spot_img
28.6 C
Philippines
Friday, March 29, 2024

‘P313 billion more IRA with Cha-Cha’

- Advertisement -

Provinces, cities, towns, and barangay communities stand to gain P313 billion more in internal revenue allotments with Charter change, a proponent of “Cha-Cha” in the House of Representatives said Tuesday.

Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez, chairman of the House committee on constitutional amendments, said the IRA gain is a result of the recent Supreme Court ruling expanding the base for computing such allocations.

Citing a study done by the Department of the Interior and Local Government, Rodriguez said local governments would have a total of P1.116 trillion in IRA in 2022 following the SC ruling.

“Local governments would be allocated only P855 billion if IRA were computed based on the present formula,” he added.

For this year, P649 billion is appropriated in the national budget as the LGUs’ IRA, which represents the share of local governments from national taxes.

- Advertisement -

The DILG heads the Inter-Agency Task Force on Constitutional Reform, which President Rodrigo Duterte has created to push the administration’s Cha-Cha proposals.

Nine agencies make up the task force, which has submitted its recommendations to the Rodriguez committee, which is holding another public hearing on the group’s proposals on Wednesday.

Among its suggestions is the inclusion of the essence of the Supreme Court ruling on the expanded IRA in the Constitution.

At present, IRA is computed based on “internal revenue taxes,” or those collected by the Bureau of Internal Revenue. They do not include collections by the Bureau of Customs.

The SC ruling expanded the tax base to include not only taxes collected by the BIR but Customs and other impositions, including half of value-added tax collections from the autonomous Muslim region, 60 percent of levies from the exploitation of natural wealth, and half of VAT on the sale of goods and properties.

Citing the DILG study, Rodriguez said the expanded IRA ruling would give provinces an additional P268 billion, while cities, towns and barangays would gain P268 billion, P397 billion and P233 billion, respectively.

He said in the case of Camarines Sur, its IRA would increase by P1.140 billion to P4.85 billion, while Makati’s share would jump by P556 million to P2.364 billion.

The town of Taytay in Rizal would have P263 million more, from P856 million to P1.119 billion, Rodriguez said.

The Department of Finance has opposed the immediate implementation of the SC ruling because of its negative impact on the country’s finances.

Among the other Cha-Cha proposals of the DILG-led task force are provisions against political dynasties and turncoats, election of senators by region, the five-year term for members of the House of Representatives and local officials, lifting of limitations on foreign investments, and state subsidy for political parties.

Rodriguez said most of the administration group’s proposed amendments jibe with those contained in its committee’s initial report.

- Advertisement -

LATEST NEWS

Popular Articles