Skattekvoter

Skattekvoter is a Norwegian term used to describe quotas or shares of tax revenues allocated to different governmental levels or programs. The word combines skat (tax) and kvoter (quotas). In policy debates, skattekvoter may refer to a rule-based assignment of a portion of the national tax base to municipalities, counties, or special funds, effectively determining how much tax revenue is available to subnational actors.

Applications: In discussions of fiscal decentralization, some proposals discuss setting skattekvoter for municipalities, for example a fixed percentage of personal income tax collected in a region that stays within the region as a local revenue base, with the remainder redistributed through transfers. The concept also appears in academic literature to describe negotiated shares of tax capacity among levels of government.

Legal status: Skattekvoter is not a fixed legal category in Norwegian tax law; rather it is a descriptive term used in policy analysis, journalism and academia. Its exact meaning depends on the context and the policy design in question.

Criticism and notes: Proponents argue quotas can promote predictability and accountability in local finance, while critics say rigid quotas hamper local autonomy, responsiveness to economic change, and may mask revenue needs behind formula-based allocations. Alternatives include block grants, formula-based transfers with safety nets, or general revenue sharing.