Travel tax removal moves 1 step up

A bill seeking to abolish the travel tax, filed by lawmakers led by House Majority Leader Ferdinand Alexander “Sandro” A. Marcos of Ilocos Norte, moved a step closer to plenary consideration after the House Committee on Ways and Means on Monday approved an unnumbered substitute measure consolidating several proposals to scrap the levy.

During a hearing presided over by Marikina Rep. Miro Quimbo, the committee chairperson, House Deputy Majority Leader Ernesto “Ernix” Dionisio of Manila, the panel’s senior vice chairperson, moved for the approval of the substitute bill.

“I would like to move now that we approve subject to style sections 2 and 3 of the unnumbered substitute bill of House Bill Nos. 7443, 7367, 7612, 7703, 7757, 150, 3529, 3890, 4793, 5821, 6228, 6979, 7155, 7307, 7631, 7695, and 7758, entitled ‘AN ACT ABOLISHING THE TRAVEL TAX, I so move Mr. Chair,” Dionisio said.

Quimbo, hearing no objection, declared the motion approved, effectively advancing the measure that seeks to scrap the decades-old levy imposed on departing Filipino travelers.

Bill sent to Appro panel

The House Committee will now take it up on Appropriations for further deliberations.

Representatives from the Department of Finance and the Department of Budget and Management aired support for the proposal during the hearing.

The Marikina City solon said that while programs funded by travel tax collections remain important, their funding should come directly from the national budget instead of relying on the number of travelers.

“Allow me to bounce off from last week’s session on the issue of the travel tax. We have heard from the agencies about the programs funded by the Travel Tax — for tourism, education, and culture. We recognize that all of these are important, but they should not continue at the expense and sacrifice of Filipino travelers, most of whom are from the middle class and the youth,” Quimbo said.

“Because these are important, they should be funded directly through the National Budget or the General Appropriations Act. The survival of these programs should not be dependent on the number of travelers. They are far too important to be dependent on unpredictable numbers,” Quimbo added.

He emphasized that the tax system should remain progressive and should not place an undue burden on ordinary Filipinos.

“Today, there are tens of millions of middle-class Filipinos whose voices, together with the poorest of the poor, are too often unheard in policy discussions. As chairman of the Committee on Ways and Means, I must emphasize a basic principle that this committee shall continue to uphold: our tax system must remain progressive,” he said.