BORACAY – A party-list lawmaker on Monday urged the government to provide tax reliefs for businesses, residents and workers in this famed island resort.
Rep. Carlos Ramon Uybarreta (1-CARE party-list) believes that these stakeholders – whose livelihood will be affected by the island daily tourist cap – need the tax reliefs.
Uybarreta in a statement said that with the limited carrying capacity, the number of tourists visiting Boracay will go down.
The solon filed House Bill 8537 which seeks to provide a “one-time allowable extraordinary operating loss deduction equivalent to 50 percent of audited operating losses incurred in taxable year 2018.”
“Noting the continuing disregard to anti-littering and other environmental laws and regulations, there is an urgent need to impose stiffer fines and other administrative penalties against violators,” Uybarreta said.
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources said Boracay only has a carrying capacity of 19,000 tourists a day – or about 55,000 people including residents and workers.
The Department of Tourism, meanwhile, said it has only accredited 157 establishments in Boracay, with total combined rooms of 7,300.
“With all these limitations, the financial health of Boracay businesses, employees and residents will certainly be troubled this year and in 2019. Giving them urgent tax relief will ease the pain they are suffering,” Uybarreta stressed.
Aside from this, Uybarreta said his proposed measure also provides cash grants for resident households in Boracay and in mainland Malay in Aklan province.
Under this measure, the Department of Social Welfare and Development is mandated to extend a special monthly cash grant amounting to P700 for every household member of families already enrolled in the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program, or 4Ps.
Meanwhile, P500 will be granted to every household member of families not enrolled in the 4Ps but whose income are derived purely from monthly compensation of less than P20,000.
Boracay was reopened to tourists on Oct. 26 after it was shut down for six months for a much-needed rehabilitation. (With a report from GMA News/PN)
