Английский язык для экономических специальностей (English for economists) (стр. 12 из 12)
Most taxes can be classified as progressive, proportional or regressive. A progressive tax takes a larger percentage of a higher income and a smaller percentage of a lower income. The federal income tax is the best known example of a progressive tax.
A proportional tax takes the same percentage of all incomes, regardless of size.
A regressive tax is one that takes a higher percentage of a low income and a lower percentage of a high income. Although they are not based on a person's income, sales taxes have a regressive effect because they take a larger share of earnings from a low-income taxpayer than from a high-income taxpayer.
Which tax is the fairest? Few would argue that a regressive tax is fair. Those who favor the ability-to-pay principle would support a progressive tax, and possibly the proportional tax. There are some, however, who argue that the proportional tax is not fair.
The proportional tax seems to be fair because everyone pays the same rate. In analyzing the impact of taxes on individuals, economists often concentrate on discretionary income-the amount that a person has left after buying necessities (food, clothing, shelter, medical care, transportation, etc).
In evaluating a tax it is important to know who will really have to pay it, or, as economists put it, the incidence of the tax. The burden of paying a tax can be avoided if the one responsible for writing the check for taxes to the government can pass the cost on to someone else. The process of passing the burden to someone else is known as tax-shifting. Taxes may be passed on to consumers, in which case they are said to be shifted forward. Similarly, taxes may be shifted backward as when suppliers or the workers who produced the products are forced to assume the burden.
II. Exercises on the Text:
3. Give Russian equivalents to:
nothing can be said to be certain; neither government nor modern society; they are a certainty; we ought to know; to pay for the cost of government; to protect selected industries; to discourage harmful activities; to encourage certain activities; the merits of one tax to another; benefits-received principle; ability-to-pay principle; educated workforce; a larger percentage; sales taxes; the burden of paying a tax.
4. Complete as in the text and translate into Russian:
1. Few economic topics excite controversy ... 2. The Federal government can use its ability to tax ... 3. By increasing or decreasing taxes, government can directly affect ... 4. The benefits-received principle of taxation states that those who benefit from a government program are the ones ... 5. The ability-to-pay principle states that taxes ought to be paid by those who can best afford them, ... 6. If Mr. And Mrs. Jones have children in the public school, they can see ...
5. Analyze the scheme and describe the circulation flow of the American Economy.
The Circular Flow of the American Economy Among Government, Consumer Households and Business Firms.
6. Think and answer the following questions:
1. What are the principal taxes you and your family pay? 2. Add the sales taxes, property taxes, value added taxes, and other together to determine what percentage of your family's income is actually spent in taxes.
III. Grammar Exercises
Условныепредложения (Conditional Sentences)
| Тип предложения | Придаточное условное предложение | Главное предложение |
| I тип | Present Simple | Future Simple |
| Реальное условие. Изъявительное наклонение | If he comes,If he should come,Should he come,Åñëèонïðèäåò, | üýhe will help us.þон ïîìîæåò нам. |
| II тип | Past Simple | should, wouldücould, might ý+ Vþ |
| Маловероятное или нереальное условие, относящееся к настоящему или будущему времени. Сослагательное наклонение. | If he came,If he should come,Should he come,Åñëè быонïðèшел,If he were here,Were he here,Åñëè áû он áûë здесь, | üýhe would help us.þон ïîìîã áû нам.üýhe would help us.þон ïîìîã áû нам. |
| III тип | Past Perfect | should, wouldücould, might ý+have+ V3þ |
| Нереальное или невыполнимое условие, относящееся к прошедшему времени. Сослагательное наклонение. | If he hadcome,Had he come,Åñëè бы он ïðèшел, | üý he would have helped us.þон ïîìîã áû нам. |
7. Make up as many sentences as you can using the given table:
| If I had a holidayIf he|I were illIf the weather were fine todayIf there were your mother's birthday todayIf I were youIf they didn't have to go to the InstituteIf you were tiredIf she|I had free timeIf you had much money | I (we) should (would)they (she, he) | see the doctortravel round the worldhave a restbuy a presentgo for a walkstay at homego to the seasidehelpread many interesting books |
8. Translate the following sentences:
1. Steven Jobs reasoned that if computers were made easier to use and less expensive, the public would buy them. 2. If you wanted to buy or sell corporate securities, you would probably call upon the services of a local brokerage firm. 3. If the corporation prospers over the years, its stocks will increase in value. 4. If the population were to grow at a faster rate than production, average living standards would fall. 5. If the public prefers to buy now and save later, less will be available for investment. 6.If a firm sought to muximize its losses, it would be unable to pay its bills. 7.If a country consumes everything that it produces, the ability of that country to produce in the future will remain unchanged. 8. If, however, something is set aside out of current production, it could be used as capital to produce more in the future.
9. Read the text and retell it in Russian:
A Balance Sheet on Russian Taxes
Taxes, in any country other than a limited number of tax haven jurisdictions, are viewed universally as a burden. Russia is no exception. OF course, a tax system that imposes a 35 percent individual tax rate and a 35 percent corporate rate (with even higher rates for certain types of businesses) will never be praised by its taxpayers. Moreover, with frequent changes and a set of tax rules different from those in the United States, Russian tax laws are viewed with great apprehension by most Americans and other foreigners doing business in Russia. Russian tax rules certainly have major drawbacks.
Other problems with Russian taxes include too many types of taxes, both on the federal and on the local level. This multitude of taxes not only makes compliance difficult, but also makes it challenging to keep current with changes and amendments. Add to the confusion presidential decrees which append taxes onto existing law or modifying existing laws, as well as the wide variety of taxes that may be enacted at the local level. Additionally, there are five different payroll taxes on top of the individual income tax that must be withheld by employers from wages paid to employees.
Russia will never be a tax haven, nor have American and other foreign businesses come to Russia with that expectation. Rather, companies doing business in Russia have come here because they feel that Russia presents certain market opportunities.
In criticizing Russia's tax rules and tax administration, we should not forget that Russia is a relatively new tax jurisdiction. Russian tax laws (as with all other laws in Russia) are in a process of evolution. The same is true of the governmental bodies enforcing the tax laws.
As a step to facilitate the obtaining of double-tax treaty relief, the Russian tax authorities have issued new dual language (English/Russian) forms. The new forms for claiming double-tax treaty relief from tax withholding can be completed in either Russian or English. This development has made it easier for foreign companies, at least from English-speaking jurisdictions, to obtain certification of taxpayer status from their home jurisdictions in order to claim treaty relief in Russia.
On May 8, 1996 President Yeltsin signed a decree making additional improvements in Russian tax rules. The decree reduces late payment penalties from 0.7 percent per day to 0.3 percent per day. Other provisions in the decree provide for more rapid periods for depreciation of capital assets (to be effective January 1, 1997) and much broader rules for the deductibility of business expenses (also to be effective January 1, 1997).
Complaints about the Russian tax system, just like complaints about the American tax system, will never go away. However, over the past year there have been many positive development in Russian tax laws and regulations. More important, at both the government and legislative levels in Russia, there appears to be growing recognition that tax rules should be changed so as not to stifle economic activity. Although the tax situation in Russia is far from ideal, there is a genuine basis for hope for improvement.
10. Read and translate paying attention to the suffixes:
-let [lit]; -sure, zure []
circle - circlet (кружочек)
book - booklet (книжечка, брошюра)
leaf - leaflet (листок, листовка)
pleasure, exposure, measure, seizure.
11. Arrange in groups the words with the same prefix:
Independence, unfriendly, disbelieve, unknown, dislike, immaterial, unproductive, incomplete, unequal, illegal, impossible, irregular, untrue, inactive, irreplaceable, misunderstanding, illiterate, mispronunciation.