Abstract The draft of a 2008 Corporate Tax Reform Law adopted in March 2007 also reforms the trade tax. This applies both to the rate and to the tax base. In future, not only the interest on permanent debt will be included in the tax base, but also all interest paid as well as the financing...

In Germany, local authorities charge supply companies with concession dues on gas, water, and electricity (Konzessionsabgaben), which are similar to some local taxes (e.g., local business tax, real property tax). Because these local taxes have already been included in the German fiscal...

Many countries levy local business taxes. In Germany, the ‘‘Gewerbesteuer‘‘ is the main source of local governments’ tax revenue. If there is local taxation of businesses, liberal professionals and farmers should not be treated differently from business enterprises, as it is the case...

The German states Bavaria and Hesse have initiated a legal case against the German fiscal equalisation system. The German Federal Constitutional Court has already made rulings concerning this system on three occasions, and thus this new case is not expected to result in major changes....

The Commission of the European Union (EU) has made a new proposal regarding the multiannual fi nancial framework through 2020. Raising expenditures with high added value for the EU (e.g. a trans-European transport network) is one important target of the proposal. Another important issue is a...