Overview
- The Liberal Democratic Party is discussing a January 2027 start for a 1% add-on to income tax as a defense levy, projected to raise over ¥200 billion, with a linked 1% cut to the Reconstruction Special Income Tax, though enactment is uncertain.
- Municipalities are turning to the furusato nozei donation scheme to fund wildlife countermeasures, with Tsuruoka in Yamagata opening contributions on November 20 for traps, electric fencing and hunter support.
- Tsuruoka reports a record 400-plus bear sightings by the end of November and about ¥1.48 million raised by December 1, with donations accepted through March.
- Fresh alerts in Miyagi Prefecture, including multiple December 3 reports in Sendai, show continued bear sightings being logged by local authorities.
- Off Miyakojima, a fishing vessel from the Yaeyama cooperative was reported capsized early December 4, and two people remain missing as the 11th Regional Coast Guard responds.