THE Makabayan Bloc on Thursday filed a bill repealing what it described as “anti-poor and anti-people” Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion Law as its effects were detrimental to majority of the Filipino people.
Bayan Muna Party-list Rep. Carlos Zarate led the filing of House Bill 7653, saying “what is needed now is not just a mere review or suspension of the TRAIN law. The TRAIN law needs to be repealed.”
“House Bill 7653 will repeal the anti-poor and anti-people provisions of the TRAIN law so as to lessen the burden of consumers, because they are the ones bearing the brunt of the TRAIN law. They do not even feel the supposed 6.8-percent growth of the Philippine economy,” Zarate said.
Among the provisions in the new bill are:
• Restores the old National Internal Revenue Code levels of excise tax on petroleum products and oil, specifically zero tax for liquefied petroleum gas, diesel, kerosene and bunker oil (Section 5);
• Repeals the whole section on excise taxes on sugar sweetened beverages (Section 7);
• Repeals the whole section on distribution of incremental income from TRAIN (70 percent build, build, build and 30 percent on social measures) (Section 7);
• Restores the personal exemption worth P50K and P25K/dependent (Section 2);
• Restores the Value Added Tax exemption of sales of electricity by generation companies, transmission by any entity, and distribution companies including electric cooperatives (Section 2);
• Restores the VAT exemption of low cost housing sa VAT exemption even after January 2021 (Section 3);
• Restores the 3-percent tax exemption of cooperatives, self-employed and professionals with gross receipts of P2,000,000 and below (Section 4);
“This bill should not be seen as a hindrance by the administration and taken as a means to assuage the suffering of our poor countrymen. We hope that this bill will be fast-tracked by Congress because the economic suffering being endured by our countrymen because of the TRAIN law is very real and should be addressed the soonest time possible,” Zarate said.