清代普免制度的形成及其得失

The Formation of the Qing General Exemption System and Its Advantages and Disadvantages

蠲赋减租是国家惠政,在传统帝制时期,唯有清康熙、乾隆两朝屡次普免全国田赋,并将其逐步制度化。普免萌生于康熙平定三藩之乱后的轮免各省钱粮,是国家在重大灾变后通过免除赋税给予民众的普惠性补偿。康熙朝普免钱粮四次、漕粮一次,得益于战时形成高度集中财政体制所积累的雄厚储备。这一将全国赋税尽解户部的财政体制,体现了康熙帝治国理念中的大局观,也为其多次筹划实施重大举措提供强有力支持,对清前期的稳定和发展一度发挥积极效用。但从长远看,过于强调国用与蠲赋养民,忽视外省财政和恤官,导致康熙后期外省钱粮亏空严重与苛官累民等问题,反映此制度未因时应势进行调整而产生缺憾。

The national remission of taxes, as a favorable policy, during the traditional imperial dynasties, only the Kangxi and Qianlong reigns of the Qing dynasty repeatedly exempted the country’s farmlands from taxes and gradually institutionalized such a practice. The general exemption, in turn at the provincial level, practiced after the Kangxi pacification against the rebellion of three feudatories, refers to the state’s general compensation then to the people by exempting them from taxes after an atastrophe. The Kangxi reign exempted taxes in cash or grain four times and transported grain once via rivers, thanks to the abundant reserves accumulated by the highly centralized financial system formed during the war. This financial system, by which the entire country’s taxes were paid to the Ministry of Revenue, reflected emperor Kangxi’s View of Overall Situation and his provision of strong support for the planning and implementation of many strategic initiatives, with a positive effect on the stability and development of the early Qing imperial court. In the long run, however, too much emphasis was placed on the state’s expenditure and the remission of taxes to support the people, and neglecting provincial finances and compensating officials. As a result, a serious deficit of finance and grain occurred in the provinces during the late Kangxi reign, leading to the officials’ excessive tax levy on the already poverty-stricken people. That reflects the shortcomings of the system which was not yet adjusted to the times and the situation.