DPJ to scrap fuel surcharges, other taxes

The Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) plans to scrap temporary surcharges on gasoline and other auto-related taxes in April 2010, in a move that will have wide-ranging effects. The abolition of the surcharge is expected to cut government revenues by some 2.5 trillion yen (US$28.2 billion). Gas station operators will get a boost should gasoline usage increase. But because the surcharge had already been suspended for about a month last April, their current mood is calm. A group whose members include the nongovernmental organization Kiko Network has issued a joint statement arguing that the elimination of the surcharge conflicts with the DPJ’s global warming policy. By 2020, the DPJ aims to cut greenhouse gases by 25% from 1990 levels. (September 5, 2009)