Budget 2023: Taraba charged with VAT, not FG — Commissioner

The Taraba state government said on Wednesday that the state government will henceforth be responsible for value-added tax (VAT) and not the federal government as a measure to boost independent revenue to fund the 2023 budget.

With this development, the government of Taraba has joined the states of Rivers and Lagos in collecting VAT hitherto collected by the federal government through the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).

Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, Hon. Solomon Elisha made this known while answering questions from journalists at a press conference to split the 2023 Taraba state budget in Jalingo.

Elisha, announcing that the state was able to generate N11.030 billion in 2022, the highest ever internally generated revenue, noted that the state is expected to generate N19.388 billion by the end of 2023.

“Yes, the state government will be responsible for collecting the VAT. To fund the budget of N173.234 billion for 2023, the amount of N73.371 billion is expected to come from the share of statutory allocation, while N19.388 billion is the expected independent revenue including VAT.

“Similarly, N39.920 billion is expected to come from aides and grants, while another N39.954 will come from receipts from the Capital Development Fund,” he said.

The commissioner, who said the budget was prepared in accordance with the National Chart of Accounts (NCoA), noted that the budget provision will be used to complete key ongoing projects and provide the framework for the new administration to build on.

He told journalists that as part of measures to get more money for capital projects, the state government has taken steps to improve revenue generation by blocking spills, emphasizing new wells, creating fiscal space for infrastructure development and strict monitoring and evaluation measures .

“All of these measures are part of deliberate efforts by the government to mobilize revenue to reduce reliance on federal allocation in funding state projects,” he said.

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