Accumulated profits from the computerized public interest lottery had reached NT$34.06 billion (about US$1 billion) as of the end of March, according to statistics released yesterday by the Ministry of Finance.
The lottery has enjoyed brisk sales since its inauguration in January 2002.
According to lottery regulations, 50 percent of the profits are distributed to local governments for social welfare programs and charitable activities; 45 percent is reserved for the national pension system; and the remaining 5 percent is deposited as national health insurance reserves.
Under the terms of this distribution formula, city and county governments around the country have received a total of more than NT$17.02 billion from lottery profits; the Ministry of the Interior has obtained NT$15.32 billion to be reserved for the planned national pension program; and the Bureau of National Health Insurance has received some NT$1.7 billion.
Under the lottery statute, 15 percent of the profits for local governments should be evenly distributed among the cities and counties, while the remaining 85 percent should be dispensed in terms of population density and lottery sales records.
As a result, Taipei County -- the country's most populous district -- has received the most, at NT$2.65 billion; followed by Taipei City, at NT$2.33 billion; Taoyuan County, at NT$1.39 billion and Kaohsiung City, at NT$1.05 billion. All other cities and counties have received less than NT$1 billion each.
Kenting National Park service technician Yang Jien-fon (楊政峰) won a silver award in World Grand Prix Photography Awards Spring Season for his photograph of two male rat snakes intertwined in combat. Yang’s colleagues at Kenting National Park said he is a master of nature photography who has been held back by his job in civil service. The awards accept entries in all four seasons across six categories: architectural and urban photography, black-and-white and fine art photography, commercial and fashion photography, documentary and people photography, nature and experimental photography, and mobile photography. Awards are ranked according to scores and divided into platinum, gold and
More than half of the bamboo vipers captured in Tainan in the past few years were found in the city’s Sinhua District (新化), while other districts had smaller catches or none at all. Every year, Tainan captures about 6,000 snakes which have made their way into people’s homes. Of the six major venomous snakes in Taiwan, the cobra, the many-banded krait, the brown-spotted pit viper and the bamboo viper are the most frequently captured. The high concentration of bamboo vipers captured in Sinhua District is puzzling. Tainan Agriculture Bureau Forestry and Nature Conservation Division head Chu Chien-ming (朱健明) earlier this week said that the
BREACH OF CONTRACT: The bus operators would seek compensation and have demanded that the manufacturer replace the chips with ones that meet regulations Two bus operators found to be using buses with China-made chips are to demand that the original manufacturers replace the systems and provide compensation for breach of contract, the Veterans Affairs Council said yesterday. Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Michelle Lin (林楚茵) yesterday said that Da Nan Bus Co and Shin-Shin Bus Co Ltd have fielded a total of 82 buses that are using Chinese chips. The bus models were made by Tron-E, while the systems provider was CYE Electronics, Lin said. Lin alleged that the buses were using chips manufactured by Huawei subsidiary HiSilicon Co, which presents a national security risk if the
The National Immigration Agency has banned two Chinese from returning to Taiwan, after they published social media content it described as disrespectful to national sovereignty. The agency imposed a two-month ban on a Chinese man surnamed Liang (梁) and a permanent ban on a woman surnamed Yang (楊), an influencer with 23 million followers, in October last year and last week respectively. Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) yesterday said on the sidelines of a legislative meeting that Chinese visitors to Taiwan are required to comply with the rules and regulations governing their entry permits. The government has handled the ban and
RSS