Contents >> Chapter 27 - Government finance >> Taxation revenue
TAXATION REVENUE
A distinctive feature of the Australian federal system is that the Australian (Commonwealth) Government levies and collects all income tax, from individuals as well as from enterprises. It also collects a portion of other taxes, including taxes on the provision of goods and services. The revenue base of state and territory governments consists of taxes on property, on employers' payrolls, and on the provision and use of goods and services. The sole source of taxation revenue for local governments is taxes on property.
Total taxation revenue collected in Australia rose $19,103m, 8.0%, between 2002-03 and 2003-04 (table 27.13). Taxes on income increased by $10,789m and taxes on the provision of goods and services increased by $3,574m. Taxes on income totalled $142,067m in 2003-04 and comprised 55.3% of total taxation revenue for all levels of government. Taxes on the provision of goods and services, including GST, totalled $69,922m in 2003-04 and comprised 27.2% of total taxation revenue for all levels of government.
Commonwealth Government taxation revenue, including taxes from other levels of government and Commonwealth public corporations, rose 7.6% from $194,504m in 2002-03 to $209,195m in 2003-04. In 2003-04, Commonwealth Government taxation represented 81.5% of taxation revenue for all levels of government.
State government taxation revenue, including taxes from other levels of government and on public corporations, increased 11.0% from $36,406m in 2002-03 to $40,394m in 2003-04. Taxes on property were the single largest taxation revenue source (41.3%) for state governments in 2003-04, followed by employers' payroll taxes at 26.8%. The revenue base of state (and territory) governments is supplemented by grants from the Australian (Commonwealth) Government, which includes the allocation of GST revenue.
27.13 TOTAL TAXATION REVENUE
COMMONWEALTH GOVERNMENT
Taxes on income
Employer's payroll taxes
Taxes on property
Taxes on the provision of goods and services
Taxes on the use of goods and performance of activities
Total taxation revenue
ALL LEVELS OF GOVERNMENT
Source: Taxation Revenue, Australia, 2003-04 (5506.0).
On average, Australian residents each paid $12,841 in tax in 2003-04, up 6.8% on the previous year. The Commonwealth Government taxation per person rose by 6.3% from $9,844 in 2002-03 to $10,462 in 2003-04. State and territory governments and local councils charged residents an average of $2,402 a year in property taxes, stamp duty, gambling taxes, payroll and other taxes in 2003-04. This was up from $2,206 in 2002-03.
The amount of taxation per person, by jurisdiction, is shown in table 27.14 below.
27.14 TAXATION PER PERSON(a), By level of government
(a) Average annual estimated resident population.
This page last updated 22 September 2008