By: Roland Tuitt
General
Presently, there is a disgruntled civil servant at the St. Maarten Receivers Office who is terrorizing senior citizens, individuals and businesses. She is giving her own interpretation to the Law that is incorrect.
In May 2013 the Minister of Finance Mr. Roland Tuitt issued a "ministriele beschikking" outlining that no amounts prior to the year 2007 should be collected by the Receiver. The present Receiver takes it upon herself to give a different interpretation to the law and is collecting taxes prior to the year 2006 and even goes back to the year 1997. This is contrary to the published law.
Published Law
The Law was published in the Landscourant of St. Maarten, year 2013, no. 11 dated May 24, 2013. In summary it states that as of February 1, 2013 the Receiver is not allowed to collect taxes pertaining to the years 2006 or before.
Active Collection
No reminders nor collection assessments (navoerderings en naheffingsaanslagen) should be sent to taxpayers pertaining to 2006 and before. The receiver is not allowed to send reminders, collection- notices nor are they permitted to put or execute liens for those amounts.
Active Payments
If a taxpayer comes to make a payment relating to the period prior to 2007 then the following will be done: firstly, the amount will be booked to assessments of the year 2007 and thereafter, secondly, If the person does not have any assessments for years 2007 and thereafter the money will be given back.
Payment Arrangement
If the taxpayer has a payment arrangement for the year 2006 and before the payment arrangement will be terminated if there are no amounts included for the period 2007 and thereafter (2007 going forward). If the payment arrangement includes 2007 going forward then the payments will be booked to the years 2007 and 2008 etc and not to prior years.
Compensation
The Receiver can compensate refunds and other refunded amounts with tax assessment and AVBZ assessments that are not paid. There is no time limitation thus it can be applied to amounts to 2006 and before. Once the write off law is passed by parliament then the amounts are written off.
Illegality
The Receiver is giving her own interpretation to the law and the present Minister of Finance Mr. Hassink is allowing her to do as she pleases. The Minister of Finance is responsible for the actions of the Receiver. In this case the Minister of Finance should send an instruction to the Receiver to not collect the amounts prior to 2006 and cease and desist from putting liens for those amounts.
Conclusion
The Receiver is interpreting the law wrong. She is compensating salaries and payments for products and services to the written off amounts. This is not in accordance with the law.
Let me give 2 examples. If the Receiver were correct in her interpretation, she would have to withhold the salary of all civil servants who received a write off in accordance with the law.
She would have to withhold monies payable to contractors for services rendered from all suppliers who received a write off in accordance with the published law.
Furthermore, the Parliament of St. Maarten which is the highest body in the country gave their intention twice to write off these amounts in motions. Thus she is also going against the will of parliament.
Recommendation
The Minister of Finance should issue the correct interpretation of the law this week and mandate the Receiver to follow his directions. That entails that all tax assessments, fees and AVBZ assessments prior to 2006 cannot be collected unless there is a refund. The refund can be compensated with the written off amounts until the write off law is passed by Parliament. Then compensation will cease also.
All senior citizens, individuals and businesses that were wrongfully collected by the Receiver after February 2013 should write a protest letter to the receiver demanding a refund for collected amounts for the years prior to 2007.
The Minister of Finance should send the draft law to write off the taxes, fees and AVBZ for 2006 and before to the Advisory Counsel and then to Parliament for approval. The law was written prior to my departure as Minister of Finance.