PHILIPSBURG:---Former Member of Parliament George Pantophlet is asking if there is money in the St. Maarten Economy. The answer to this question is yes there is. But everyone has to contribute. One might ask where is the money going to be coming from. Simple answer; It’s in all sectors of the economy but mostly in the private sector. Let me digress to some 10 years or so ago. There was a report called the WDC report. And in that document a statement was made by the researchers who asked the question; “How come all this money is circulating in St. Maarten but not reflected in government’s coffers? It is a stark reminder of the non-compliance of some individuals and businesses where it pertains to paying their taxes. And unfortunately the ones that scream the loudest as to what government should or should not do with these funds are the ones who are not complying with their civic responsibilities. Many studies have proven that tax compliance has always been a torn in the financial flesh of this island. Fast forward to today, the answer to my question is and I repeat, yes there is money in the St. Maarten Economy might be looked at in a negative sense seeing the passing of hurricane “Irma” last year which dealt a devastating blow to the people and economy of St. Maarten. And this cannot be overlooked. Granted that many businesses have been affected which has led to mass unemployment especially in the tourism and related sectors, however some of the businesses that have benefitted tremendously and are still doing so today are supermarkets, hardware stores and construction companies just to name a few. We know for a fact that government gains its revenues from taxes; income tax, profit tax, turnover tax, road tax, transfer tax and so on. The challenge is how to execute proper control to ensure that the individuals and businesses are paying their fair share? It would be interesting to compare the turnover tax paid today by the businesses I mentioned earlier in comparison to what they paid in turnover tax prior to the passing of hurricane “Irma”. Taking into account that their sales have skyrocketed. What must not be overlooked either is the price gouging (some might say payback for the looting) that is taking place. Now back to my question is there money in the St. Maarten Economy. I think now is the time to look at the taxes on alcohol and tobacco, now is the time to work on the dividend legislation, now is the time to look at the casino fees, now is the time to really issue fines to persons who throw all kinds of objects from their vehicles or wherever they are on the street, now is the time to look at making us contribute to the garbage collection. And let me insert here on the matter of the garbage collection. I visited the Netherlands for the first time some 18 years ago and I found out that there are scheduled days to put your garbage outside for pickup. I travelled to the US and in Brooklyn idem ditto, there are scheduled times, worse yet if your neighbor puts his or her garbage out on your side of the street, they the garbage or city inspectors are not asking who it belongs to, but the person in front of whose home it is found will be fined. Is there money in the St. Maarten Economy? Yes, if some businesses stop using credit card machines where the funds generated on St. Maarten go directly into their overseas account. With the constant improvement of technology, I hope that a way will soon be discovered to prevent this fraud. It is tax evasion and for me synonymous to money laundering. Complying by paying our taxes, will mean not having to be begging the Dutch government for funds to deal with our budgetary shortfalls. It’s in our hands. My question again, is there money in the St. Maarten Economy? Yes, there is.
