The funds collected from the environmental tax should be used to modernize enterprises to reduce the pressure on the environment
Andriy Malevany, Chairman of the State Environmental Inspection of Ukraine, supports the initiative to return 70% of the collected environmental tax to enterprises for their modernization in order to reduce the pressure on the environment. He wrote about this on his Facebook page.

Andrei Malevany recalls that now the Tax Code provides for the following distribution of funds from the payment of the environmental tax:

55% – to special funds of local budgets;
45% – to the national fund.
According to him, in 2019, the total amount of revenues from the environmental tax amounted to UAH 3.9 billion. At the same time, only 12% of this amount was used for environmental measures, reducing the pressure on the environment, that is, less than UAH 0.5 billion.

“In my personal opinion, this is an irrational use of funds. The national budget fund can use the funds from the eco-tax for any event. Perhaps, while fighting the consequences of COVID-19, such an opportunity is justified. However, these funds must be protected, targeted. Then the percentage of effective use for ecological and environmental protection measures would be higher, ”Andrey Malevany is sure.

He expects that in the fall, after the holidays, the deputies of the Verkhovna Rada will be able to consider a legislative initiative, suggesting that 70% of the environmental tax will be returned to enterprises for their modernization in order to reduce the pressure on the environment.

“I support this initiative,” he stressed.

As the GMK Center reported, the business community has repeatedly called on the authorities to reform the mechanism for collecting and using the environmental tax.

In particular, the European Business Association proposes to allow enterprises to use up to 70% of environmental tax funds as investments in environmental protection measures.

In order to harmonize changes in tax legislation, the EBA calls on deputies to facilitate the rejection of a series of bills (No. 2367, No. 2367-1, No. 2367-2, No. 2465, No. 2465-1) and to consolidate all rational proposals that they contain in a single agreed the draft law.

It should provide for specific financing instruments for the environmental modernization of industry and energy.

The American Chamber of Commerce also called on the Verkhovna Rada to grant business entities the right to use up to 70% of the environmental tax to compensate for the costs of environmental protection measures and environmental investments.