Senator Sherwin Gatchalian is now seeking the passage of the bill that would eventually empower the country’s taxpayers through basic education, information and dialogues.

In filing Senate Bill No. 1199, or the proposed Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights and Obligations Act, Gatchalian said taxpayers’ should be made aware of their basic right to participate in dialogues, and information or education campaigns to elicit awareness on their rights and obligations while helping them comply with revenue laws, rules and regulations.

Gatchalian said such policy, including requiring revenue authorities to provide quality service to taxpayers, will enhance the government’s revenue collection efforts.

“We are aware that taxation laws can sometimes become very difficult to understand by ordinary taxpayers and it is critical that we enable them to appreciate these laws more clearly,” Gatchalian said.

For instance, he said taxpayers must be made aware of what to do when presented with a letter of authority (LOA) by revenue officers and representatives if they want to examine the books of accounts.

A LOA is required to be presented to a taxpayer before any audit or assessment takes place. Gatchalian explains a LOA basically presents the authority given to the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) officer to perform assessment functions to ensure the collection of the correct amount of tax.

“Kailangang basahin nang maigi ng taxpayer ang nakasulat sa dokumento na ipapakita ng revenue officer kung magsasagawa ito ng audit upang malaman ng taxpayer kung mayroong anumang discrepancy o inconsistency (the taxpayer should read carefully what is stated in the document that would be shown by the revenue officer that will conduct the audit so he would know if there is any discrepancy or inconsistency),” he pointed out.

If the name of the BIR officer that will conduct the audit is different from the name stated in the document, a taxpayer has the right to refuse, Gatchalian explained.

“Mahalagang malaman ng mga taxpayer ang kanilang mga karapatan bilang proteksyon laban sa ilang mapang-abusong alagad ng gobyerno (It’s very important that the taxpayer would know their right as protection against abusive public officials),” he stressed.

The lawmaker noted the Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA) in 2020 has identified the BIR as the “most complained agencies.” The April 2022 report of the Revenue Integrity Protection Service (RIPS) of the finance department showed that 55 percent of the 468 employees investigated from the period July 2016 to February 2022 were from the Bureau of Customs (BOC) while 38 percent were from the BIR.

The erring employees were either dismissed from service, found guilty in criminal cases, suspended, or ordered to pay fines.

“Inaasahan natin na sa pamamagitan ng panukalang batas na ito ay lalo pa nating maiangat ang tiwala at kumpiyansa ng ating mga taxpayers sa gobyerno nang sa ganun ay mas maging handa sila para tuparin ang kanilang obligasyon sa pagbabayad ng buwis at maging maayos ang pangongolekta ng gobyerno ng buwis (We expect that thru the passage of this bill, we can enhance the trust and confidence of our taxpayers in our government so that they would be ready to fulfill their tax obligations and the government’s tax collection would improve),” Gatchalian stressed.