Minimum role
Over the past three weeks, this writer looked at the challenges of revenue collection in Guyana. The picture that emerged is one in which the government is not collecting optimal revenues with several factors contributing to this situation. Among some of the things noted was that not all the parts of the tax structure worked effectively and efficiently. Some did not even play the minimum 
role of helping to achieve tax stability much less of optimizing revenues. The review of the data raised questions also about the effectiveness of the revenue administration. Hidden in the numbers as well are other issues which are often at the heart of tax quarrels. Two of the things that generate negative reactions from taxpayers are issues of equity and those of the benefits which they receive from paying their taxes. This article will discuss the two issues given the evidence presented by the tax data about income taxes and the positive role of many local businesses in the generation of government revenues.
Tax systems
In discussing equity, comparisons of three types of tax systems are often used, namely the progressive tax system, the regressive tax system and the proportional tax system. While the three tax systems are important in the overall scheme of things, for income tax purposes, only two of the systems matter. These are the progressive and the proportional systems. The progressive tax system is one in which a greater share of a person’s income is exposed to