February 2015: Proposed Tax Reform: A Swinging Pendulum
Why the need to overhaul PR’s tax system now? Is there a convincing case for this tax policy reform to support a recovery in PR’s economic growth? The current tax reform calls for a Value Added Tax (VAT) to replace the current Sales and Use Tax (SUT) while overhauling the current income tax system and generating “adequate” revenues. The proposed VAT to be implemented effective January 2016 calls for a temporary increase in SUT from 7% to 16% on April 2015. A new source of revenues would enable other taxes, such as income taxes for certain brackets, to be abolished. Businesses would be subject to a higher yet flat corporate income tax rate as well as capital and dividend gains. Consumption patterns between income brackets can differ and a complex regressivity mechanism for lower income groups is not yet clear. Employment effects could be larger since smaller firms may have layoffs, ultimately worsening the situation on the island.