Reversing a lower court decision that ruled it was unlawful for the government to include a doubling of property taxes in electric bills under the threat of turning power off for non-payment, Greece’s Supreme Court on Dec. 19 said the practice could continue.
Finance Minister Yiannis Stournaras had instructed the country’s Public Power Corporation (PPC) to ignore the lower court ruling and keep collecting the money because the country was desperate for cash, although it has failed to go after tax evaders who owe more than $70 billion.
The high court said the Ministry of Finance could continue levying the special property tax that was first imposed by a previous government when Evangelos Venizelos, now head of the PASOK Socialists, was finance minister. He also doubled income taxes and taxed the poor. But the court said it would review the measure on March 22, 2013.
The consumer group INKA had brought a suit against the government and won a first decision that was appealed to the Supreme Court by the government and the PPC, both of whom cited national interests and that there was precedent for using electric bills as a collection mechanism, as customers are forced to make payments to the national television network, the Hellenic Broadcasting Corporation in those bi-monthly levies.
The special property tax brings in more than 2 billion euros ($2.64 billion) annually and was supposed to be for one year only as an emergency measure but has continued for a second and now seems to be permanent.
(Source: Kathimerini)
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