Customs seeks funding support
By Lawrence Agcaoili - Manila Standard Today
The Bureau of Customs will likely to seek budgetary support next year from the national government if the Department of Finance rejects its request for a reduced collection target.
Customs Deputy Commissioner Reynaldo Umali told reporters that it would be difficult for the agency to attain next year’s collection target due to lower import volume and the continued strengthening of the peso against the US dollar.
Umali said the agency would need budgetary support from the national government in case the finance department rejected the agency request for a lower collection target next year.
He said Customs would use the budgetary support to boost the agency’s efforts to curb smuggling that continued to eat up huge revenues.
The additional budget, he said, could be used to beef up the agency’s security force, especially in free ports such as Subic Bay Freeport Zone.
The Customs official added that the continued appreciation of the peso against the greenback would continue to result in lower collections for the agency.
“Based on our estimates, every peso appreciation results in P2.2 billion in revenue losses,” Umali said.
Customs Commissioner Napoleon Morales has asked Finance Secretary Margarito Teves to lower the agency’s collection target next year by P9 billion to P245 billion from the proposed P254 billion under the 2008 national budget.
Morales cited the decision of the inter-agency Development Budget Coordination Committee to reduce the country’s import growth target to 12 percent or $65 billion from 13 percent or $68 billion for next year.
The foreign exchange assumption was also revised to P47 to $1 from the target of P48 to $1.
Finance officials said the department would likely to turn down the request for a lower collection target next year because of government’s resolve to end to a decade-long era of budget deficits.
The Philippines hopes to balance its budget next year after a fiscal consolidation program undertaken by the administration of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to accelerate the balancing of the budget to 2008, or two years earlier than the original 2010 schedule under the Medium Term Philippine Development Plan.
The Bureau of Customs will likely to seek budgetary support next year from the national government if the Department of Finance rejects its request for a reduced collection target.
Customs Deputy Commissioner Reynaldo Umali told reporters that it would be difficult for the agency to attain next year’s collection target due to lower import volume and the continued strengthening of the peso against the US dollar.
Umali said the agency would need budgetary support from the national government in case the finance department rejected the agency request for a lower collection target next year.
He said Customs would use the budgetary support to boost the agency’s efforts to curb smuggling that continued to eat up huge revenues.
The additional budget, he said, could be used to beef up the agency’s security force, especially in free ports such as Subic Bay Freeport Zone.
The Customs official added that the continued appreciation of the peso against the greenback would continue to result in lower collections for the agency.
“Based on our estimates, every peso appreciation results in P2.2 billion in revenue losses,” Umali said.
Customs Commissioner Napoleon Morales has asked Finance Secretary Margarito Teves to lower the agency’s collection target next year by P9 billion to P245 billion from the proposed P254 billion under the 2008 national budget.
Morales cited the decision of the inter-agency Development Budget Coordination Committee to reduce the country’s import growth target to 12 percent or $65 billion from 13 percent or $68 billion for next year.
The foreign exchange assumption was also revised to P47 to $1 from the target of P48 to $1.
Finance officials said the department would likely to turn down the request for a lower collection target next year because of government’s resolve to end to a decade-long era of budget deficits.
The Philippines hopes to balance its budget next year after a fiscal consolidation program undertaken by the administration of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to accelerate the balancing of the budget to 2008, or two years earlier than the original 2010 schedule under the Medium Term Philippine Development Plan.
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