Tax Alternative
Property tax can be used to fund education in a country. However, there are several alternative taxes that can be used to fund education. They include sales tax, sumptuary tax, income tax and severance tax. Each of these taxes has its own advantages and demerits when used to fund important projects such as education.
Sumptuary taxes are taxes levied on luxury items for the rich people or undesirable products like tobacco and alcohol. The advantage of using these taxes to fund education is that they are economically friendly since only the rich and people who use undesirable products pay. Ordinary or average citizens do not suffer when sumptuous taxes are increased to fund education. However, sumptuous taxes are unreliable to fund education because the number of rich people buying luxury goods is too low hence; the taxes raised will be insufficient to fund education.
Severance tax is levied on natural resources such as minerals, oil and gas. Severance taxes can be used to fund education because natural resources have a lot of value hence; taxes raised will be sufficient to fund education. More so, only the owners are taxed hence ordinary citizens are not overburdened with taxes. However, most natural resources are owned by governments hence; sumptuous taxes raised are too little to fund education. Natural resources can also be exhausted hence; sumptuous taxes are unreliable to fund education.
Sales taxes can be used to fund education effectively because every citizen contributes based on their income or property. They are also certain because the procedures and amount paid are predetermined. Most sales taxes are elastic hence tax rates change with prevailing conditions. However, sales taxes are not good to fund education since even the poor people are required to contribute making them worse off than they were before.
Income tax can be used to fund education because it is collected from all people with income based on the tax system. This tax is easy to collect since it is collected at source and low income earners pay lower taxes hence; it promotes equality in sharing the burden of funding education. However, this tax could be unreliable because there are people who evade taxes leading to inequality when sharing the education funding burden.
The best tax systems to be used to fund education are sales, property and income taxes. These taxes are collected through well defined means and are certain to raise substantial amounts to fund education. Besides, the burden of funding education will be evenly distributed to promote equitability.
