Cabinet officials oppose changes to tax perks bill

Four Cabinet secretaries have raised objections to the changes made by the Senate and the House of Representatives in the proposed Tax Incentives Management and Transparency Act (TIMTA) for supposedly deviating from the original intent of the measure.

 

The Department of Finance (DOF), Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Department of Budget and Management (DBM) and National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) expressed their opposition in a joint position sent to Congress.

 

In the joint position signed June 16, the Cabinet officials called on the House and the Senate to reinstate the reporting requirement for the cost-benefit analysis the NEDA will conduct on the economic impact of tax incentives. 

 

The proposed measure requires the DOF to maintain a single database for tax incentives data from the Bureau of Internal Revenue and the Bureau of Customs, which NEDA will then use in conducting a cost-benefit analysis.

 

"The publishing of the impact of tax incentives by NEDA to relevant government offices and authorities allows for a higher level of understanding of how tax incentives work for the benefit of the economy," a joint statement by released by the DOC on Tuesday read.

 

The Cabinet members also proposed to delete a provision on "deemed" approvals of applications for tax incentives should the BIR fail to release its findings to the agency and business entity within six months.  

 

The provision supposedly shortens the three-year period the Philippine Tax Code allows the BIR to audit a taxpayer's books. The tax collector even noted that three years was not enough. 

 

Both chambers of the Congress have approved on third and final reading the proposed TIMTA in June. A bicameral conference committee will then reconcile the respective versions of the bill. – Keith Richard Mariano/VS, GMA News