‘Stowaway’ in PH’s tax code
A few months back, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) released the names of some prominent personalities and the amount of income taxes they had paid. One was cited as being the biggest individual income taxpayer. Some sectors, especially the tax practitioners, reacted saying that this is a violation of the confidentiality of income tax returns. However, Internal Revenue Commissioner Kim Henares justified her action by invoking Section 14 of Republic Act No. 9480, which gives her the authority to prepare and allow the publication of “a list containing the names of all taxpayers, their gross income and amount of income taxes paid.” This provision of the law gives the BIR chief wider latitude with respect to the disclosure of the details of the income tax returns of taxpayers.
On the other hand, under Section 71 of the National Internal Revenue Code of 1997, the commissioner is allowed to disclose only their “names and addresses.” Section 14 virtually resurrected a long dead section of the old Tax Code of 1977, of which Section 64 authorized the BIR commissioner to cause the preparation and publication of the “lists containing the names and addresses of persons who have filed income tax returns with the amount of income declared and the income tax paid by each.”
While Section 64 and Section 71 were incorporated in the Tax Code itself in the course of a tax revision, Section 14 was merely added as an appendage riding on the coattails of a law.
The title of RA 9480 is: “An Act Enhancing Revenue Administration and Collection by Granting an Amnesty on All Unpaid Internal Revenue Taxes Imposed by the National Government for Taxable Year 2005 and Prior Years.” Except Section 14, all other provisions of this law were devoted to the subject of tax amnesty. Clearly, the subject of amending a provision of the tax code is not germane to the title of the law. Thus, Section 14 may be likened to a stowaway in a ship or to an alien entering the country through the backdoor. It is in fact a rider which is proscribed by our Constitution, specifically Section 26(1), Article V1 thereof, which reads: “Every bill passed by the Congress shall embrace only one subject which shall be expressed in the title thereof.” The only subject embraced in RA 9480, which is expressed in its title, is amnesty extended to all unpaid internal revenue taxes. It totally excludes any other subject, which in this case, the amendment to the Tax Code.
It cannot be gainsaid that as a rider, Section 14 of RA 9480 violated a clear provision of the Constitution. It has no legitimate place in our statute books. Don’t you think that it should be repealed?
—LEOPOLDO P. PARREÑO,
tax consultant, Davao City
