| ARCHIVE | Published
Thursday, September 13, 2018 - First news
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According to
the Finance Ministry,
the wealthy will pay more taxes |
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By A.M. Costa Rica
staff
The Finance Ministry has reported the bold new tax project which is under analysis in the legislature, could generate an approximate income of 1.29 percent of the gross domestic product. The vice-minister, Nogui Acosta, said that the greatest contribution in income tax and value-added tax will come from those who have more income. "The project maintains the equity and progressivity of taxation that we have defended so much, especially to impact as little as possible the most vulnerable population in the country," said Acosta. A progressively tax is a tax in which the rate increases as the taxable income increases. The term progressively refers to the way the tax rate progresses from low to high, with the result that a taxpayer's average tax rate is less than the person's marginal tax rate. The vice-minister updated this calculation after the end of the period of motions in the special commission that is responsible for analyzing the new project in legislature. According to the vice minister, the 10 percent of households with the highest income will pay 60 percent of the taxes in this new tax project. According to the ministry, about 93 percent of the modifications to the salary tax will be paid by people with more income, who will also assume 82 percent of the measures applied to the financial sector and 35 percent of the value-added tax. "Our estimates show that the project maintains its progressivity. With the adjustments incorporated until yesterday, we calculate the total collection at 1.29 percent of GDP", said Acosta.
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 A.M. Costa Rica wire services
photo
A
progressively tax is a tax in which the
rate
increases as the taxable income increases. Of that percentage, the greatest contribution in income and in value-added tax will come from those who have more income," he said. Acosta added that although this is a modification of the original bill, "it does maintain the equity and progressivity that we have defended so much, especially to impact as little as possible the most vulnerable in the country. We managed to maintain the government's objective that the person who has the most must pay the most," he said. The Finance Ministry said it expects that the legislators of different political parties will give the bill the high level of consideration that it deserves and approve the project as soon as possible.
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Refinery
employee arrested
on suspicion of
sabotage
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By A.M. Costa Rica staff An employee of the Costa Rican Gasoline Refinery located in Moín was arrested on suspicion of sabotaging the LPG gas distribution system and thereby blocking the distribution of gasoline. The situation occurred at dawn Wednesday when some men were seen at the refinery control room trying to interrupt the power supply. They managed to turn of the main substation and disable the level control system of the LPG gas storage areas and cause other damage. Most of the intruders managed to escape, but one suspect was stopped by the police. The name of the detainee was not published, but police confirmed that he was an active refinery employee. Daniel Calderón, director of the police reported that "in this case, an action was taken inside the RECOPE facilities, because there were people inside who managed to sabotage the normal operation of the plant and the distribution of gas. The person who was arrested is an employee. He was sent to the prosecutors and we are waiting for it to be determined if he will go to the tribune of flagrancy or if will face a normal judicial process." He used the Spanish acronym for the state refinery firm. The executive president of the refinery, Alejandro Muñoz, stated that the institution guarantees the supply of fuels for the whole country and explained that the delay from the plant in Ochomogo is due to an increase in demand since the fuel sales operations are concentrated there.
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 RECOPE
courtesy photo
The delay from the plant in Ochomogo is due to an increase in demand since the fuel sales operations are concentrated there. "We can guarantee that the supply is taking place throughout the country. It is normal that we have some delays due to the current situation, but we had coordinated with the police and we have guaranteed enough product for many days," said Muñoz. The arrested man was taken to the tribunals of justice for judicial process. |
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Poorest communities
receive least water
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By A.M. Costa Rica staff
The Environmental Services Department of the General Comptroller's Office issued a report that contains the results of an audit on water supply in vulnerable communities based on attributes of service quality, which promotes the economic, social and environmental development of the community. The service is provided by the Costa Rican Institute of Aqueducts and Sewers and other operators, depending on geography. The purpose of the audit was to determine if the water supply in vulnerable communities is congruent with the attributes of service quality and promotes their development economic, social and environmental. The audit covered the period from Jan. 1, 2016 to last May 31. The study is part of the commitments made with the 2030 Agenda of the United Nations, adopted by Costa Rica in 2015. "In this regard, it is relevant to analyze the state of provision of water service in vulnerable communities in order to promote effective and efficient supply strategies of the resource by operators, in accordance with the socio-cultural environment of users, to reduce gaps in their quality of life and development potential," said the report. It was determined that the provision of water service in vulnerable communities substantially violates quality parameters, with a general rating of 4.45 on a scale of 1 to 10. "This qualification was obtained based on a group of indicators calculated for 29 water mains responsible for the provision of drinking water service in 104 selected communities, which are located in: Upala, La Cruz, Nandayure, Quepos, Garabito, Parrita , Golfito, Coto Brus, Talamanca, Pococí, Limón, and Siquirres," said the report. In addition, this rating considered the criterion of importance assigned to each indicator by the parties interested in the topic such as indigenous communities and operators. Among the most important results of the study are: - Regarding the quality of the water supplied: for 42 percent of the water mains analyzed in these communities, the operators did not perform the physical and chemical microbiological analyzes required by the regulations. - 34 percent made at least one of the required analyzes. - 24 percent met all the analyzes. In addition, the level of contamination by bacteria or fecal waste remains was analyzed: - The level of residual chlorine in the La Cruz de Guanacaste water main violates the maximum and minimum values in several points of the network. In La Pita de Garabito these levels were below the recommended minimum, placing the health of its inhabitants at risk. In Rio Claro de Golfito and Amubri-Cachabri-Suiri de Talamanca the analysis showed fecal coliform and bacteria with the potential to cause diseases. In the latter community, the water supply comes from a river and disinfection is not applied, said the report. It was also determined that the water sources are in poor condition. "46 percent of the water mains have water sources and catchment structures exposed to natural risks such as landslides and floods, and contamination by the proximity of agricultural, livestock, housing or septic tanks, without the operators have identified and managed such risks. In addition, in some of these water mains there are structures in poor condition such as: wells with corroded coverings, catchment boxes with fissures, and deficient or null infrastructure for their perimeter protection, which shows lack of maintenance," said the report.
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 A.M.
Costa Rica wire services
photo
The
water service in vulnerable communities
substantially violates quality parameters. According to the report, there are also no controls on the availability of water in the sources, such as the execution and recording of gauging. The continuity of the service is interrupted in 34 percent of the water lines in the communities analyzed: - For every five days in Miravalles of the Río Blanco de Limón district, the service is provided for only six hours. - In the Casona de Limoncito de Coto Brus, service is provided one day a week. - In Rancho Grande de Bratsi of Talamanca and the Twin of Pavón de Golfito, service is given for two days a week. - In Jabillo and La Y Griega de Bejuco, San Antonio de Zapotal, San Josecito del Porvenir, three of the canton of Nandayure, San Antonio de la Florida de Siquirres and Cocles de Cahuita de Talamanca, the service is given only for three days a week. - In Limoncito de Coto Brus the service is given for four days a week. “The remaining 66 percent have water, but compliance with the minimum liquid pressure is not guaranteed, as there are no historical records,” said the report. Said the report: In view of the fact that drinking water service to vulnerable communities deviates substantially from quality parameters, resulting in inefficiency, and inefficiency in their administration, operation, maintenance and development of water mains, exposure to diseases is promoted. Lack of reliable water also restricts the development of productive activities and decreases the resilience capacity of individuals in a community that faces poverty and exclusion. Provision of water is a fundamental service for these communities and providers also have to protect the public funds invested in infrastructure and administration. The Comptroller General concludes the report, demanding that the institution responsible for the drinking water service make the corrections immediately and provide a quality service. The comptroller adds that the water authorities have it in their power to prioritize the care of these communities. The complete report can be read on the page of the Comptroller General's Office. |
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Nations demand a stop to Nicaraguan
violence
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By A.M. Costa Rica staff
A group of 36 countries joined the Human Rights Council of the United Nations in Geneva to demand the immediate cessation of disproportionate use of force, extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances and illegal and arbitrary detentions in Nicaragua. They also called for reactivating the national dialogue in that country in a climate of respect for fundamental freedoms and involving all parties to generate peaceful and sustainable solutions. The joint intervention took place Tuesday, during the dialogue with the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, the former president of Chile who made reference to the dramatic situation that Nicaragua is experiencing. Participating nations condemned “the decision taken by the government of Nicaragua that ordered the expulsion from the country of the mission of the Office of the U. N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, which represents a setback in the efforts being made by the international community in order to help find a way out of the crisis.” "We urge the government of Nicaragua to resume dialogue and cooperation with regional and international human rights mechanisms, including the Office of the High Commissioner," added the statement. |
 AM Costa Rica wire services
photo
Human
Rights Council demand the immediate
cessation of disproportionate use of force
in Nicaragua.
Finally, it encouraged the Office of the High Commissioner to continue reporting to the Human Rights Council with a view to defending and protecting human rights in Nicaragua.
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| Letter to Readers: Wooing more pensionados will not help the economy |
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Dear A.M. Costa Rica readers: I appreciate that Jay's article was labeled opinion, so I have no gripes along these lines. However, I'm puzzled by the opinion itself. I have no idea why Jay believes that wooing more pensionados will help the economy, and any help a new working-resident category offers is very small. Currently, pensionados only need incomes of $1000 a month for residency. Although most seem to have higher incomes (I'd guess the average is in the neighborhood of $2000 a month, and there are some vague data suggesting this) most pay the Caja tax based upon the $1000 a month mininum. This pumps about $1000 a year into the Caja, and since many pensionados never use the Caja, this is free money for Costa Rica's healthcare system. However, some pensionados do use the Caja, and those who do easily cost the system far more than they contribute. At their age, pensionados would have to pay about five times more for private health insurance than they pay into the Caja (and the deductible for Medicare is higher than the pensionados' Caja tax) so only if fewer than 20% of the pensionados use the Caja would Costa Rica benefit from pensionados paying into it. I suspect that the use rate is higher than 20%. Besides the Caja, the only real tax pensionados pay is the sales tax. Yes, some of them pay fuel taxes and the like, but these just cover the costs of driving. The only outright tax is the sales tax, but this is only applied to some consumer purchases. At an income of $2000 a month, a reasonable guess is that pensionados may pay the full sales tax on maybe $700 a month worth of consumer purchases, and thus contribute maybe $1000 a year to public revenues. However, this $1000 a year is hardly a profit for the government because the government also spends that money on behalf of pensionados. They after all sometimes need police or fire protection, like sidewalks and parks, and so on. Jay just seems to assume that the small amount of taxes pensionados pay is free money for the government (he even wants to reduce the taxes on pensionados) without recognizing that pensionados receive government services too that someone has to pay for. At what point pensionados might contribute more in taxes than they receive in services is anyone's guess, but we know that per capita GDP is around $1100 a month and the country is running a fiscal deficit. We therefore know that the taxes collected on incomes of $1100 a month are insufficient to pay for the services provided. The next question is whether pensionados put more or less of a burden than the average on public funds. As older folks, in some ways they put more of a burden on public funds and in other ways less, though as foreigners (who often can't speak the language) they burden the public more. The only way for more pensionados to contribute to the economy of Costa Rica is to increase their taxes. As an alternative, the income requirement for receiving pensionado residency could be increased, though even if it were pensionados would have to be subjected to some kind of income tax, since there's only so much they will spend that is subject to the sales tax. At the same time, increasing the income requirement for receiving pensionado residency would probably both reduce the number of pensionados and further the social divisions already evident between the "rich gringos" and resentful Ticos. I just don't see how Jay's pensionado proposal gets out of the gate. I like Jay's proposal for a working-resident category, and have long wanted Costa Rica to go this more Canadian route. Currently the country's immigration laws basically just welcome those with money. |
 A.M. Costa Rica archive photo
I think they should welcome those with skills and other attributes that in my opinion contribute more than money. However, I don't see how such a residential category would help the economy very much. Currently the US embassy estimates that there are between 80,000 and 100,000 Americans living in Costa Rica, though migracíon figures suggest that no more than 20,000 to 30,000 have legal residency. So say there are around 65,000 Americans in the country without residency. Not all of them are perpetual tourists. Some, especially in the multinationals, have work visas, others have student visas, and a few have missionary visas. I doubt that there are more than 50,000 perpetual tourists. Then though not all of these perpetual tourists are working, some are surf bums, others street hustlers, a few are drug traffickers, more are unemployed spouses. Among those who work, not many earn enough to be subject to Costa Rica's income taxes (the only way Costa Rica can extract additional tax revenues out of them). Also, some of the perpetual tourists couldn't qualify for residency under any category, new or old, because of their criminal records. Overall, I can't see how creating a new residency category for working foreigners with the aim of taxing them would raise more than around $50 million a year. Sure, that's something, and regularizing the status of the desirable perpetual tourists via the creation of a new residency category is good too, but the tax revenues amount to less than 1% of the government budget and therefore aren't much in the big picture. The only economic rationale I can find for Jay's proposals is if the country needed to attract more dollars in order to balance out its foreign currency situation. I think this was among the rationales for Costa Rica launching its tourism industry and wooing expats years ago, but it's no longer necessary. Actually, Costa Rica is awash in dollars, and this is the reason the value of the dollar remains low here. There's no economic reason why the country would want to attract more dollars now. I'm just puzzled by what is presented as a pragmatic business strategy for improving Costa Rica's economy. It doesn't make much sense to me. Ken Morris, San Pedro ----- Editor’s note: The views or opinions expressed by the author are the sole and exclusive responsibility of the sender and do not necessarily represent the opinion of A.M. Costa Rica. Therefore, the newspaper does not accept liability for reader's opinion letter content. |
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Robbery suspects captured in Limón |
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By A.M. Costa Rica staff Daniel Calderón, director general of police, said that there were 100 calls from neighbors to reports riots in the town of Cieneguita, Limón, and that a gang was robbing stores. "In total there were more than 100 reports of people making bonfires in the middle of the street and blocking the roads at Limón. The police worked all night until dawn, to clearing the roads. Most of the incidents occurred in the town of Cieneguita," Calderón said. Security Minister Michael Soto said that a violent gang forced its way into a supermarket, stole items and caused damage. “The rapid action of the police allowed the arrest of 16 people,” continued Soto, who added that the stolen items were recovered. "Wednesday morning they were sent to the Public Ministry," added Soto. The police reinforced their presence in the whole area to avoid more cases of violence, police said. According to the police, many gangs take advantage of the situation when there is a strike because they think the police have to leave to reinforce the officers in San José. |
 A violent gang forced its way into a supermarket, stole items and caused damage. "Most of them are people who have nothing to do with the strike. They are using that to alter public order. Seven of the 16 people captured have criminal records for possession of drugs and other four of them, have a criminal record for different faults," added Calderón. |
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Six
tourists rescued in Guanacaste
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By
A.M. Costa Rica staff
The Red Cross and Coast Guard based in Flamingo in Guanacaste reported the rescue of six tourists who suffered an accident while they were fishing. The accident happened at Zapotal Beach in Sardinal, Guanacaste. According to the police report, the six adults were in a fishing boat when a strong wave threw the boat towards some rocks. Three people swam to an islet but the others were foundering in the water. Coast Guard officials at the Flamingo station immediately sent vessel GC 32-02 and six officers to assist the tourists, who were rescued and taken to safety. According to the Coast Guard report, "The six people were reported as foreign tourists who were taken to Flamingo clinic where they did receive first aid " The official reported that just one of the tourist was identified by the name Jerson Lacayo, 38, who had to be transferred to the Filadelfia clinic, because he had possible fractures of the ribs and femur. The
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aches, rescuers
said.
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 Flamingo
Coast Guard courtesy
photo
The six tourist were in a fishing boat when a strong wave threw the boat towards some rocks. |
U.S. Income
Tax Services 
