Big Business: don’t slash tax breaks that earn US$9.7B yearly

Santo Domingo.- Business leaders are wiling look at with authoritiesthe thorny issue of reviewing tax breaks for various sectors of the economy, whichofficial estimates place at more than RD$212.0 billion (US$9.7 billion) thisyear.

The heads of the Industries Association (AIRD) and of the YoungBusiness Leaders (ANJE) agreed on that position, in the heels of last week’sblistering critique of tax breaks by Internal Taxes director Magin Diaz.

Both president Danilo Medina and Diaz stressed the need torevise the tax expenditure formula to redirect part of the exemptions to"more productive" areas and end certain unfair competition practices thatfavor some economic activities.

Interviewed by AcentoTV, AIRD president Campos de Moya saidthey "totally agree" to sit and talk with officials and discuss the 94rules and laws on the country’s tax breaks "one by one.”

De Moya said, however, that there are vital laws that have reachedtheir goal of attracting investments, such as tourism promotion and free zones,to be carefully assessed before any amendment.

Before any measure on those two sectors "they must be verycarefully analyzed and talk with the actors what can be done without take awaycompetitiveness in these sectors, because they are sectors that have createdmany jobs and have attracted a lot of capital."

Competing within Cuba

ANJE president Osvaldo Oller: We’re an island that competeswith Central America, and the Caribbean and within the Caribbean we’ll becompeting seriously with Cuba.