Tax laws useless without efficient collection system

This is in reply to the report, “Congress ratifies tax hike bill on alcohol, smoking products” (12/18/19); the bill is expected to yield P24.9 billion in revenues, according to Albay Rep. Joey Salceda.

As chair of the House of Representatives’ ways and means committee, Salceda must be lauded for pursuing means to obtain more revenues and fund the projects/programs of the government. Another report said he would lobby for no less than four new tax bills, including the road users’ tax.

We have to mention, however, that taxes still have to be collected before these can translate to revenues, and Salceda himself questioned the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) on the P150-billion shortfall in its collection target.

All these new tax bills face the same perennial problem of tax collection shortfall. The current tax base must be broadened, and one solution would be to closely monitor receipts as well as eradicate printers of fake receipts.

A Unified Receipt System, in which all receipts would originate from one source and can thus be more closely monitored by the BIR, is just a suggestion.

GODOFREDO V. ARQUIZA
Former Congressman, 14th and 15th Congresses
Fairview, Quezon City