Muğla Metropolitan Mayor Ahmet Aras proposes 'damage tax' for tourists

The August assembly meeting of the Muğla Metropolitan Municipality was held under the chairmanship of Metropolitan Mayor Ahmet Aras. During the August assembly meeting, where 17 items were discussed, Aras made statements regarding Social Security Institution (SGK) debts.

Speaking at the assembly meeting, which was also broadcast live on YouTube, Aras stated that revenues from the central budget do not cover expenses, saying, "As local governments, our expenses are increasing while our revenues remain fixed. In particular, the vast majority of our district municipalities' revenues consist of either shares from the central budget or property taxes. Property taxes are re-evaluated once a year. That is why our municipalities have SGK debts."

"BUDGET SHARES SHOULD BE BASED ON INCREASED POPULATION"

Pointing out that the municipality has no SGK debt, Aras continued as follows:

- As a Metropolitan Mayor who has no debt to the SGK, I find it significant that SGK debts are being brought to the agenda during this period. Many mayors changed in the local elections, and large debts were inherited from the previous term. I evaluate the bringing up of SGK debts after austerity measures as a situation aimed at hindering the services of local governments that touch the public.

- Municipalities will either pay debts to the SGK or pay salaries to personnel. For this reason, we are also working to increase municipal revenues. The first of these is to allocate a portion of the motor vehicle tax to municipalities. Our municipalities build and clean the streets and avenues. At least a certain portion of the motor vehicle tax needs to be allocated to municipalities.

- Secondly, we want the shares allocated from the central budget to be determined not according to the resident population, but by taking into account the populations of cities that increase with tourism.

"THERE IS DAMAGE LEFT BY THE TOURIST"

According to the report by Yaşar Anter from Sözcü; pointing out that a 32 Euro accommodation tax is collected in the Netherlands, Aras said the following:

 "There is some damage left on the city by the tourist who comes here. Traffic, beach usage, the waste they produce, the water and sewage they use; these leave a lot of damage on the city. In return, we cannot generate any revenue. Since the tax headquarters of the large companies here are in Istanbul and Ankara, we cannot get a share of the taxes either. To prevent this, the tourist who comes here should pay a fee as a usage charge for the damage they leave on the city. We will work on this and soon present it to our Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change or our Ministry of Treasury and Finance."