House willing to accept Senate version of Sin Tax bill

The House of Representatives is ready to accept the Senate version of the “Sin Tax” bill, which projects higher government revenue from a proposed increase in taxes on cigarettes and alcoholic beverages.

 

Davao City Rep. Isidro Ungab, chairperson of the House ways and means panel, said he and other House members who will represent the lower chamber in the bicameral conference committee on the measure are amenable to the Senate’s proposal for P40 billion to P45 billion in additional excise tax revenue collection.

 

“It [The Senate version] is acceptable since this is in line with the health and revenue objectives of the government,” Ungab said in a statement.

 

The congressman, who also sponsored the House version of the sin tax bill, added that he is personally willing to reach compromises with the Senate as long as the measure will still be aimed at increasing the government’s budget for health programs.

 

“I will be amenable to whatever is the best measure that Congress can pass that will truly address the health concerns of the youth, the women and the poor sectors of our society. The excise tax on cigarettes can be a good measure to control smoking and excessive drinking,” he said.

 

The Senate is expected to pass its own version of the sin tax bill on Monday after President Benigno Aquino III certified the measure as urgent. Last June, the House passed its own version of the measure, which seeks to provide an incremental revenue of P31.35 billion from taxes on cigarettes, liquors and distilled spirits. Some sectoral representatives, however, are pushing for more time to study and debate on the sin tax bill, saying it is "anti-poor" and poses a "big threat" to tobacco farmers. Once the bill is approved in both chambers, a bicameral conference committee will be convened to reconcile the respective versions of the House and the Senate.

 

A consolidated version of the bill will then be returned to the House and Senate after it has been approved by the bicameral committee.

 

It will then be submitted to Malacañang for the President's signature. — Andreo Calonzo/RSJ, GMA News