LAWMAKERS asserted Tuesday that the secretary of finance cannot assign to a subordinate his review powers under the Tax Code, especially if this authority was exclusively delegated to him by Congress.

As this developed, lawmakers said the order of Finance Undersecretary Gaudencio Mendoza Jr. reversing a ruling of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), which allowed Pall Mall cigarettes to pay a much lower excise tax, “has no legal basis.”

At the resumption of the legislative inquiry on the controversial tax classification of Pall Mall, Deputy Speaker Arnulfo Fuentebella asked why Finance Secretary Margarito Teves continues to snub the hearings.

He said Teves’s testimony was critical, since it was the latter who allegedly ordered Mendoza to review the BIR’s final tax classification of Pall Mall as a high-priced brand with an excise tax of P26.06 per pack. The tax was subsequently reduced by Mendoza to P6.74 per pack.

Fuentebella said the proper way was for Mendoza to conduct his review process, but Teves should have signed the order. “I don’t know why the secretary avoided or evaded signing this particular order,” he said.

The lawmaker urged the ways and means committee, chaired by Rep. Exequiel Javier, to inquire from Teves his official position on the issue.

“We have to get the official stand of the finance secretary himself. We have to ask him what was his basis for delegating this review power to Mendoza,” Fuentebella said.

Instead of personally attending the hearings, Teves has been sending Mendoza to answer issues during the congressional hearing on the controversial downward tax classification of Pall Mall.

Meanwhile, Parañaque Rep. Roilo Golez said the question on whether Teves can delegate his review powers is not only a legal matter but a management issue as well.

“The question is whether it is wise or proper for the DOF [Department of Finance] Secretary to delegate decision-making that requires judgment and which has grave impact on revenues,” Golez said.

He supported Fuentebella’s position to get the real score from Teves on the Pall Mall issue. “The chairman should convey this message in the strongest way possible to the secretary of finance.”

Fuentebella earlier maintained that while Congress has the exclusive prerogative to impose taxes, it may delegate such powers to implementing agencies like the Department of Finance (DOF) and the BIR.

He said, however, that such delegated powers given to the DOF or the BIR have certain limitations and cannot be further delegated. “A delegated authority cannot be further delegated. That’s basic,” he said.

The discussion was triggered by questions on whether Teves can legally delegate his review powers under Section 4 of the Tax Reform Act of 1997 to a subordinate like Mendoza, who reversed BIR’s tax ruling.

When DOF’s July 2007 order was issued reversing the tax classification of Pall Mall penned by then-BIR Commissioner Jose Mario Buñag, the same was signed by Mendoza purportedly “upon the authority of the secretary.”

Fuentebella said although Section 7 of the Tax Reform Act of 1997 gave the BIR commissioner some delegated powers, Congress put in some restrictions.

PRIVATE mining companies in the Philippines have urged French and British investors to explore the mining industry in the country as they presented information on the business opportunities at the recent high-level delegation in Paris, saying the Philippine economy has grown stable since the Asian crisis in 1997.

AFTER announcing that it plans to prepay debts of the state-run power company, the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (Psalm) said Tuesday that it is ready to chop off a huge part of the government’s debt by prepaying up to $1 billion of the National Power Corp.’s (Napocor) loan obligations.

AN antidebt watchdog urged members of Joint Congressional Power Committee (JCPC) on Tuesday to stop the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (Psalm) from bidding the 25-year concession contract to operate the National Transmission Corp. (Transco), saying that the government could lose a minimum of around P246 billion in potential earnings.

THE use of the mandated 1-percent coco-biodiesel blend (B1) has significantly cut down carbon emissions in Metro Manila, according to data from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).

LAWMAKERS asserted Tuesday that the secretary of finance cannot assign to a subordinate his review powers under the Tax Code, especially if this authority was exclusively delegated to him by Congress.

THE transportation department signed a consultancy contract last week with the Aviation Systems Consultants Co. Ltd. (Asco) for the improvement of the country’s aviation industry.

A FISHERY nongovernment organization is asking the government to stop the ongoing oil and gas exploratory drilling in Tañon Strait off Cebu if the company conducting the exploration and the Department of Energy (DOE) would not offer compensations to 1,500 fishermen affected by the fishing ban.