ST MAARTEN ENTERS 2021 WITH A DEFICIT OF 171 GUILDERS. Still talking about a draft budget for 2021 Philipsburg – Sint Maarten still has a draft budget – that is to say: not yet approved by Parliament – and this shows for the year 2021 revenues of a total of 369 million guilders and costs of 540 million and thus a deficit of 171 million.
The multi-year estimate also shows shortages for the years 2022 to 2024. The Financial Supervision Council (Cft) notes that these estimates of shortages are ‘circumscribed with more than average uncertainty’ and that deviation from the central standard is reserved to the Council of Ministers of the Kingdom (RMR) in The Hague. For comparison with previous years: in the corona crisis year 2020, the deficit was 199 million. According to the most recently available monthly report, this was provided by Sint Maarten, up to and including November last year, namely 355 million in revenues and 554 million in expenses (excluding the Covid-19 related expenses, the forecast is 470 million). In the year before the Covid-19 pandemic, revenues were 434 million and actual expenses were 468 million, resulting in a negative balance of 34 million. At the end of 2020, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) revised economic growth forecasts for 2021 downwards from the forecast previously released. In the new estimate, the IMF assumes, among other things, a (lower) income realization of 351 million for the year 2020; three percent increase in real gross domestic product (GDP) compared to 2020; and an expected revenue realization of 369 million for the year 2021. The total revenue level in the draft budget of 369 million for 2021 is therefore based on the IMF forecast for 2021. The Cft also notes that the amount included in the draft budget payroll tax for 2021 is the same as the realization in 2019. ,, In the most recent estimate, the IMF assumes an increase in unemployment from approximately 9 percent in 2019 to 23 percent in 2021. The Cft wonders what consequences the increase of unemployment has on wage tax revenues. ” The Board therefore advises Minister Ardwell Irion of Finance to use this new information to adjust the assumptions used for the budgeted tax benefits if necessary and to explain these clearly in the budget. The tax revenues include 6 million euros in the draft budget as expected additional benefits from the implementation of ‘compliance-enhancing measures’ (measures that allow citizens and businesses to better comply with their tax obligations). & nbsp; This is based on the assumption that implementation of the measures will take place in the first quarter of 2021, while implementation is not expected to be feasible in this period. “The Cft asks you to provide further substantiation on how you can realize this extra compliance income”, the minister is told. The draft budget does not include any income for the concessions granted to the electricity and water company Gebe nv (6.5 million guilders), the seaport (2 million) and the Bureau Telecommunication and Post (approximately 1 , 5 million). “The payments for these concessions must be made annually”, the Cft writes. “It is not clear whether Sint Maarten has granted postponement of payment for the year 2021.” The concession payments must be included in the budget, unless clear agreements have been made with the companies about remission. In the latter case, the Cft will receive an overview of the agreements made and a statement of the years in which they will be realized. https://antilliaansdagblad.com/sint-maarten/23139-sint-maarten-komt-171-miljoen-tekort