Free medical care, junior high school students study abroad at the village’s expense… Surprising policies of a village that “ranks first in Japan in per capita hometown tax donations”.

Every two years, all 2nd and 3rd year junior high school students are sent to “study abroad

Kitayama Village in Wakayama Prefecture ranked first in the amount of “Furusato Tax” donations per resident in fiscal 2010. Kitayama-mura, Wakayama Prefecture, ranked first with 2,101,588 yen per capita in donations in FY 2010, far ahead of the second-place Shiranuka Town, Hokkaido, with 1,660,945 yen per capita.

The amount of donations in FY 2010 was about 960 million yen, ranking 238th in Japan and 6th in Wakayama Prefecture in terms of the amount of hometown tax payments. The reason why the per capita amount is so large is because the population of the village is small.

says Hidehiro Nakata, who is in charge of hometown tax payments at the Kitayama Village Office.

Kitayama Village has a population of 395 as of the end of October.

Kitayama Village is the only “enclave” in Japan surrounded by Nara and Mie prefectures. The village is a small village measuring 20 km from east to west and 8 km from north to south, 97% of which is covered with mountain forests, and was once introduced on a TV program as a “modern-day unexplored region.

The city of Miyakonojo is the largest taxpayer in Japan, with 19.593 billion yen in 2010. However, with a population of approximately 160,000, the amount per capita is just over 120,000 yen.

What kind of goods does Kitayama Village offer as tax returns?

The main product is “jambara,” a specialty of Kitayama Village,” said Hidehiro Nakata (hereafter referred to as “Mr. Nakata”).

The jambara is a type of citrus fruit that grows wild only in Kitayama Village, and the flavonoids contained in the fruit are said to be effective in improving hay fever symptoms.

The amount of money raised by the village once exceeded its annual budget… Free medical care, school lunches at elementary and junior high schools, and daycare fees until the age of 18.

One newspaper reported, “The amount of money is not appropriate for a small village. There is a recognition that it is a waste to just hoard it,

The village has a “comprehensive strategy” and a long-term plan to make the most of hometown tax payments.

Furusato tax payment started in 2008. At that time, Kitayama Village was in financial difficulties with more than 50% of its residents aged 65 or older (according to the 2010 census), and the resident tax rate was decreasing year by year.

What saved Kitayama Village was the hometown tax payment. In 2005, the amount of tax payment exceeded 1.4 billion yen, which is amazing.

I was surprised that the amount exceeded Kitayama Village’s annual budget.