Citizens own not just the land of their country. They own all the common assets that have not been sold to private organizations or individuals. Proponents of citizen income / basic income tend to overemphasize land value.
Take Singapore, for example. There is a common wealth in the value of road space. Because there is more demand for cars than the roads can handle, road space commands a premium. The government issues certificates for car ownership, and residents bid for these very limited certificates.
In essence, car owners are paying an ownership premium that stops others from owning cars. People who cannot afford the premium cannot buy cars. In recent months, the certificate (excluding the car) costs nearly $100,000 Singapore dollars.
Road space is a common wealth. In a citizen-ownership democracy, the certificate premiums would have been distributed to all citizens.
In 2010, the certificate premium is $1,600,000,000 (right, S$1.6 billion), and in 2011, it is S$2 billion (from Singapore government budget reports).
With a citizen population of about 3.2 million, each citizen would have received $500 in 2010 and $625 in 2011. A small family of four would have gotten $2000 in 2010 and $2500 in 2011.
This sizeable citizen-ownership dividend is based on just common road space. With other common wealth added, the dividend is expected to be many times more.
Thank you for another essential article. Where else could anyone get that kind of information in such a complete way of writing?
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