TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said Tuesday (Jan. 3) the government would at least devote part of NT$180 billion (US$5.86 billion) in surplus tax revenues to cash payments for the public, following calls by legislators.
The funds form part of a total of NT$450 billion in surplus tax income collected during 2022. Tsai said on Saturday (Dec. 31) that NT$70 billion is destined to help local governments, NT$100 billion would plug losses in the labor and health insurance systems and be spent on energy subsidies to keep prices low, and NT$100 billion would fund special programs supporting Taiwan’s resilience.
In a Facebook post on Tuesday, she elaborated on the issue, emphasizing that the energy subsidies for state-run Taiwan Power Company also amounted to sharing tax revenue with the public, as they would cut energy bills.
As to the remaining NT$180 billion, part had to be kept as a reserve for emergencies, but after days of discussion, the decision had been reached that part would be distributed in the form of cash to benefit the public, Tsai said.
The government will design relevant legislation and budget plans to submit to the Legislative Yuan for review, the president said, echoing comments earlier in the day by Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌).
Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation (TPOF) Chairman Ying-lung You (游盈隆) claimed the president’s change of mind amounted to the first time her authority had been challenged following the poor performance of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in the November local elections. Lawmakers from the DPP and the opposition both criticized her original decision about the surplus tax, creating a new situation for her, You claimed.
The issue showed that Tsai would face even more challenges during the year left before the Jan. 2024 presidential and legislative elections, the pollster claimed.