House bill seeks to raise taxes on sweet beverages

A HOUSE BILL filed on Tuesday seeking to raise excise taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages could raise about P55 billion annually, legislators said.

House Bill No. 5003 proposes to raise the excise tax on drinks sweetened using caloric or noncaloric sweeteners to P20 per liter from the current P6, and to charge P40 per liter from P12 for beverages containing high fructose corn syrup.

The proposal also seeks to levy a P6 per liter tax on flavored milk and non-dairy milk beverages, with excise tax rates to be hiked by 6% per year starting in 2026.

About 40% of revenue generated from the proposal would be allocated to the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth), 10% to the Department of Health’s facilities improvement fund and 50% to the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), according to the measure.

“This is not just an economic measure, not just about increasing revenue,” House Deputy Minority Leader and Party-list Rep. Leila M. de Lima, author of the bill, said at a briefing. Her co-authors are Albay Rep. Cielo Krisel B. Lagman and Dinagat Islands Rep. Arlene J. Bag-Ao.

“Ultimately, it’s about improving our right to health,” she added.

Finance Secretary Ralph G. Recto said in August that the government is not keen on introducing new tax proposals in the 20th Congress, reaffirming the government’s fiscal consolidation strategy as debt levels hit records.

Ms. Lagman said the campaign for the proposed sugar tax hike will be pitched as a public health initiative rather than an added levy on consumption. — Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio