Costa Rica News – One of the biggest issues debated by candidates in the recent Costa Rican elections was the large deficit that this Central American country faces. The Costa Rican people elected President Luis Guillermo Solis. He says that the deficit is the largest problem facing the economy.
People were worried about impending tax increases as well as cost of living increases but it seems that President Solis, who took office May 8th, has powerful plans to better the economy.
The previous government forecaster that the budget gap would widen from 5.4 percent in 2013 to 6 percent of the gross domestic product in 2014. Vice President Helio Fallas, however, announced that Solis would be taking serious measures to avoid this occurrence and vowed that this new government will definitely lower the forecast of the deficit.
He assured the Costa Rican public that Solis would not raise taxes for two years, instead decreasing spending and identifying tax evaders. The government is also interested in boosting investment in Costa Rica after three large corporations recently announced closing operations in the country.
Although the fiscal outlook still seems cloudy and will continue to challenge the government, Costa Rica has determined that it can cover its costs for the time being. Fallas said a limited fiscal debt could be achieved through improvements in tax collection from those currently evading and a better control on spending, including an idea about not filling public sector jobs that he deems as unnecessary.
