唐代两税法改革央地博弈及其启示

The Central-Local Bargaining Underlying the Two-Tax Reform

唐代的两税法改革是中国税收史上的一项重大改革。该改革的关键特点是从实物税转变为货币税。本文认为,这种变化是中央政府与地方藩镇之间博弈的结果,前者得到了自耕农、中小地主阶级的支持,后者得到了士族地主阶级、大商人阶级的支持。通过分析唐朝的政治和经济状况可知,中央政府试图用铜钱代替实物征税,尽管中央政府取得初步成功,但由于自耕农、中小地主阶级在战乱中实力衰弱,改革在割据藩镇和士族地主的联合绞杀下失败。这次改革的失败进一步削弱了中央政府的权力,加速了唐朝的衰落。这一历史事件为今天的税收制度改革提供了重要教训:改革应循序渐进,充分考虑民意,确保税收制度的公平性和效率,强化中央集权并坚持依法治国。这些原则对于中国税收制度的现代化改革具有重要的借鉴意义,有助于建立更加公正和有效的税收体系。

The Tang dynasty's reform of the two-tax Law was a major reform in the history of Chinese taxation.The key feature of this reform was the shift from in-kind taxes to monetary taxes.This essay contends such shift resulted from bargaining between the central authority and the military governors,with the former gaining support from independent farmers and small landlords,and the latter backed by the gentry landlords,big merchants.By analyzing the political and economic conditions of the Tang dynasty,the central government attempted to use copper coins to replace in-kind levies.Although the central authority achieved initial success,as independent farmers and petty landlords weakened during wartime turmoil,the reform was thwarted by the combined strangulation of the military governors and gentry landlords.The failure of this reform further enfeebled the central government’s power and expedited the decline of the Tang dynasty.This historical event provides important lessons for today’s tax system reform:reforms should be gradual,fully consider public opinion,ensure the fairness and efficiency of the tax system,and strengthen centralization and the rule of law.These principles are of significant reference value for the modernization of China’s tax system reform,contributing to a more just and effective tax regime.