The Centro de Estudios Sociales Padre Juan Montalvo, S.J. – or Centro Montalvo as it is commonly known in the Dominican Republic – has recently started working on tax. It has actively campaigned around the budget for many years, with a particular focus on education spending. Its decision to work on tax came in 2009 when it started a research project into the Dominican Republic’s tax system.This research laid bare the extremely low levels of tax collection in the country – 15 per cent of gross domestic product – and the regressive nature of the system which weighs heavily on the poor. Following its press release and launch event for this research in 2010, the organisation’s work was picked up by a variety of newspapers. It seems that an NGO speaking out on this controversial theme quickly gained a lot of media attention. In particular, the issue of the unfairness of the tax system was given a clear emphasis in the media reports. As a result of the coverage, several private sector representatives have approached Centro Montalvo to begin a dialogue on tax, expressing their openness to debate improvements to the tax system. Government representatives have also hinted at their openness to debate, given the country’s national targets for increasing tax collection.