THE chairman of the House Committee on Ways and Means said on Tuesday that workers in both the public and private sectors will not be able to enjoy a larger amount of 13th- month pay and bonuses this year as the measure providing for a higher tax cap is still under Senate deliberation.
Liberal Party Rep. Romero Quimbo of Marikina City, chairman of the committee, said the Senate should pass the measure into law by the end of the year so it can be implemented by 2015.
He also urged the Senate to convene the bicameral conference committee after the passage of the bill on final reading in the Senate.
The House passed on third reading a cap amounting to P70,000, while the Senate passed a cap amounting to P80,000 in September.
“My colleagues are thankful to the Senate for acting on this measure, which the Lower House promptly passed on September 26. I hope the Senate will, likewise, pass it on third and final reading as soon as possible. My colleagues in the Lower House recognized the importance of this legislation, thus the overwhelming support when it was put on the floor. We were also able to pass this measure in record time because the House leadership threw its support behind it. We all recognize that, when you empower the citizenry with more purchasing power by giving them more cash, this, in turn, stimulates inclusive growth,” Quimbo said.
Once the Senate has passed their version, Quimbo said he will call for the immediate convening of the bicameral conference committee to discuss the differing provisions of the House and Senate versions.
He added the computation for each version has to be presented during the bicameral conference committee to reflect the basis for the pegged cap. Although the House is amenable to adjusting the rate earlier passed, Quimbo said it should not be done haphazardly as the revenue implications must also be considered.
“If we see that the computations for the Senate version are accurate, with merit and justifiable, then we are willing to accept their cap of P82,000. Once they pass it on third reading, there really is a need to urgently convene the bicam so we can discuss our respective data and come up with a reconciled version, which we can submit to the President,” Quimbo said.
Under House Bill 4970, the authors seek to increase the tax-exemption cap for the 13th-month pay and other bonuses to P70,000, from the present P30,000, by amending the National Internal Revenue Code of 1997, as amended.
The bill seeks to exclude 13th-month pay, and other Christmas bonus from the computation of the gross income for the purposes of income taxation.
The measure also seeks to increase the amount of tax-exempt bonuses for all employees in both the private and public sectors.
It also mandates the Finance Department and the Bureau of Internal Revenue to increase the threshold every three years, based on the consumer price index and inflation.