Tariffication law enforcement must not be bungled, says solon

By Ellson Quismorio 

A Bicol lawmaker is prodding the 14 government agencies tasked to draft the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) of the Rice Tariffication Act to work double-time, and beat the 45-day deadline set by the law in order to avoid a repeat of the fiasco that was the implementation of the Ease of Doing Business (EODB) Act.

Camarines Sur Rep. Luis Raymund “LRay” Villafuerte
(lrayvillafuerte.com / MANILA BULLETIN)

Camarines Sur 2nd district Rep. LRay Villafuerte said that while one of the most important aspects of the Rice Tariffication Act—the opening of the domestic rice market to private traders–would already come into effect by March 5, other provisions of the law need to be threshed out through the IRR.

This includes the need for the National Food Authority (NFA) to maintain a nationwide rice buffer stock, the imposition of special rice safeguards, and mechanisms to ensure the effective implementation of programs under the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF) for the benefit of the country’s palay (unmilled rice) growers.

Under Republic Act (RA) 11203 or the Rice Tariffication Act, 14 government agencies led by the Department of Agriculture (DA), Department of Budget and Management (DBM) and the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), after consultations with affected stakeholders, are tasked to promulgate the IRR of the law 45 days from its effectivity.

“The swift crafting of the IRR for the Rice Tariffication Act will enable the government to carry out President Duterte’s overriding objective of signing this into law, which is to dramatically pull down the retail cost of rice and prevent a repeat of the elevated inflation rate last year,” said Villafuerte, a co-author of RA 11203.
The NFA Council, which convened last February 18, set an initial deadline of completing the IRR and have it published in the Official Gazette by the third week of March, or well within the 45-day deadline set under the law.

Aside from the DA, DBM and NEDA, the other government agencies, which will be involved in crafting the IRR, are the Land Registration Authority (LRA), National Irrigation Administration (NIA), Land Bank of the Philippines (LandBank), Agricultural Training Institute (ATI), Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR), Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice), Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP), Philippine Crop Insurance Corporation (PCIC), Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), and the Philippine Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization (PhilMech).

ARTA implementation bungled

Villafuerte earlier lashed out at the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA) for bungling the speedy implementation of the Ease of Doing Business (EODB) Act with their failure to submit the complete set of the law’s IRR to Malacañang the first time around in October last year.

ARTA conducted consultations on the EODB Law’s IRR as recently as last February 13, or four months after the October 30 deadline for the submission of such guidelines, as set in the EODB Act.

Villafuerte said lifting quantitative restrictions (QRs) on rice, which will liberalize the entry of relatively cheaper imports, is the “logical sequel to the decisive measures that the President took last year to rein in inflation,” which was largely driven by the price spiral in rice and petroleum products.

The solon recalled that President Duterte carried out a set of administrative and non-monetary measures last year to reduce the gap between the farmgate and retail prices of rice and other food items–leading to a steady decline in inflation to 5.1 percent in December and an even lower 4.4 percent in January.

Under the Rice Tariffication Act, a tariff of 35 percent will be imposed on imported rice originating from ASEAN countries. For countries outside ASEAN, the tariff is 40 percent within the 350,000 metric ton (MT) minimum access volume (MAV), and 180 percent if above this MAV quota.

The law also earmarks P10 billion for the RCEF, of which P5 billion will be allotted to farm mechanization, P3 billion to seedlings and P1 billion to expanded rice credit assistance.

CamSur rose to become the No. 4 rice-producing province on Villafuerte’s watch as three-term governor prior to his election to the House of Representatives.