INEQUALITY OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT REVENUE IN THAILAND

Abstract

     The disparity among social level is a problem in Thai society. The Thai government has implemented a policy to alleviate inequality and create more social fairness. The difference in local government income is one of the disparities among and between the local group. The purpose of this research was to analyze the inequality of the quintile group of provinces categorized by the gross provincial product per capita. Gini coefficient is a tool for measuring inequality. The results show that inequality within the lowest income group is high compare to the higher income group. The inequality among income groups finds increased. Therefore, the government should reform the central government budget grant to local governments to reduce inequality in the local area. The locals with fewer taxes should be allocated more budgets than those with higher taxes. The budgeting reform will make the locals have more income to improve the quality of life of the local people in each province.