2012/13 Budget At A Glance
[Updated] If you don’t have time to sift through the full 30-page 2012 Budget, some of the key points are below:
- Expected expenditures of $1.08 billion, with an estimated revenue of $909.6 million.
- A “National Security Council” is being formed to help combat crime
- The arrivals area at the Airport will have a ‘channel’ system, with a “nothing to declare” line.
- The Xray facility on the Hamilton Docks will be put in place this year.
- Payroll tax concessions for the hotel, restaurant and retail sectors have been extended.
- Government will remove the stamp duty for those transferring mortgages between banks
- Ferry and bus fares will remain the same.
- The Government’s new debt to GDP ratio will be 24%
- The new debt ceiling will be 1.45 billion, a raise from $1.25 billion.
- Seniors with houses with ARV over $50,000 [a value of approximately $1 million] will now have to pay land tax.
- Seniors with larger cars will have to pay to a licence fee, as it is said the exemption has been abused.
- Sandys 360 will get a $2 million grant
- Airport duty rate will be restored to 25%, and allowance will be raised to $200 per person from April 1, 2012.
- The duty rate for personal importation of goods will be harmonised at all ports of entry at 25%.
- The duty on cigarettes and tobacco will be raised in April 2012, with the aim to achieve additional revenue of about $1 million.
- The biennial adjustment of government fees will be increased by about 3% for most fees, expected to increase revenue $4–5 million
- Government proposes to amend the Occupational Pension Act to allow for a voluntary suspension of employee and employer contributions for a period of one year beginning in 2012
- Government has initiated discussion to assess the feasibility of allowing international fishing vessels to take fish stocks out of Bermuda’s200 mile maritime exclusive economic zone.
- A One-Stop Career Centre will be developed, wherein various government-funded education, training and social programmes can be cohesively coordinated.
- $500,000 has been allocated for extended CCTV networking
- The Ministry of Education’s allocation for the forthcoming fiscal year is $133,989,000, an increase of 5% over last year.
- The Ministry of Public Works is getting 8 new garbage collection vehicles in May 2012, at a cost of $150,000 per vehicle.
- The Ministry of Environment, Planning and Infrastructure Strategy’s budget for the upcoming year is $15,745,000, an increase of $1.5 million or 11% when compared to 2011-2012, with the additional funds provided to implement telecommunications reform. $483,000 will be dedicated to the development of a shore side facility for the processing of fish.
Not a balanced budget???? What a disgrace!!! Bermudians should revolt. If we can’t balance our budget when times are lean, how will we ever balance our budget?
What about a toll for drivers entering the Hamilton City limits each day? This might prompt more to take public transportation.
Do away with MP cars and credit cars, travel allowances, etc. Stay home and save in the lean times. Isn’t that what we, THE PEOPLE, have to do!
How about a toll for posting on Bernews!
Do you not realize that if you stay home and save your money, not saying you shouldn’t always save a little at least, that by not spending your money you are contributing to the economic depression? We the people need to invest and spend our money so there is more money out there moving around in circulation.
The middle class and poor have no money to spend, it’s the rich who are hoarding and not spending talk to them.
toll for drivers entering town??? are you nuts!!!
Ok, so you want to put 2 million in the Sandys 360 and still build your swimming pool next to the National Stadium which should be ready in the fall you say? I think that is a wast of time and money right now. The island is that small where we can use just one facility for now. That money can but put to something else. Land tax for the Seniors with what a discount, they helped build this island and you will want to take from them. I agree about the car, but its still going to make things worst before they get better. Your putting a program for people who are 16-24. What about the people who are a little order than that. There are no scholarships past 24 so pretty much if your 25 there is nothing for you. You throw the towel at us! That is soo sad yet we are the future of our Bermuda. Ridiculous!!
some points to be raised: allowing fishing vessels into our waters will drastically hurt the local commercial fisherman and recreational. longline fishing destroys only for profit..keep our waters healthy and alive!
secondly at the airport if you have nothing to declare then that is a good motive for you to be ripped apart by customs. giving a fast track line will only add more to the search area.
Cell phone tax should have gone up
Yeah, the nothing to declare sure works. We came back from one of our competing islands to the south just this past week.
One loosely packed bag each. Nothing but a weeks worth of laundry & a souveneir T shirt.
Guess who got the shake down inspection?
I had fun watching her root around finding nothing of course.
Gotta love the people who return bags bulging, new clothes on, obviously new shoes, who knows what in the bags, & they declare a couple hundred worth.
Everyone except the government hates taxes. If the government can stop over-spending,especially on unnecessarily frivolous things like advisors and pimped up police cars, we might have more confidence. Does the Sandy’s 360 project really benefit the average taxpayer, or just a fortunate few? I’m the type of person who would rather be poor and debt-free than temporarily rich and passing the debt onto the next elected representatives. Politicians are in place to serve the people, not themselves – let’s remind them!