LAST YEAR, Finance Minister Dr. Omar Davies collected just about $103 billion in taxes, falling almost $4 billion short of his true target of $106.8 billion.
Tax revenues accounted for 88 per cent of the total $117.2 billion of total revenues and grants that flowed into the Govern-ment's coffers.
But even with the heavy tax burden, which weighed in at 30 per cent of Gross Domestic Product, earnings still fell way short of the total $149 billion spend recorded under 'Central Government Operations' for the last fiscal year, creating a fiscal deficit of $31.2 billion.
Interest charges ($62 billion) and wages ($59.6 billion) dominated expenditure.
OVERALL DEFICIT
To help off-set expenses, as well as to pay down the principal debt, Davies also borrowed $107.2 billion last year, pushing total income to $210 billion. That left Government with an overall deficit of $13.2 billion to carry forward, but it also inflated the debt to 152 per cent of GDP.
This year, given the size of the deficit and a $601.2 billion debt to service, Dr. Davies is going after an even bigger tax package, at least $14.5 billion more than last year's take, to help finance the country's operations over fiscal 2003/04.
Today, he faces the private sector, which is already upset at his proposed four per cent import cess, at a post-budget forum looking at the implications of the budget on businesses.
The Jamaica Conference Board will host the forum at Knutsford Court Hotel starting at 8:00 a.m.
