The House Committee on Economic Affairs on Tuesday, Feb. 7, approved, subject to style and corresponding committee report thereof, a proposed bill amending The Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) Act of 2009 to ensure the reinvestment of proceeds from the sale of REIT shares in the Philippines.
(Photo by Jewel SAMAD / AFP / MANILA BULLETIN)
Pangasinan Rep. Christopher de Venecia, chairman of the House Committee on Creative Industry and Performing Arts, filed House Bill No. 8428 or the proposed Film and Live Events Recovery Act to amend Section 140 (a) of Republic Act No. 7160, otherwise known as the Local Government Code of 1991 as amended by RA No. 9640.
“While both the live events and movie industries employ around 760,000 workers, and generate no less than P100 billion per annum for the national economy, with local governments taking a piece of that pie, it is important to evaluate the amusement tax in light of COVID-19,” he said.
Published December 14, 2020, 7:12 PM
With 221 members voting in the affirmative, the House of Representatives on Monday approved on third and final reading the bill declaring the coconut levy assets as a trust fund and providing for its management and utilization that will ensure benefits for coconut farmers and workers.
MANILA BULLETIN FILE PHOTO
The six members of the Makabayan bloc voted against House Bill 8136 as they pointed out that the legislative measure will only further deny the farmers and coconut plantation workers access to the funds collected during the martial law years.
Speaker Lord Allan Velasco lauded his colleagues for the passage of the measure, saying that this will be a “fitting Christmas gift to more than three million coconut farmers who stand to benefit from the proposed coco levy trust fund.”
(MANILA BULLETIN FILE PHOTO)
Earlier, the Lower Chamber approved House Bill 8136 on second reading to assure the coconut industry, especially farm workers, vast improvement in terms of modernization and better livelihood opportunities.
HB 8136 is a consolidation of 16 different legilsatrive proposals filed by Deputy Speaker Michael Romero (1Pacman Partylist) and Rufus Rodriguez (CDI, Cagayan de Oro City), together with Reps. Jericho Jonas Nograles (PBA, Partylist); Jayjay Suarez (Lakas-CMD, Quezon); Aleta Suarez (NPC, Quezon); Wilfredo Mark Enverga (NPC, Quezon); Romeo Jalosjos Jr. (PDP-Laban, Zamboanga del Sur) and Ian Pau Dy (NPC, Isabela), among other lawmakers.
The bill proposes to unite all assets and benefits coming from the coconut levy which will be held in a Trust Fund to be used to rehabilitate and modernize the coconut industry and ultimately benefit coconut farmers and their family.