DTI cites Salceda’s contributions to economic recovery

THE Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has cited the legislative contributions of Albay Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda, chair of the House Committee on Ways and Means, to the country’s economic recovery, particularly on account of the lawmaker’s sponsorship of the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) Act.

DTI Secretary Ramon Lopez, in a letter to Salceda dated June 8, said the passage of RA 11536 or the CREATE Act, “laid the groundwork for a new incentive regime and the development of the Strategic Investment

Promotion Plan (SIPP) for all investment promotion agencies”.

The DTI and the rest of the Investments Promotion Agencies (IPAs), through the Philippine Investment Promotion Plan (PIPP) membership are grateful for this strategic promotion tool as we pursue economic recovery efforts,” Lopez said.

Enacted by President Duterte in March 2021, the CREATE law was considered as the largest fiscal stimulus for businesses in the country’s recent history by reforming the corporate income tax and incentives systems.

RA 11534 cuts corporate income tax rate to 25 percent from the current 30 percent, retroactive from July 1, 2020.

Most recently, Salceda gave assurance that agriculture, being a leading sector needed to push the country’s economic recovery, will receive “generous” tax incentives under the CREATE Act.

He said he is “closely working with the Finance, Trade and Industry, and Agriculture Secretaries” to include several agricultural subsectors in the SIPP, the list of industries eligible for tax incentives under CREATE.

Salceda explained that “by giving key agriculture sectors tax incentives, we can lower production costs and encourage farm modernization. That will lower consumer prices and boost domestic food supply”.