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Instead of fines being counted towards total revenue of a
government...
Why not just mandate that all the revenue be split
equally
to
everyone. Since in theory, if you get a fine, you are
reimbursing the damage to the people not government.
This would reduce the incentive to change fine
policy to
mask
any need to increase taxes to cover any shortfall. (e.g.
changing the yellow light timing for increase red light
fines).
Plus bumping up fines based on a flat fee is essentially a
regressive 'hidden tax' compared to the more visible and
fairer "standard tax". Not enough to say "don't get fined",
if there are incentives to keep bumping up fines, and
making it harder to avoid accidentally hitting one.
A fine is meant to be an disincentive, not a politically
easy
revenue source.
edit: thx Loris
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Annotation:
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[+] in that it promotes government transparency and is a precedental step away from use of arbitrary "revenue tools". |
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I was thinking, in the context of sin taxes (alcohol and tobacco), to have them pay for education against said sins and reformation of the sinners. |
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There's a well-known Swedish example of this
where speeding fines collected from a traffic
camera were put into the prize pot for a lottery
which all non-speeding drivers who had gone
past the same camera were entered into. |
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I like the idea, but I think you meant 'disincentive'. |
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/the people not government/ |
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Ideally the government represents the people and does not have its own interests separate from those of its people. |
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My grandpas favorite saying about taxes: "Don't tax me, don't tax thee; tax that fellow behind the tree". Governments should identify a moneyed population from whom they can wring revenue via taxes, surcharges, airport fees, or fines, this population being distinct from the one the government represents. |
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One could tax off road bikers, Christian scientists, Quakers and those consarned space aliens. |
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