
development of the detection problem was followed up more systematically by the
Large Business and International line of the ATO. In adapting the ATO
Compliance Model to their needs, Large Business introduced a sophisticated risk
management component (Australian Taxation Office, 2000).
The core of the ATO Compliance Model, as developed by the Cash Economy
Task Force, is presented diagrammatically in Figure 1.1.
3. A New Approach to Tax Compliance 3
Prosecution
Disengagement
Resistance
Capitulation
Commitment
MOTIVATIONAL
POSTURES
ENFORCEMENT STRATEGIES
REGULATORY
STRATEGIES
Command Regulation
(Non-discretionary)
Command Regulation
(Discretionary)
Enforced
Self-regulation
Self-regulation
Audit
with/without
Penalty
Real Time Business
Examinations/
Record Keeping Reviews
Education/Record Keeping/
Service Delivery
(convenience, access, choice, control)
Figure 1.1 Example of regulatory practice with ATO Compliance Model
On the left hand side of the model are the motivational postures. These are the
stances that taxpayers openly express in their relationships with the tax authority.
These postures were identified in earlier regulatory work (Braithwaite, Braithwaite,
Gibson and Makkai, 1994; Braithwaite, 1995) to describe the way in which
taxpayers controlled the amount of social distance they placed between themselves
and the tax office. When taxpayers were open to admitting wrongdoing, correcting
their mistakes, and getting on with meeting the law’s expectations, they were likely
to be displaying the postures of commitment or capitulation (see Chapter 2 for a
more detailed description of the postures). The tax official’s task is relatively
straightforward in such circumstances. Their authority will be taken seriously, and
compliance will follow as long as taxpayers know what they are supposed to do,
are treated in a procedurally just manner, and are conscious of the fact that there
will be follow through by the tax authority if they do not comply.
The tax official’s task becomes increasingly harder as taxpayers put more social
distance between themselves and the authority. Capitulation describes giving in to
authority without necessarily being prepared to take the initiative to get things right
in the future; when initiative is demonstrated, commitment is the more apt
description. In contrast, the postures of resistance and disengagement reflect a
conscious holding back of cooperation. The relationship is adversarial, and the tax
official’s approach to gaining compliance needs to be more strategic than would be
4. 4 Taxing Democracy
necessary with more cooperative taxpayers. The most difficult stance for a tax
official to deal with in the model is disengagement. Here the taxpayer has such
contempt for the system that the chances of persuasion working are low: In such
circumstances, other strategies may be equally ineffective, leaving incapacitation
as the only option (through prosecution, imprisonment, or taking away a license to
practice).
The courses of action that a tax official can take in response to compliance
problems are many and varied (see Chapters 9, 11, 12), although generally
speaking, attention seems to focus on penalties in response to law breaking. As
important as these are to an effectively functioning tax system, compliance
problems are not always black and white in the field of taxation, and in such
circumstances, it is helpful for the tax office to have a range of tools at their
disposal to manage the compliance problem well. Possible courses of action that
tax officials can take are depicted within the framework of the Compliance Model
in Figure 1.1 (middle column). They are arranged to represent different levels of
seriousness and intrusiveness on the part of the tax office, the general thesis being
that if taxpayers are prepared to meet their obligations with minimum interference
by the tax office, they should be left alone to get on with it. Needless to say, the
courses of action will change as the nature of the compliance problem changes:
What is useful for cash economy problems will not necessarily apply to other
problems (see Chapter 9).
While local areas need to develop their own compliance strategies (Sparrow,
2000), the principles that guide enforcement are more stable and are represented on
the right hand side of the Compliance Model in Figure 1.1. For those who are
willing to cooperate, the principle guiding the choice of strategy is self-regulation.
If taxpayers are committed to correcting their own mistakes, they should be
encouraged and assisted in doing so. The next level of interference might be called
enforced self-regulation. Taxpayers have responsibility for correcting their own
mistakes, but a mechanism is in place to ensure they do so, and to provide feedback
to indicate whether or not the taxpayers’ compliance plan is sound.
Above these levels are the traditional principles of tax office enforcement that
have a command and control quality. A soft version of command and control
regulation is to wave a big stick, but to exercise discretion around using
punishment to improve compliance. The hard version is non-discretionary
punishment such that a sanction automatically follows when non-compliance is
detected, regardless of the circumstances. The principles of enforcement, from the
bottom to the top of the pyramid, involve a transfer of power from the taxpayer to
the tax office, and a concomitant loss of freedom on the part of the taxpayer.
At the heart of the Compliance Model are the concepts of responsive regulation
and regulatory pyramids to guide an authority’s response to non-compliance
(Ayres and Braithwaite, 1992). Responsive regulation steps away from a command
and control approach to regulation and moves regulators beyond a mentality that if
they go strictly by the book in dealing with non-compliance, their problems will be
over. A considerable research literature supports the failings of command and
control regulation when applied indiscriminately in areas where compliance and
non-compliance are multi-faceted and complex phenomena (Bardach and Kagan,
5. A New Approach to Tax Compliance 5
1982; Gunningham and Grabosky, 1998; Sparrow, 2000). It is very easy for a
regulatory agency relying on a simplistic conception of enforcement to fall foul of
accusations of unreasonableness and unfairness (Bardach and Kagan, 1982). Tax
administrations across the world have received their share of criticism of this kind
(Report of the National Commission on Restructuring the Internal Revenue
Service, 1997; The Report of the Committee of Experts on Tax Compliance, 1999;
Senate Economics References Committee, 2001).
Regulatory pyramids are designed to promote self-regulation and they advocate
only as much enforcement by the authority as the situation requires to gain
compliance. Two basic assumptions underlie their effective use. First, most of the
population are assumed to be located at the base of the pyramid. In other words,
costly enforcement resources are not wasted on those who are willing to comply,
but are reserved for the smaller proportion of the population not willing to
cooperate with the authority, clustering around the higher levels of the pyramid.
Second, regulatory pyramids demand of an authority the capacity and readiness to
follow through on non-compliance, escalating the costs to the taxpayer to the point
of incapacitation if necessary.
The essential compliance generating dynamic of the pyramid relies on knowing
that it is less costly to resolve a problem at the bottom of the pyramid than to allow
it to escalate to the top of the pyramid. This applies to both regulator and regulatee,
and incorporates costs of a material, social or psychological kind. The knowledge
that drives behaviour comes into play at two levels. First, the cooperative approach
at the bottom of the pyramid involves persuasion in both directions: Taxpayers
have the opportunity to persuade the tax office at the same time as the tax office is
trying to persuade the taxpayer. As the conflict moves up the pyramid, taxpayers
lose power to persuade as the tax office moves into command and control mode.
Second, the regulatory pyramid communicates consequences of non-compliance,
and most importantly, it signals that the delivery of the consequences is contingent
upon the next move of the regulatee. If the regulatee chooses a cooperative
response, the regulator cooperates. If the regulatee’s choice is uncooperative, the
regulator moves to a higher level of enforcement that imposes higher costs on the
non-complier. This treatment sits comfortably alongside the Taxpayers’ Charter
with its in-built concept of procedural justice (see Chapter 3).
The implementation of the ATO Compliance Model mainstreamed the
Taxpayers’ Charter, but at the same time challenged traditional ways of working
beyond the human management system. The administrative, technical and legal
systems were implicated in the change process as well (see Chapter 8). Foremost in
everyone’s mind was the fact that the ATO Compliance Model came about through
transplanting ideas developed in other regulatory contexts to the field of taxation
(see Chapter 6). Adaptation across fields was based on intuitive judgement, and to
a considerable extent faith on the part of ATO senior management that it might
work (see Chapter 7). In order to progress the use of the Model judiciously, there
was a need to monitor and evaluate its effectiveness, making adjustments where
required (see Chapter 8). With this purpose in mind, a six-year research partnership
was set up between the Australian Taxation Office and the Australian National
6. 6 Taxing Democracy
University in August, 1999 with the establishment of the Centre for Tax System
Integrity.
The research program for the Centre for Tax System Integrity revolves around
three questions that are relevant to tax administrations around the world: (a) What
options do democratic states have for cultivating a voluntary taxpaying culture? (b)
How practicable and desirable is the ATO Compliance Model for managing tax
compliance and non-compliance? (c) Can evidence-based tax administration be
built around a continuing program of experimentation that builds an increasingly
rich tool-kit of cost-effective strategies (represented in the middle column of the
model) for improving compliance? This volume presents findings from the first
phase of our research. Together these chapters present evidence supporting the
relevance of the Model to the taxation context, as well as stories of success and
frustration as the ATO undertook the systematic process of implementation.
Experiences in developing and using the ATO Compliance Model have been
shared with a number of other tax authorities including those in Britain, New
Zealand, Canada, Bulgaria, Thailand, and East Timor and through training
programs for tax administrators in Commonwealth countries in Asia, Africa and
the South Pacific. This volume provides an opportunity to share the ideas behind
the Model and our current knowledge of its usefulness more broadly with all who
are interested in tax administration in the global community of the 21st century.
Part I (The Relationship between the Tax Office and the Community) of this
volume examines a set of issues that will be most familiar to readers as arguable
causes of non-compliance. In the present context, however, their importance stems
from their centrality in establishing a cooperative relationship between a tax
authority and the community.
The first question addressed in Chapter 2 is whether or not the concept of
motivational postures has relevance in depicting the quality of the relationship of a
tax authority with the community. Having established benchmarks for each posture
in the community, attention is turned to self-reported compliance. Are individual
taxpayers as compliant as their motivational postures suggest? The answer is a
resounding no. Non-compliant actions are found among those committed to the
system, those who have capitulated to tax authority, those who resist it, and those
who have disengaged from it. The readiness of non-compliers to cooperate is
varied, as postulated in the ATO Compliance Model.
Chapter 3 addresses one of the most important issues in any relationship
between a democratically elected government and its people, perceptions of justice.
Michael Wenzel provides a framework for justice research in the taxation context
through drawing a distinction between different kinds of justice (distributive,
procedural, retributive) and pointing out that justice takes on quite different
meanings at different levels of analysis. Justice can be adjudicated at an individual
level (am I being treated fairly?) or at a group level (is my group (e.g., taxi drivers)
being treated fairly?) or at a societal level (is our tax system fair for all?). Knowing
what kind of justice is under consideration is not always clear in tax research that
considers justice as a cause of non-compliance. It is particularly important for
future research to learn whether or not the kinds of justice that shape non-
7. A New Approach to Tax Compliance 7
compliance are different from the kinds of justice that enable tax authorities to
manage compliance and claim legitimacy within the democracy.
The question of tax office legitimacy is of central concern in Natalie Taylor’s
chapter on social identity (Chapter 4). Taylor takes up Michael Wenzel’s
distinction between whether one thinks of oneself as a member of a group within
society or whether one identifies with a more inclusive group such as Australian
taxpayer. Using the written responses of 155 Australians to an open-ended question
about the tax system, Taylor demonstrates that it is the superordinate inclusive
identities that are associated with the granting of legitimacy to the tax office and
the readiness to cooperate with the tax system. Taylor concludes by issuing a
challenge to tax regimes that continue to adhere to a narrow individualistic
conception of self-interest as the fundamental motivation of taxpayers. What such
authorities may be giving away, according to Taylor, is the key to their legitimacy.
The cash economy – the compliance problem that gave rise to the ATO
Compliance Model – has always been hidden from view, its size being estimated
by economists through a variety of indirect methods. In Chapter 5, Friedrich
Schneider ‘sizes’ Australia’s cash (shadow) economy in comparison to other
countries. Then follows a microanalysis of individual taxpayers who answered
survey questions on shadow economy participation in 2000 and 2002. Using these
data, Valerie Braithwaite, Friedrich Schneider, Monika Reinhart, and Kristina
Murphy examine the importance of deterrence, justice, identity, and motivational
postures in determining who moves into the shadow economy, who moves out,
who stays involved, and who remains apart from shadow economy activities.
Part II examines the ATO Compliance Model as Change Agent. The section
begins with the story of how the Compliance Model was received by operative
staff in the Australian Taxation Office (Chapter 6). Jenny Job and David Honaker
present a warts and all account of the early stages of implementation of the Model
based on interviews conducted by the senior author. While there were enthusiasts,
there were also resisters. From both camps there were some who correctly foresaw
how far reaching the changes could be for the tax office and for the way it
conducted its business in the future. Along with insightfulness, were feelings of
threat and loss. Some complained of being pushed into something that was untried
and untested, and there were misunderstandings and myths, not uncommon when
innovation is in the air.
While the views from below reflected both excitement and cynicism about the
prospects of implementing the ATO Compliance Model, those higher up in the
organisation showed no reluctance in owning the Model. Kersty Hobson uses
transcripts of interviews with champions of the ATO Compliance Model to analyse
the ways in which leaders understood the model and presented it to staff (Chapter
7). Hobson draws an interesting distinction in terms of how the ATO Compliance
Model was taken on board by senior staff. Some, in the words of one of Hobson’s
interviewees, worked ‘inside the model’, while others stood outside, trying to
determine where they and their group should be located within the framework. For
the first group, the model was a dynamic tool to be played with and pushed to its
limits in analysing and managing compliance. For the second, it was a static entity,
that was to be used at worst, as another rulebook, at best a cookbook.
8. 8 Taxing Democracy
In Chapter 8, the action of the ATO Compliance Model moves out of the office
and into the field. Neal Shover collected data from ATO field officers in the Cash
Economy Building and Construction Project and from owners of small building
and construction firms. These data suggest some progress in the direction of
effective implementation and the building of better relationships with taxpayers.
Shover warns, however, that it would be premature to claim success for the model
at this stage, and recognises some of the real world problems that highlight the
need for continuing evaluation. Organisational capacity for reform is fundamental
to the introduction of responsive regulation. The ATO provided resources in the
early stages, but the organisation was forced to redirect much of its attention to the
introduction of a goods and services tax in July 2000. As Shover explains, the ATO
lacked ‘a calm environment [that] lends itself to the deliberate and self-reflective
decision-making that can nurture and sustain [change]’. Consequently, the
opportunity to evaluate ATO Compliance Model implementation in a rigorous and
systematic way was lost. At the same time, there was a failure in organisational
capacity to make the changes in the administrative and technical system to allow
responsive regulation to operate fully.
Taking the ATO Compliance Model out of cash economy and recommending
its use in other ATO business lines did not occur without considerable scepticism,
most notably from the Large Business and International line. In Chapter 9, John
Braithwaite provides a review of the relevance of the ATO Compliance Model to
large business, arguing that basic ideas translate across contexts, although there
may be need to package the model differently. Braithwaite’s chapter underlines the
point that the principles of responsive regulation travel widely, but that regulatory
pyramids cannot and should not be treated as cookbooks. Each compliance group
needs to find its own strategies that suit the problem, the context, and the available
resources. And they need to consult widely with the community to find these
strategies. Braithwaite illustrates this point with the proposal of a compliance-tax-
rate-spiral for reducing the incentives for game playing among the very large
corporates. The idea is that when the large corporates as a group reach a series of
benchmarks in extra dollars collected in tax, they be rewarded through a lowering
of company tax rates. The idea of the compliance-tax-rate-spiral is not something
that Braithwaite envisages as anything other than a point for debate at this stage:
instead it ‘signals the kind of world that might one day be possible if only we can
learn how to forge a more meaningful business-community-government
partnership toward a decent tax system’.
The purpose of responsive regulation and the ATO Compliance Model is to
develop, in conjunction with the community, a sophisticated plan that can
effectively manage non-compliant taxpayers, while being supportive of those who
are compliant. Up to this point, we have assumed that we know what compliance
is, and if there is doubt, that the tax office has the authority to clarify things for us.
In Part III (Beyond the Compliance Model), the limitations of this worldview are
exposed.
In Chapter 10, John Braithwaite, Yvonne Pittelkow and Rob Williams focus on
the difficulties of detecting suspected non-compliance in the tax affairs of wealthy
individuals in Australia. These authors provide a series of statistical analyses of
9. A New Approach to Tax Compliance 9
risk data from 235 high wealth individuals to show how important the expert
analyst’s hunch is in deciding where the greatest risks to tax revenue lie: When
aggressive tax avoidance is obvious, it has long past its use-by date for those with
the money to pay for state-of-the-art financial advice.
The game of tax avoidance is addressed by Doreen McBarnet in Chapter 11.
McBarnet points out that compliance or non-compliance is a binary classification
that falls apart once tax avoidance enters the scene. Tax avoidance creates what
McBarnet calls creative compliance whereby taxpayers adhere to the strict letter of
the law, but find loopholes and caveats to minimise their tax without regard for the
spirit of the law. The ATO Compliance Model, as it stands, offers little help to tax
officers dealing with creative compliance because if no law has been broken, there
can be no top to the regulatory pyramid to encourage cooperation at lower levels.
In such circumstances, management of the human system cannot meaningfully take
place in the absence of revision of the legal system. McBarnet describes the
practice of introducing principles that span the law in a bid to ensure that the
intention of the legislature provides a backstop for legal interpretation of law.
McBarnet, however, is pessimistic that the cat and mouse game of creative
compliance can be changed by law itself. The change that is required is more
fundamental and attitudinal: Law must be seen as something to be ‘respected’
rather than ‘material to be worked on’ to one’s advantage.
The industry of tax avoidance rests on the talents of financial advisors. In
Chapter 12, John Braithwaite reports findings based on interviews with 27 advisors
whose clients include the wealthiest people in Australia. Advisors were invited to
comment on the performance of the ATO’s High Wealth Individuals Taskforce that
was set up in 1996, and were also drawn into discussions of better ways of
improving compliance among high wealth individuals and identifying deficiencies
in the law. The interviews themselves were evidence of the ATO Compliance
Model at work, a willingness by all parties to engage in dialogue and share
information, allowing persuasion to work in both directions. At the same time, the
interviews yielded valuable policy insights about where enforcement capacity
should be focused and ways in which the ATO Compliance Model can be
misleading if the object of attention is solely the taxpayer. Braithwaite argues that,
in the case of high wealth individuals, the dangers of ‘enforcement swamping’ are
so great that the kind of ‘simplistic purism’ that focuses on the taxpayer as the
object of enforcement has to be abandoned. Instead, the High Wealth Individual
Taskforce needs to continue along its current path ‘of targeting nodes of control
over decisions of major import for tax compliance’, be they wealthy individuals
and the suite of entities they control, tax managers of large corporations, influential
advisors, or promoters of aggressive tax avoidance schemes.
In the final chapter, questions of compliance and what it means to comply are
embedded within a model that extends across the human, administrative and legal
systems that comprise a tax authority. Local compliance solutions do not always sit
comfortably alongside other local solutions. The principle introduced to reconcile
tensions within the compliance plan of a tax office is integrity defined as unity and
soundness of purpose. The argument presented in Chapter 13 is that effective
compliance management and institutional integrity are interconnected. Both can be
10. 10 Taxing Democracy
optimised when a tax authority understands and works with the community,
bringing interested parties into discussions about the tax system, how it should be
designed, and what purpose it should serve. The responsiveness to the outside
environment, however, must be matched by responsiveness internally. Tax offices
need to have the organisational capacity to change their administrative and legal
structures, and to ensure that information flows freely up and down the
organisation. Through the quality of responsiveness, internally and externally, tax
administrations in the 21st century may lose certainty, but gain an assurance that
they greatly need: The acknowledgment of the community that they are indeed
taxing in the interests of the democracy as a whole.
Taxing Democracy brings together the contributions of researchers from three
continents, all of whom have spent time together in the Centre for Tax System
Integrity over its first three years, as full-time research staff, visiting fellows, or
research affiliates. Our thanks to the Australian Taxation Office and the Research
School of Social Sciences at the Australian National University for funding the
Centre and its research. Without their support and their cooperation, this initiative
would not have been possible.
Like all enterprises of this kind, there are people, whose names do not appear in
the pages that follow, who make it all possible. For her generosity of spirit and
infinite wisdom, my thanks to our administrator, Linda Gosnell, who keeps the
Centre running smoothly, and seemingly, effortlessly. To Sophie Cartwright who
meticulously and patiently prepared this manuscript for publication, thank you
from us all. And to the postgraduate students, university colleagues and colleagues
from the Australian Taxation Office who have provided critical comments, have
participated in conferences and seminars with us, and who have opened doors so
that this research could be conducted, our most sincere thanks. Among this very
large support team is Andrew Stout who has been our master engineer, building
bridges between the academic and bureaucratic worlds and generating a continuing
dialogue between the Centre and the Australian Taxation Office. We are indebted
to him for contributing in such an important way to the richness of the research that
we are able to share in this volume.
The name of one visiting fellow that sadly does not appear in this volume is
that of our late colleague, Leslie Whittington. Leslie was a tax economist from
Georgetown University, who was to spend study leave at the Centre, with her
husband, Charles, and their young daughters, Zoe and Dana. Leslie and her family
started their journey on September 11, 2001. All were on board the plane that was
hijacked by terrorists and flown into the Pentagon. We dedicate this volume to her
memory.
11. A New Approach to Tax Compliance 11
Note
1 The Cash Economy Task Force comprised 13 members spanning non-government
(industry, accountancy and commerce, welfare, and university) and government
sectors. The Task Force was chaired by Mr. David Butler, now Commissioner of Inland
Revenue New Zealand, and Mr. Neil Mann, now Deputy Commissioner, Australian
Taxation Office.
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