Author: The Publisher

Celebration Time: Budget meets deadline for the first time GREAT BAY — “Today is a day for celebration;” Finance Minister Richard Gibson said at yesterday’s Council of Ministers press briefing. The reason: “For the first time in history St. Maarten has presented a balanced budget according to the stipulation in the law.” The budget was presented in the Council of Ministers on Tuesday and approved. “This deserves a big round of applause,” the minister said. “It shows that St. Maarten is on the right path and that it is prepared and can do the right thing.” Minister Gibson commended his…

Finance Minister Gibson came out with a clear statement yesterday about flat rate and indirect taxes. That’s a big non-no, he said, and it won’t happen on my watch, because that approach only benefits the rich. It is good to take note of this statement, because several political parties have made tax proposals  part of their manifesto and they present these plans without explaining what their effect on the people will be. On the other hand, given the fact that tax reform is a process for the long haul, similar to constitutional reform, voters should not be too concerned that…

All over the internet you come across the same statement: “In 1939 St. Maarten was declared a duty-free port”. Literally, every wiki site and encyclopedic source online about the history of St. Maarten contains this one line: “In 1939 St. Maarten was declared a duty-free port”. But no clarification is given nor any further background information provided on this historical sentence. Declared a duty-free port by whom? King Willem of Orange-Nassau? Where is the royal decree to that effect? What does this duty-free status mean in practice? Are there really no import duties on St. Maarten? Are there no taxes…