Customs bureau seen to miss revenue collection target

The Bureau of Customs will most likely miss its revenue collection target for the year, according to a study by the House of Representatives’ Congressional Policy and Budget Research Department (CPBRD).
Based on its performance during the first seven months of 2012, the BOC is expected to raise only P290 billion out of its 12-month target of P347 billion set by the inter-agency Development Budget Coordination Committee.

As a result, the BOC’s shortfall would amount to nearly P57 billion, said the CPBRD.
Like the BOC, the Bureau of Internal Revenue is also expected to miss its 2012 revenue target.

The BIR is seen to raise only P1.05 trillion, which is slightly below its goal of P1.06 trillion.
The BIR and the BOC, both attached to the Department of Finance, are the two main revenue generating agencies of the government.
Meanwhile, the head of one of the BOC’s top performing collection districts on Monday described as “too high” the agency’s target this year.
Edward de la Cuesta, collector of the Port of Clark International Airport district, noted that “previously, our annual national target was only 7 to 15 percent over the previous year’s collections.”
“But now, it’s a very high 30 percent. It’s really not doable,” he pointed out during the weekly Kapihan sa Aduana media forum at the BOC headquarters in Manila.
According to Dela Cuesta, “Clark district has been meeting its targets during the past four years, due mainly to our close monitoring of import procedures, among other things.”
“But nationally, it’s another story. Other customs collection districts are having a hard time meeting their targets,” he noted.
Dela Cuesta furnished the Philippine Daily Inquirer a copy of the Port of Clark’s collection data from 2008 to 2011, which showed that in 2008 the district’s revenues totaled P794.13 million compared to its target of P760 million.
The following year, its collections increased to P864.46 million (target: P777 million), followed by P1.03 billion (P980 million) in 2010, and P1.5 billion (P1.32 billion) in 2011.
During the first seven months of the year, the Port of Clark’s top revenue sources included UPS with collections of P338.2 million, followed by PTT with P162.7 million; Lubwell/Pilipinas Shell, P43.5 million; Tipco, P18.9 million; Yokohama, P14.2 million; Philippine Batteries, P14.06 million; Philco Silicate, P7.4 million; Viskase Asia Pacific, P5.77 million; Cumper, P4.3 million; and API Asia Pacific, Inc., P4.17 million, among others.
More than 560 business firms are based at the Clark Freeport Zone in Pampanga. They include 194 service-oriented companies, 138 industrial locators and 57 aviation-related firms, among others.
Aside from Clark, the other top performing BOC districts are the ports of Cebu, Iloilo and Surigao. The BOC runs a total of 14 collection districts nationwide.