Spain deals with a major blow as the European Union Court of Justice rules that the poorly-named céntimo sanitario -- a tax that most regional governments levy on hydrocarbons and use to fund healthcare and environmental programs -- and forces they to return 13 billion euros that it collected between 2002 and 2011.
Still, getting this money back will not be easy, because part of the amount might be beyond the statute of limitations. Further, it is likely that most people who paid the tax did not keep their receipts or other proof that they paid the tax. The government is expected to return just 15% of the taxes it collected. This is another example of how taxpayers are defenseless against tax hikes that are unfair and, what's worse, illegal.
