• US firms back tax reform plan
American companies doing business in the Philippines are supporting the comprehensive tax reform program (CTRP) submitted by the Department of Finance (DOF) to Congress for approval.
Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez said in a statement the American business community is strongly supporting the first package of the CTRP aimed at helping the government maintain fiscal stability, funding its ambitious infrastructure program, and expanding the delivery of social services to the people.
Dominguez told the American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines Inc. (AmCham) at its 7th General Membership Meeting that the tax reform package under House Bill 5636 approved by the House of Representatives last May 31 is vital to dramatically improving the country’s business environment and sharpening its global competitiveness in the medium term.
HB 5636 is the consolidated version of HB 4774—the original version of the CTRP Package One endorsed by the DOF—with 54 other taxrelated measures, and which the House had approved by a 246-9 vote with one abstention. This bill is now pending before the Senate.
“I thank the AmCham for the strong support you have expressed for the comprehensive tax reform package we presented to Congress,” Dominguez said.
“This reform package is vital to dramatically improving the country’s business environment and increasing our competitiveness in the next few years,” he said.
“The tax reform package is intended to achieve fiscal stability, fund the ambitious infra program the administration is pursuing and expand social services. We also intend in the medium term to achieve high middle-income status through the fiscal and economic reforms we are pursuing,” Dominguez said.
“The infra program is not only about large showcase projects. It also means irrigating 1.3 million more hectares of agricultural land and upgrading our rural road system,” he said adding that “I hope the members of the AmCham will, as usual, be our strong partners in building broader based prosperity for our people.”