The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) acknowledged that suspending or reducing excise tax and value-added tax (VAT) on petroleum products will have a significant effect on government revenue collections.
This comes after Congress granted President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. special powers to implement measures that would ease the burden of high oil prices on the public.
“Of course, magkakaroon ng impact po ‘yan siyempre kasi bababa ang revenue collections natin,” said Budget Secretary Rolando Toledo.
He explained that while revenue will decline, the DBM is exploring expenditure measures to cushion the impact. These include reallocating funds from non-essential maintenance and operations such as government officials’ travel, training and seminars, communications, and other similar expenses.
Toledo noted that similar austerity measures have been implemented in past years to ensure government programs remain within budget.