House hikes sin taxes on alcohol, e-cigarettes
THE House of Representatives on Tuesday, August 20, approved on third and final reading a bill increasing the excise taxes on alcohol products and electronic cigarettes.
After a nominal voting Tuesday afternoon, the House voted 184-3-1 in favor of House Bill 1026.
This is the first bill approved by the House under the 18th Congress.
The measure, one of
the remaining packages of the Comprehensive Tax Reform program (CTRP), is a substituted version of the bill approved on August 12 by the House committee on ways and means.
It seeks to raise the excise tax, also called sin tax, on beer, spirits and wines to 10 percent.
It was expanded to include e-cigarettes such as heated tobacco and vapor (vaping) products. E-cigarettes
were taxed under Republic Act 11346, which increased the taxes on tobacco products.
The higher taxes are aimed at generating revenues to fill the funding gap for the Universal Health Care Act.
The UHC program is estimated to require P257 billion in 2020. Its funding requirement is projected to increase by an average of P11 billion per year.
Finance Assistant Secretary Antonio Joselito Lambino II earlier said the total funding gap in the first year is estimated at P49 billion.
Based on the 17th Congress version of the alcohol excise tax bill, higher taxes on alcoholic drinks will raise at least P15.8 billion in the first year of implementation and P111.5 billion over the next five years./sunstar Philippines