OVER 30 members of the House of Representatives are pushing a bill that aims to address gaps in the tax regime for vapor products. House Bill (HB) 5207, which endorsed by 38 lawmakers, aimed to amend Sections 144, 145, 263-A, 288-A (C), and 289 of the National Internal Revenue Code. The bill seeks to correct the tax disparity between nicotine salt and freebase nicotine. The proponents of the measure contend that the disparity in taxation rates — P60.20 per milliliter for nicotine salt versus P6.95 for freebase nicotine — creates loopholes that incentivize misreporting and tax evasion. The bill aims to increase taxes on freebase nicotine products to close the loophole created by the wide gap in nicotine salt taxation. The authors said in the bill’s explanatory note that “illicit traders who exploit the regulatory gaps under Republic Act 11467 and its implementing rules evaded millions of excise taxes.” “All told, this bill seeks to lessen the burden on the legitimate businesses, level the playing field, discourage illegal trading practices that expose consumers to unregulated products and ensure fair competition in the market,” the bill’s authors said. According to economists and industry stakeholders, HB 5207 would bring Philippine policy closer to international and regional standards that apply a single tax rate to vapor products. Bienvenido Oplas Jr., president of Minimal Government Thinkers and international fellow at the Tholos Foundation, outlined four advantages of a unified tax rate: streamlined administration, closure of loopholes, international alignment, and consistency with the relative harm of vapor products. “Risk-proportionate taxation is to incentivize switching to less harmful products, for those who cannot quit smoking,” said Oplas. Joey Dulay, president of the Philippine E-cigarette Industry Association, said excise taxes should be levied only on consumable components, not on delivery devices. The lawmakers who supported the bill include Deputy Speaker and Ilocos Sur 2nd District Rep. Kristine Singson-Meehan, Deputy Speaker and La Union 1st District Rep. Francisco Paolo Ortega V, Ilocos Norte 2nd District Rep. Angelo Marcos Barba, Benguet Rep. Eric Yap, Philreca Rep. Presley de Jesus, Baguio Rep. Mauricio Domogan, Pangasinan 3rd District Rep. Maria Rachel Arenas, Isabela 4th District Rep. Joseph Tan, Cagayan 3rd District Rep. Joseph Lara, United Senior Citizens Rep. Milagros Aquino-Magsaysay, La Union 2nd District Rep. Dante Garcia, Pangasinan 5th District Rep. Ramon Guico Jr., ACT-CIS Rep. Jocelyn Tulfo, Abra Rep. JB Bernos, Pangasinan 1st District Rep. Arthur Celeste, Pangasinan 6th District Rep. Marlyn Primicias-Agabas, Apayao Rep. Eleanor Bulut-Begtang, KM Ngayon Na Rep. Kenneth Paolo Tereng, Mountain Province Rep. Maximo Dalog Jr., Cagayan 2nd District Rep. Baby Aline Vargas-Alfonso, Ifugao Rep. Solomon Chungalao, Isabela 5th District Rep. Faustino Michael Dy III, Isabela 3rd District Rep. Ian Paul Dy, Pangasinan 4th District Rep. Ma. Georgina de Venecia, Kalinga Rep. Caroline Agyao, Abono Rep. Robert Raymund Estrella, Pangasinan 2nd District Rep. Mark Cojuangco, Solid North Party Rep. Ching Bernos, Isabela 1st District Rep. Antonio Albano, Cagayan 1st District Rep. Ramon Nolasco, Ilocos Sur 1st District Rep. Ronald Singson, Isabela 2nd District Rep. Ed Christopher Go, Quirino Rep. Midy Cua, Batanes Rep. Ciriaco Gato Jr., FPJ Panday Bayanihan Rep. Brian Poe, Nueva Vizcaya Rep. Timothy Joseph Cayton, Palawan 3rd District Rep. Gil Acosta Jr., and Lpgma Rep. Allan Ty.