I,EADTNG NDWSPAPDN
Bitl on increased taxes
on alcohol, cigarettes
gets House support
. House of Representatives Speaker
Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has assured
Senate President Vicente C. Sotto that
her legislative chamberwould support
lvhatever is the Senate decision on
trow. much excise tax to be imposed
on cigarettes and alcohol. for a bigger
tevenue to finance the multi-billion_
peso Universal Health Care (UHC.)
program.
. This was revealed yesterday by
I(arl Kendrick Chua, Department of
Finance (DOn Undersecretary during
a radio interview.
.
_ Senator Sherwin T. Gatchalian,
ehairman of the Senate economic
affairs committee, was scheduled to
sponsor late yesterday a bil seeking
to increase taxes from alcohol and
'cigarettes in a bid to reduce cigaretle
smoking and alcohol drinkins- -
' Reactingio the House Sieaker's
oftbr in a letter to Sotto in a bid ro ac_
celerate congressional approval of the
"sin" tax measure. Galchalian said
l'this is good" because the proposed
fate ofexcise tax is much lower at the
House of Representatives, bill than at
the Senale's.
Lawmakers expect president Du_
terte to certify the ,,sin tax,, measure
to avoid a two-day printing rule after
lts passage on second reading,
A certified bill, if approved on
second reading. is immediatelv voted
on third and frnal reading. This does
aw.ay. with the reglamentary two_day
printing rule.
Gatchalian said Congress would
go back to ,,zero" if they do iiot pass
the bill before they adiourn sine die
on June 7.
u
PAGq
Both the Senate and the Lower
House have only five more days before
they go on a six-week adjournment.
The Lower House tax rate increase
is F30 per paclg and this will increase
in the next three years to F4S.
There are three proposals in the
Senate: P60 per pack by Senator Em_
manuel D. Pacquaio: FZo per pack by
Catchatian. and p9O perpack by Sena-
tor Joseph Victor Ejercito.
Chua said the revenue to be col-
lected by the House bill is pi 1 billion for
the first year which is ..too low" vis a vis
the projected UHC expenditures.
Chua said the ,.sin tax,, rleasure
needs p26? billion for the frrst year and
the government has at piesent pt95
billion What is needed is F62 billion
more, he added.
And the DOF supports the pac-
quaio formula, he added.
The UHC was a major legislation
authored by Ejercito.
Chua said hi learned that six of the
10 members of the Senate ways and
means committee chaired by Sena-
tor Juan Edgardo Angara have so far
signed the committee report on the
sin tax bill.
'- At present financial benefits from
PhilHealth are sma[, Chua said.
But a well-funded UHC would
increase the free or reduced pur_
chase price of l8 medicines to 120
medicines coveriirg seven diseases,
he explained-
Gatchalian said passage of the sin
tax bill would be like hitting two birds
with one stone:increased revenue and
reduce cigarette smoking.
He said that government spends
P2l0 annually million for cigarette
smoking-related djseases.
-,s,