Economy of Lontshire

The Economy of Lontshire pertains to the various subjects that involve the trade, business practices, and taxes of the Barony of Lontshire.

Currently a WIP.

Taxes
The various ways of income for the barony.

Tax on Goods (Sales Tax)
For every sale by a merchant within the barony's borders, a small fee on top of the sale is levied by the baronial government. For small transactions of basic goods, like base foods and clean water, no fee is applied to the merchant. Certain groups are also excluded from the tax, such as the people and families affiliated with the baronial army, and people of the church.

The current rate for the tax is 3.5%.

Tax on Income
Tax on income refers to the tax applied to a person's or business' income. Rates for the taxes on income is determined by how much a person makes.

Personal
Personal tax on income, or Salary Tax, is the tax levied on the income made by a person's labor and servitude for another person. People who employ laborers and staff often withhold a person's salary tax ahead of time to pay the tax for them, though such a practice is not required as the liability falls to the person owing the taxes, not the employer who pays them.

The current rates are:

2.5% tax on income for those earning below five gold per year. 5% tax on income for those earning between five and twenty gold per year. 7% tax on income for those earning between twenty and fifty gold per year. 3.5% tax on income for those earning above fifty gold per year.

Business
Business tax on income, or business tax, is the tax levied on the gross income made by a business that operates within the barony. Unlike the salary tax, the business tax is a flat rate applied to businesses of all sizes and forms. If a person runs a sole proprietorship with no employees, they must pay both the Salary tax and the business tax.

The current business rate is 4.5%.

Tax on Property
Tax on property differs from the last two types of tax in that the tax on property is based on how much land the person owns. The tax was introduced as a measure to limit the power of large landowners, and to increase the number of individual owners. The tax is calculated by the acre, and people with under five acres of land are no liable to pay the tax.

The current rate is two silver gloats to the acre.

Business Practices
Lontshire, compared to the other provinces of the Kingdom of Stormwind, has been to be rather regulatory of the various practices within its border.

Accounting Practices
Accounting practices is the method of the process of recording and processing financial information for a business. Many businesses within Lontshire, much like the Kingdom, follow the standard of double-entry, or debits and credits. This was method of recording became required of all businesses within Lontshire when the reigning baron in 462 decreed so to improve the tax collection from businesses.

Contracts and Business Law
Contracts between persons in Lontshire are given serious attention, and many businesses are required to give signed agreements to the baronial government in the event of large mergers and acquisitions. Businesses are not regulated directed, but are held to a solid set of moral values when faithfully upholding contracts. Business who willingly go against their contracts in Lontshire are often heavily penalized.

Local Banks
Due the regions relatively recent economic boon, few banks have truly established themselves in the small fiefdom.

Lontshire Regional Bank
In an effort to keep some level of control over the local economy, the ruling House of Seyfried, in conjunction with the Stormwind Counting House, founded the Lontshire Regional Bank. The bank was founded to serve the needs and wants of businesses that wished to get their start in the barony. Since its founding two years ago, the bank has been a financial success, with many of its shareholders want to expand outwards.

Government Regulations
In contrast to the many fiefdoms of the kingdom, the lords of Lontshire often take a proactive stance in managing the economy. This is often criticized by outside observers as encroaching on the traditionally free trade based kingdom, as well as inflating prices within the barony itself.

The Reporting Act of 462 K.C.
This act stated that all businesses based within the barony of Lontshire has to report their earnings to the government of Lontshire on a yearly basis. It also stated that the business must use the double entry standard of accounting when reporting to the barony.

This act was made when barony was starting grow into other ventures than farming, and that tax revenue had to be efficient when collecting from these businesses. When it first came into effort, the amount of taxes that were collected was increased by six percent.

The Cassbury-Stenley Act of 621 K.C.
One of the most extreme acts made by the barony in recent years, this act was coded as an act to "protect customers and merchants from untruthful producers of goods". The act came from the case of Town of Cassbury v. Stenley Company, in which the town had requested building supplies from the Stenley Company. Upon receiving the supplies and paying full price for them, made of the tools were found to be of shoty quality, and the town demanded that the company reimburse them. The company refused, citing that the town paid for the supplies and that were at no obligation to check for quality.

(WIP)

The Banking Fairness Act of 623 K.C.
(WIP)