August 15, 2026 | 03:41 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - As dusk approached, a long line of vehicles snaked around the Mitra gas station on Jalan Frans Seda in Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara, on Tuesday, August 4, 2026. Motorcycles, private cars, and trucks took turns filling up with subsidized fuel. "We're still serving all vehicles, including those from outside the province," said Rio, a Mitra gas station attendant.
There were no officers checking license plates or whether vehicle taxes had been paid. Yet the East Nusa Tenggara Provincial Government had issued Governor's Regulation No. 13/2025 on optimizing vehicle and fuel taxes, which bars tax delinquents and vehicles registered outside the province from receiving subsidized fuel.
Ronald Amapiran, Head of the Budget Division at the East Nusa Tenggara Regional Finance Agency, said the regulation stemmed from two problems. First, many vehicles from outside the region operate in East Nusa Tenggara and consume subsidized fuel without transferring their registration to the province. Second, compliance with vehicle tax payments remains low.
The push to collect vehicle taxes comes as the East Nusa Tenggara government's finances face mounting pressure. This year, transfers to the regions (TKD) received by the province fell by Rp292.8 billion (around US$16.4 million) to Rp2.81 trillion (US$158 million). The province received only Rp1.64 trillion (US$92 million) in general allocation funds (DAU), while salaries and allowances for civil servants required Rp1.82 trillion (US$102 million). That left a shortfall of Rp181 billion (US$10 million). "We have to cover it with locally generated revenue," Ronald said.
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