Australian Taxpayers' Alliance

The Australian Taxpayers’ Alliance (ATA) is a taxpayer group whose stated mission is “to transform Australia into [a] low-tax, small-government, market-based economy.”[1]

Australian Taxpayers’ Alliance
AbbreviationATA
Formation2012
Websitewww.taxpayers.org.au

Projects

Founded in 2012,[2] the ATA partners with a variety of organizations to advance its goals.[3] As of 2019, it counts 75,000 members.[4]

In 2017, ATA coordinated an international coalition to abolish a goods and service tax levied on online purchases.[5][6] Members of the coalition included Americans for Tax Reform (the U.S.), the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (Canada), and the Freedom Association (the U.K.), among other groups.[7] Australia’s Department of the Treasury[8] and the Productivity Commission[9] invited ATA to submit a report on this issue.

Also in 2017, ATA co-founded Legalise Vaping Australia (LVA), an advocacy group to reform laws about vaping and e-cigarettes across Australia.[10] LVA’s efforts have been profiled in media such as BuzzFeed,[11] ABC,[12] and the Daily Telegraph.

ATA has also taken an active role in the carbon tax debate.[13] This campaign arose from Stop Gillard’s Carbon Tax, a project of Tim Andrews, ATA’s founder. The Spectator called Andrews “one of the masterminds behind the anti-carbon-tax protests that have Labor’s hold on government on tenterhooks.”[14]

Public criticism

Some media attention has focused on potential ties to the American billionaire Koch Brothers, due to the past affiliations of board members of the ATA, as well as claims the ATA is part of a “network of organisations that has close links to foreign backed political lobby groups”.[15]

Conferences

Since 2012, together with the Australian Libertarian Society, ATA has organized the annual Friedman Conference.[16] Described by David Leyonhjelm, a leader of the Liberal Democratic Party in the Senate, as the biggest libertarian-oriented event in the Asia Pacific region,[17] the conference convenes groups such as the Atlas Network, the Cato Institute, and the Institute of Public Affairs, along with speakers such as Grover Norquist, John Fund, and Mark Latham.[18][19][20]

In 2019, ATA organized the World Taxpayer Conference. The conference’s board of directors includes representatives from groups such as the National Taxpayers Union, the TaxPayers’ Alliance, and the Taxpayers Protection Alliance,[21] several of which receive funding from the Koch family. On this basis, the Australian Financial Review called the ATA the “Koch brothers’ new Australian friends.”[22]

Political Positions

ATA is best known for its involvement in the campaign to repeal Australia’s carbon tax.[23]

ATA also lobbies for open government. In 2019, it pressured the Commonwealth to launch a transparency website,[24][25] where all federal bodies must publish their 2018-19 annual reports.[26]

ATA also supports the legalization of electronic cigarettes.[27]

References
  1. "About Us".
  2. "THE NEXT BATTLE: What kind of government will Tony Abbott lead?". VEXNEWS. May 7, 2012.
  3. Chen, Peter John (2013). Australian Politics in a Digital Age. Australian National University Press. p. 144. ISBN 9781922144409. JSTOR j.ctt2jbkkn.
  4. "The digital economy and Australia's corporate tax system" (PDF). Australian Government The Treasury.
  5. "Amazon in Australia: Warning Over Online Shopping Tax Hide". Herald Sun. April 11, 2017.
  6. "Anti-tax crusaders fight low-value GST". The Australian. June 15, 2017.
  7. "An Open Letter to the Australia Government on Behalf of Taxpayers". ALEC Action. April 13, 2017.
  8. "The digital economy and Australia's corporate tax system" (PDF). Australian Government The Treasury.
  9. "SUBMISSION TO THE PRODUCTIVITY COMMISSION INQUIRY INTO COLLECTION MODELS FOR GST ON LOW VALUE IMPORTED GOODS" (PDF). Australian Government Productivity Commission.
  10. "About Us". Legalise Vaping Australia.
  11. "An Australian Politician Is Spending Valentine's Day Driving Around In A Pro-Vaping Van". BuzzFeed. February 13, 2018.
  12. "Fired-up vaping advocates argue health is at centre of legalisation campaign in Canberra". ABC News. September 1, 2018.
  13. "Turnbull's carbon tax could hike prices of popular car models". 2GB. June 14, 2018.
  14. "Meet the man behind the anti-carbon tax lobby". The Spectator. September 17, 2011.
  15. "Australian Taxpayers Alliance under scrutiny over election role". Sydney Morning Herald.
  16. "Are Australians ready to embrace libertarianism?". The Conversation. April 11, 2018.
  17. "Why I'm so optimistic about being a libertarian". Medium. May 14, 2018.
  18. "Cory Bernardi warns against power of government at Friedman Liberty Conference". The Sunday Morning Herald. April 29, 2017.
  19. "Worldwide Liberty Movement Unites in Sydney, Australia". Atlas Network. June 13, 2019.
  20. "Record-Breaking Crowds Attend The 6th Australian Libertarian Society Friedman Conference". Atlas Network. June 15, 2018.
  21. "Board of Directors". World Taxpayers Association.
  22. "Koch brothers' new Australian friends". Financial Review. May 28, 2019.
  23. "Carbon Tax Pushers & Tariff Advocates Share Much In Common". Forbes. July 25, 2018.
  24. "Speech". Parliament of Australia. June 23, 2015.
  25. "Territory Treasurer Nicole Manison denies budget crisis despite grim deficit figures". NT News. December 18, 2018.
  26. "Launch of Government transparency website". Senator the Honorable Mathias Cormann. March 13, 2019.
  27. "Fired-up vaping advocates argue health is at centre of legalisation campaign in Canberra". ABC. September 1, 2018.
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