THE Department of Finance (DOF) has expressed optimism that Congress would pass soon enough the rice tariffication bill, after President Duterte has declared the proposal to liberalize rice imports an urgent and priority measure, in line with efforts to ease inflation and bring down prices of the food staple by as much as P7 per kilo.
Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III said liberalizing rice imports through the passage into law of the rice tariffication bill pending in Congress is vital in helping low-income households cope with inflation, given that rice accounts for 20 percent of their consumption.
“Along with a national ID [identification] system, the passage of the rice tariffication bill will complement the social mitigation measures we are implementing now to further ease the impact of inflation on poor households,” Dominguez said.
Based on estimates by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, allowing cheap rice imports with tariffs will immediately lower the inflation rate by 0.4 percentage points.
The House of Representatives appropriations committee has already approved the funding provision for the consolidated version of its rice tariffication bill, while its counterpart version in the Senate is still being discussed at the committee level.
Package 1B, Package 2
Earlier in the month, DOF Undersecretary Karl Kendrick T. Chua explained that the DOF is hoping for three measures to be approved by Congress within the year, with two measures under the Comprehensive Tax Reform Program (CTRP), namely Package 1B and Package 2, and the other being the Rice Tarrification Act.
Under House Bill (HB) 4904 or the rice tariffication bill is the proposal to amend the Agricultural Tariffication Act of 1996, prescribing import volumes to be removed and imports to be opened to private entities.
Measures under Package 1B include increasing the motor vehicle users charge, an estate tax amnesty program, as well as a measure on general tax amnesty, amendments to the bank secrecy law and automatic exchange of information.
Package 2 of the CTRP, which aims to reduce corporate income- tax rates from 30 percent to 25 percent while rationalizing the country’s fiscal incentives regime, was submitted by the DOF to Congress in January this year. The measure is under HB 7458 at the House of Representatives.
In his third State of the Nation Address (Sona), the President said rice tariffication was among the long-term solutions the government is working on to lower inflation, provide farmers with additional resources and reduce rice prices by up to P7 a kilo.
“We need to switch from the current quota system in importing rice to a tariff system where rice can be imported more freely. I ask Congress to prioritize this crucial reform, which I have certified as urgent today,” the President said in his Sona.
The President also reiterated his commitment to a comprehensive tax reform, and called on the Congress “to continue the job,” starting with the approval of his administration’s proposed reforms in the corporate tax system and the rationalization of fiscal incentives.
The Chief Executive described such reforms, which comprise Package 2 of his tax-reform program, as “urgent,” and said he hopes to sign the bill into law before the year ends.
Dominguez said the DOF will “extend all the technical support that Congress needs in heeding the President’s call for the passage of Package 2 this year, especially for the benefit of our small and medium enterprises.”
“President Duterte has always been the principal advocate of inclusive growth and of the means to achieve it. Tax reform is a key tool to reach that objective,” Dominguez added.
Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III said liberalizing rice imports through the passage into law of the rice tariffication bill pending in Congress is vital in helping low-income households cope with inflation, given that rice accounts for 20 percent of their consumption.
“Along with a national ID [identification] system, the passage of the rice tariffication bill will complement the social mitigation measures we are implementing now to further ease the impact of inflation on poor households,” Dominguez said.
Based on estimates by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, allowing cheap rice imports with tariffs will immediately lower the inflation rate by 0.4 percentage points.
The House of Representatives appropriations committee has already approved the funding provision for the consolidated version of its rice tariffication bill, while its counterpart version in the Senate is still being discussed at the committee level.
Package 1B, Package 2
Earlier in the month, DOF Undersecretary Karl Kendrick T. Chua explained that the DOF is hoping for three measures to be approved by Congress within the year, with two measures under the Comprehensive Tax Reform Program (CTRP), namely Package 1B and Package 2, and the other being the Rice Tarrification Act.
Under House Bill (HB) 4904 or the rice tariffication bill is the proposal to amend the Agricultural Tariffication Act of 1996, prescribing import volumes to be removed and imports to be opened to private entities.
Measures under Package 1B include increasing the motor vehicle users charge, an estate tax amnesty program, as well as a measure on general tax amnesty, amendments to the bank secrecy law and automatic exchange of information.
Package 2 of the CTRP, which aims to reduce corporate income- tax rates from 30 percent to 25 percent while rationalizing the country’s fiscal incentives regime, was submitted by the DOF to Congress in January this year. The measure is under HB 7458 at the House of Representatives.
In his third State of the Nation Address (Sona), the President said rice tariffication was among the long-term solutions the government is working on to lower inflation, provide farmers with additional resources and reduce rice prices by up to P7 a kilo.
“We need to switch from the current quota system in importing rice to a tariff system where rice can be imported more freely. I ask Congress to prioritize this crucial reform, which I have certified as urgent today,” the President said in his Sona.
The President also reiterated his commitment to a comprehensive tax reform, and called on the Congress “to continue the job,” starting with the approval of his administration’s proposed reforms in the corporate tax system and the rationalization of fiscal incentives.
The Chief Executive described such reforms, which comprise Package 2 of his tax-reform program, as “urgent,” and said he hopes to sign the bill into law before the year ends.
Dominguez said the DOF will “extend all the technical support that Congress needs in heeding the President’s call for the passage of Package 2 this year, especially for the benefit of our small and medium enterprises.”
“President Duterte has always been the principal advocate of inclusive growth and of the means to achieve it. Tax reform is a key tool to reach that objective,” Dominguez added.
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