Press Release
October 21, 2008

ROXAS BATS FOR TEMPORARY MEASURES TO HANDLE FINANCIAL CRISIS

Liberal President Senator Mar Roxas today announced a package of incentives that would provide a tax refund for fixed-income earners, stop bank foreclosures and encourage businesses to give permanent employment to more workers in response to the global financial crisis.

Roxas filed Senate Bill No. 2689, or the proposed Transitory Individual Economic Stability and Confidence Building Measures Act of 2008, in response to Malacañang's repeated failure to respond to the clamor for a more decisive government program to deal with the effects of the global financial meltdown.

"Ang hirap ng panahon ngayon, at lalo pang lalala ang sitwasyon. Kailangan nating magtrabaho para sa pangkasalukuyan at pangmahabaang panahon para malampasan ang krisis na ito, na nakasira na sa ekonomiya ng Estados Unidos at Europa (Times are hard, and they are bound to get worse. We need to work on both the short term and long term so as to weather this crisis, which has already battered the United States and European economies)," said Roxas, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Trade and Commerce.

"We need to empower our citizens so they themselves can stimulate demand within the economy. At the same time, we encourage employment stability. All of this is going to be part of what will help our country prepare for any outcomes," he added.

SB 2689 will provide the following:

  1. A tax refund for approximately four million fixed-income workers worth P5,000 per worker, for income earned in the year 2008, which will be worth about P20 billion;
  2. A 90-day moratorium on home foreclosures to give temporary security to homeowners;
  3. Non-imposition of penalties for the early withdrawal from bank accounts with a term of five years and below;
  4. Income tax credit for employers, worth 30% the gross annual salary per additional regular or permanent employee hired, for three years after effectivity of the proposed law. Such tax credit can be carried over to the next taxable period, and applies to employees hired for newly created positions.

"Aside from this bill, I have also called for changes in next year's budget that would focus on food security, job security, and education and health services. Clearly, our budget needs an overhaul if we are going to weather this storm," Roxas said.

He has also filed SB 2688 that would double the maximum insurance for depositors, from P250,000 at present to P500,000.

"Huwag tayong maniwala sa propaganda ng ehekutibo na wala na tayong dapat alalahanin. Kung ang ekonomiya nga ng Estados Unidos at Europa nga ay bumabagsak, dapat talagang maghanda na tayo," he added.

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