Tax farming was originally a Roman practise whereby the burden of tax collection was removed from the Roman State to private individuals or groups. In essence, these individuals or groups paid the taxes for a certain area and for a certain period of time, and then attempted to cover their outlay by collecting money or saleable goods from the people within that area.^[1] The system was set up by Gaius Gracchus in 123 BC primarily to increase the efficiency of tax collection within Rome itself but the system quickly spread to the Provinces.^[2] YOU ARE GAY ... A tax collector is a person who collects unpaid taxes from other people or corporations. ... Gaius Gracchus (Latin: C·SEMPRONIVS·TI·F·P·N·GRACCVS) (154 BC-121 BC) was a Roman politician of the 2nd century BC. He was the younger brother of Tiberius Gracchus and, like him, pursued a popular political agenda that ultimately ended in his death. ... Centuries: 3rd century BC - 2nd century BC - 1st century BC Decades: 170s BC 160s BC 150s BC 140s BC 130s BC - 120s BC - 110s BC 100s BC 90s BC 80s BC 70s BC Years: 128 BC 127 BC 126 BC 125 BC 124 BC - 123 BC - 122 BC 121 BC... Nickname: The Eternal City Motto: SPQR: Senatus PopulusQue Romanus Location of the city of Rome (yellow) within the Province of Rome (red) and region of Lazio (grey) Coordinates: Region Lazio Province Province of Rome Founded 21 April 753 BC  - Mayor Walter Veltroni Area    - City 1285 km²  (580 sq mi)  - Urban... Map of the Roman Empire, with the provinces, after 120. ...

Within the Roman Empire, these private individuals and groups that collected taxes in lieu of the bid they had paid to the state were known as publicani, of whom the best known is probably St. Matthew, a publicanum in the village of Capernaum in the province of Judaea. The system was widely abused, and reforms were enacted by Augustus and Diocletian.^[3] A Publican can be the manager of a public house, or in New Testament times, a tax collecter. ... Matthew the Evangelist (מתי, Gift of the LORD, Standard Hebrew and Tiberian Hebrew: Mattay; Septuagint Greek: Μαθθαιος, Matthaios) is an important Christian figure best known as one of Jesus Twelve Apostles. ... Catholic church built over the house of Saint Peter Capernaum (pronounced k-pûrn-m; Hebrew כפר נחום Kefar Nachum, Nahums hamlet) was a settlement on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. ... Desert hills in southern Judea, looking east from the town of Arad Judea or Judaea (יהודה Praise, Standard Hebrew Yəhuda, Tiberian Hebrew Yəhûḏāh) is a term used for the mountainous southern part of historic Palestine, an area now divided... For other persons named Octavian, see Octavian (disambiguation). ... Gaius Aurelius Valerius Diocletianus ( 245– 312), born Diocles (Greek Διοκλής) and known in English as Diocletian,[1] was Roman Emperor from November 20, 284 to May 1, 305. ...

Tax farming is not identical with privatised tax collection, where private individuals or groups collected taxes and give them to the state in return for a fee. Tax farming is speculative, meaning that the private individual or group must invest their own money initially to pay off the tax debt, against the hope of collecting a larger sum subsequently (hence "farming"). Privatised tax collection occurs wherever the state passes on its obligation to collect taxes to private companies in return for a fee. ... Speculation involves the buying, holding, and selling of stocks, bonds, commodities, currencies, collectibles, real estate, derivatives or any valuable financial instrument to profit from fluctuations in its price as opposed to buying it for use or for income via methods such as dividends or interest. ...

History

Besides the Romans, historical examples include the tax collection methods of the Ptolemies, Seljuks, Mamluks, Ottomans, and the French State prior to Louis XVI. In many cases, such as the Abbasid practice of Iqta, these rights were granted by an authority, in this example the caliph, for services rendered or promised. In the Byzantine pronoia system, similar rights were often purchased from the crown.^[4] Though such arrangements in some respects seem similar to the feudal system, there are significant disparities, including continuance of state power and, at least in the case of pronoia, theoretical time limits on the grant. In many cases, including those mentioned, tax rights were not transferable or divisible, unlike feudal fiefdoms. Ptolemy, one of Alexander the Greats generals, was appointed satrap of Egypt after Alexanders death in 323 BC. In 305 BC he declared himself King Ptolemy I, later known as Soter (saviour). ... The Seljuk Turks (Turkish: Selçuk; Arabic: سلجوق Saljūq, السلاجقة al-Salājiqa; Persian: سلجوقيان Saljūqiyān; also Seldjuk, Seldjuq, Seljuq) were a major branch of... An Ottoman Mamluk, from 1810 Mamluks (or Mameluks) (the Arabic word usually translates as owned, singular: مملوك plural: مماليك) comprised slave soldiers used by the Muslim Caliphs and the Ottoman Empire, and who on more than one occasion seized power for... The Ottoman Empire at the height of its power Imperial motto El Muzaffer Daima The Ever Victorious (as written in tugra) Official language Ottoman Turkish Capital İstanbul ( Constantinople/Asitane/Konstantiniyye ) Sovereigns Sultans of the Osmanli Dynasty Population ca 40 million Area 12+ million km² Establishment 1299 Dissolution October 29... Motto: Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité Liberty, Equality, Fraternity Anthem: La Marseillaise Capital (largest city) Paris French Government Unitary republic  - President Jacques Chirac  - Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin Formation    - French State 843 (Treaty of Verdun)   - Current constitution 1958 (5th Republic)  Accession to EU March 25, 1957 Area  - Total 1 674,843 km... Louis XVI Louis XVI (August 23, 1754 - January 21, 1793), was King of France and Navarre from 1774 until 1791, and then King of the French in 1791-1792. ... Abbasid provinces during the caliphate of Harun al-Rashid Abbasid (Arabic: العبّاسيّون, AbbāsÄ«yÅ«n) is the dynastic name generally given to the caliph of Baghdad, the second of the two great Sunni dynasties of the Arab Empire, that overthrew the Umayyad caliphs from all but Spain. ... Tax farming was originally a Roman practise whereby the burden of tax collection was removed from the Roman State to private individuals or groups. ... Caliph is the title for the Islamic leader of the Ummah, or community of Islam. ... Pronoia (plural pronoiai, Greek for provisions) refers to a system of land grants in the Byzantine Empire. ... Under the system of feudalism, a fiefdom, fief, feud, feoff, or fee, often consisted of heritable lands or revenue-producing property granted by a liege lord in return for a form of allegiance, originally often to give him the means to fulfill his military duties when called upon. ...

Use, benefit, liability

In many parts of the world, tax farming was responsible for the consolidation of the state and an increase in central autocracy. The state has an interest in the long term stability and prosperity of a region, but a tax farmer usually does not. Therefore tax-farmers often abuse the taxpayers for tax collection, causing discontent and a general decline in use of tax farming. In addition the state will becoem envious of the profits made by the tax famers ( that would otherwise be tax revenue direct to the state ). For these regions tax farming has tended to disappear as states develop. An Autocracy is a form of government in which unlimited power is held by a single individual. ...

See also

• Maona
• Privatised tax collection
• Publicani

A maona (from the Arabic Maounach) or Societas comperarum was a medieval Italian association of investors formed to manage the purchased shares (loca or partes) of the revenue due to the relevant city-state through tax farming; the shares were individually sold to wealthy merchants, but the collection could be... Privatised tax collection occurs wherever the state passes on its obligation to collect taxes to private companies in return for a fee. ... A Publican can be the manager of a public house, or in New Testament times, a tax collecter. ...

References

1. ^ Howatson M. C.: Oxford Companion to Classical Literature, Oxford University Press, 1989, ISBN 0198661215
2. ^ Balsdon J.: Roman Civilization, Pelican, 1965
3. ^ Roman-taxes at unrv.com
4. ^ Timothy E. Gregory, A History of Byzantium (Malden, MA: Blackwell, 2005)

External links

• Roman Taxes