Part One
THE House of Representatives has shown seriousness in pushing its ambitious legislative agenda, which will be used as tools “to effect meaningful and genuine change”.
With the help of the supermajority, Speaker Pantaleon D. Alvarez said the two Houses’ priority measures would be passed into law before the 17th Congress ends in 2019.
“Here in this chamber, we were tasked to legislate and address what may be called the ‘pain points of ordinary life’,” he said. “We can proudly say to the Filipino people that the laws we passed will address these problems they face every day.”
For their part, lawmakers said Alvarez’s leadership style is a big contribution to the passage of the legislative agenda.
The first regular session of the 17th Congress ended last week with the passage of several important measures. Priority bills of the lower chamber include both economic and sociopolitical measures.
Data from the House Committee on Rules showed that, since the 17th Congress convened on July 25, 2016, the House processed a total of 1,247 measures in just 97 session days, or an average of 13 measures processed per session day.
The House also managed to approve a total of 289 measures broken down as follows: enacted into law, four; approved on third reading, 194; approved on second reading, 13; adopted resolutions, 67; ratified bicameral reports, six; adopted Senate versions/provisions, one; and concurred with Senate amendments, four.
Of 194 bills approved on third and final reading, 53 are national bills, 140 are local bills and one House Joint Resolution, HJR 10. The latter is also known as the “Increasing the Monthly Pension of Social Security System Pensioners under the Social Security Act of 1997.”
A total of 6,908 House bills (HB) and House resolutions have been filed since the opening of the first regular session in July last year.
The Train
ONE controversial economic measure that was recently approved is the Duterte administration’s tax-reform package, which is dubbed as the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN).
HB 5636 was passed after four months since it was introduced by the Department of Finance.
House Committee on Ways and Means Chairman and PDP-Laban Rep. Dakila Carlo E. Cua of Quirino said the tax measure is needed to allow the government to provide better infrastructure, health, education and social protection for all Filipinos.
Cua said under the bill, for four years, the apportioning of 40 percent of the yearly incremental revenues generated from the proposed petroleum excise tax shall be allocated to fund social benefits programs. Fuel vouchers to qualified transport franchise holders would also be granted.
During the same period, the remaining yearly incremental revenues shall be allocated for infrastructure, health, education and social protection expenditures, Cua said.
Also, the lawmaker added, the measure provided that 85 percent of the tax collection from sweetened beverage excise tax shall be allocated for government priority programs.
The remaining 15 percent, the bill provided, shall fund the welfare and benefit of sugar farmers.
However, despite this assurance, several lawmakers still expressed opposition to the bill, which was certified as urgent by the Palace.
Opposition
PARTY-LIST Rep. Carlos Isagani T. Zarate of Bayan Muna said the tax measure will definitely hit the poor hard, because it would mean higher prices of basic goods and services.
While it exempted those earning P250,000 yearly from income tax, Zarate said the bill removed the previous personal-tax deduction, as well as the deduction to the medical and health insurance. It will also impose taxes on the fringe benefits of workers.
“The government stands to lose up to P152 billion in revenues by 2019 because of the adjusted income-tax structure, but the government is seen to earn at least P320 billion through complementary tax reforms, such as excise taxes and removal of VAT [value-added tax] exemptions that would be shouldered primarily by ordinary citizens, especially the poor,” he added.
Zarate said taxes, expenses and basic commodities will significantly increase for most Filipinos by imposing higher excise taxes on petroleum products, particularly on liquefied petroleum gas, diesel and gas, as well as sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs).
Under the bill, workers earning P250,000 will be exempted from paying personal income taxes.
But to recover the forgone revenue for the said adjustment, it also includes a P6 tax on petroleum products, which could cause prices of basic goods to rise. The P6-per-liter excise-tax increase will come in three tranches of P3, P2 and P1, respectively, in three years starting 2018.
The measure also said the SSBs shall be levied an excise tax of P10 per liter of volume capacity, subject to a yearly 4-percent rate increase after effectivity date of January 1, 2018.
The tax-reform bills are both pending before the Senate.
Image credits: Nonie Reyes