After TRO, govt readies alternative for VAT on tollway fees

The government has started studying an alternative for the value-added tax (VAT) on expressway fees, a day after the Supreme Court issued a temporary restraining order for its collection. Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said Malacañang expects Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima to lay out plans to cope with the high court’s TRO. “Secretary Purisima, once he is back and I am not sure if he is back from abroad, he will lay out his plans as an option to the restraining order on the VAT ... There are plans but I will leave that to Sec. Purisima to answer ano ang plano (what these plans are)," Lacierda said on government-run dzRB radio. “We cannot ignore our social programs, we have to fund them one way or the other," he added. He said the government had expected to collect some P1 billion a month from the VAT from toll-way fees to fund social service programs. In the meantime, he said, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has to “triple" its efforts in collecting taxes in view of the SC ruling. “As far as [BIR Commissioner Kim] Henares is concerned, sabi niya (she said) revenue agencies have to work harder to collect taxes to patch the restraining order on the VAT ... They will work triply hard on the collection of taxes," he said. The high court on Friday issued a TRO for the imposition of VAT on toll-way fees, which would have taken effect August 16. It gave the government 10 days to defend the toll VAT. Lacierda said the Office of the Solicitor General, along with Purisima and Henares, are meeting to formulate the government’s arguments for the VAT on expressway fees. Revive oil tariff A revival of tariffs on oil is a possible alternative for toll-way VAT. Lacierda said he may ask Purisima, Energy Secretary Jose Rene Almendras or Henares for their opinion about a suggestion to revive oil tariffs. Militant transport group Pinagkaisang Samahan ng Tsuper at Opereytor Nationwide (Piston) had proposed the revival of tariffs on oil as an alternative to the toll VAT. “That was never discussed. I’ll have to ask the secretaries of and finance and energy, and the BIR commissioner," Lacierda said. He also said President Benigno Aquino III is likely to call and meet with the Cabinet officials concerned to discuss the matter, even if he does not regularly call full Cabinet meetings. On the other hand, Lacierda also urged lawmakers, including the Palace’s allies in Congress, to revise the VAT law instead of criticizing it. He said the Palace is only implementing the law. “If legislators do not agree with the executive branch, once and for all they can amend the law. That is the better thing to do," he said. He also maintained the government inherited the problem from the Arroyo administration, which he said was behind the VAT on toll fees. Lacierda said that when he asked Henares why the VAT was not implemented in the last administration, she said then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo “told them not to implement it." “That particular VAT, the VAT on toll, had been there in the previous administration. We are merely implementing the law itself. That is the same interpretation of the previous administration. It is unfortunate they refused to implement it," he said. “The situation is that there is a law on VAT and there is a circular for the BIR to collect taxes on toll-way fees. So we are supposed to collect it," he added. — LBG, GMANews.TV