CoA flags NIA over unremitted taxes

The Commission on Audit revealed on Monday that the National Irrigation Authority has still at least P31.452 million of unremitted taxes to the Bureau of Internal Revenue which represents the taxes deducted from NIA employees that the agency accumulated in 2022 and prior years.

State auditors disclosed that the agency was not compliant with the BIR Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 23-2012, requiring concerned agents to remit "on time" taxes withheld.

"Notwithstanding the above provisions, verification disclosed that the NIA has not fully complied with the regulations of the BIR on the withholding and remittance of taxes," the CoA said.

In its 2022 report, state auditors found that NIA's eight regional and the Jalaur River Multipurpose Project Stage II — the agency's 8th big-ticket irrigation project under the "Build, Build, Build" program of then-President Rodrigo Duterte — had unremitted taxes of P125.170 million as of yearend 2022 and prior years.

Of the total, only P93.718 million were remitted in January 2023, leaving a balance of P31.452-million unremitted taxes.

The CoA stressed that the non-remittance "deprived the national government of additional revenue for its various programs and projects."