Local Tax Reforms Threaten Public Policy Funding in France
The 2022 reform of the taxe d'aménagement has led to a drastic drop in local tax revenue, threatening public services in France.
Key Points
- • 2022 reform caused a 40% drop in local tax revenue for 91% of departments.
- • Approximately 230 million euros lost in tax funding affecting public services.
- • CAUE severely impacted, facing cuts due to dependency on the taxe d'aménagement.
- • Calls for immediate reforms to stabilize tax collection and support public policy funding.
Recent findings have illuminated major disruptions in local tax collection in France following the 2022 reform of the taxe d'aménagement. 91% of departments reported a 40% decline in transfers for 2024, amounting to a loss of approximately 230 million euros, which jeopardizes public services, particularly in environmental and urban planning sectors.
The 2022 reform fundamentally changed how the tax is collected, linking it to the completion of construction work and shifting responsibility to local tax offices. This has resulted in significant errors in tax allocation and a chaotic collection process, as reported by the Cour des comptes and various local financial service unions. Consequently, local councils and entities such as the Conseils d'architecture, d'urbanisme et de l'environnement (CAUE), which derive 80% of their funding from this tax, are facing cuts that endanger their operations and service delivery.
Joël Baud-Grasset and François Sauvadet call for urgent, systematic interventions to rectify these tax collection flaws, emphasizing the necessity of stabilizing revenue to support the growing needs of communities amid ecological transition challenges.