We’ve all heard the saying, ‘The road to hell is paved with good intentions.’ It’s a warning that even the most well-meaning plans can lead to terrible outcomes if we don’t think them through. Right now, I’m worried that our lawmakers are walking straight down that road.
Recently, my good friend and House Committee on Ways and Means Chairman Rep. Miro Quimbo proposed a plan to raise taxes on vape products, sugary drinks, and single-use plastics. The goal seems noble on the surface: offset a massive P50-billion revenue loss that will come from President Marcos’ proposed tax relief for workers. In other words, the government wants to give hardworking Filipinos a break on their income taxes, but they need to find that missing money somewhere else.
On paper, it sounds like a fair trade. Give with one hand, take with the other-but take from products that are considered ‘sin’ or ‘environmental’ items. However, when you look closer, this proposal isn’t a fair trade at all. It’s a tax on the poor, and it could be the final straw for our struggling local industries.
A tax on instant noodles is a tax on the poor
Let’s talk about the tax on single-use plastics. Why is that dangerous? Because if you walk into any sari-sari store or small neighborhood market, you’ll see that the products wrapped in single-use plastics are exactly what poor families rely on every single day. Instant noodles, three-in-one coffee, and shampoo sachets-these are the staples of survival for families living paycheck to paycheck.
When you tax the plastic packaging of instant noodles, you are not taxing a luxury item. You are taxing breakfast, lunch, and dinner for a poor child. You are taxing the affordable coffee that helps a factory worker stay awake during the night shift. Manufacturers won’t just absorb this cost; they will pass it on to the consumer. So, while the rich might not notice an extra peso or two on their grocery bill, for a poor family, that extra peso is a choice between food and fare.
This is not just an opinion; it’s basic math. With global inflation spiking due to conflicts like the Iran war, the price of everything is already going up. Now is the worst possible time to add a new tax that hits the most vulnerable the hardest.
Remember the EPR Law: A cautionary tale
This is not the first time we’ve seen good intentions backfire. I have written before about the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) Law of 2022. That law shifted the burden of garbage collection from the government to private businesses. The idea was to make companies responsible for the plastic they produce. That sounds great for the environment, right?
But in reality, it has been a nightmare for local manufacturers. After the devastation of the pandemic, our small and medium enterprises-the backbone of our economy-are barely surviving. The EPR law forces them to spend millions on waste recovery programs instead of using that money to hire more workers or keep their prices low. Just imagine a candy manufacturer in Manila who is required to collect his candy wrappers in Tawi-Tawi! That’s the effect of the EPR law. The government, which is legally mandated by Republic Act 9003 to collect garbage, has simply passed the buck to businesses.
It doesn’t get more ironic than this: For 20 years, the government failed to solve our solid waste management problem. Instead of fixing their own system, they handed the problem to the private sector, making businesses pay for the government’s failure.
I truly respect Rep. Quimbo, and I’m sure he only has good intentions. That said, as an industry leader who understands the real downsides of adding another tax on plastics, I feel it’s important to speak up for the manufacturers and hundreds of workers who would be affected.
This proposal would not just mean higher prices at the store-it would place even more strain on our manufacturers. They are already paying under the EPR law, and adding an additional excise tax on the materials they rely on could push some local businesses past the point of recovery.
In short, it risks harming the very industries and jobs it is meant to protect. That’s the ‘law of unintended consequences’-good ideas that lead to serious, unforeseen outcomes.
I believe our members of Congress are intelligent people. They understand that when you take a tax away (like the income tax relief for workers), you have to get the money somewhere else. But the ‘somewhere else’ should not be the dinner table of a poor family or the budget of a struggling factory.
We have to stop the cycle of creating laws that sound good in Congress but hurt people in the real world. Instead of reflexively taxing the things poor people use, Congress should take a step back and study why the government has failed to collect garbage properly for two decades. They need to talk to the people on the ground – the small business owners, the environmentalists, and even the garbage collectors themselves-to find a solution that actually works without killing our local economy.
Good thoughts don’t always lead to good results. If we don’t think things through carefully, Rep. Quimbo’s ‘good intentions’ could end up hurting the poorest Filipinos-and our local industries. Let’s hope our lawmakers choose wisely and make the right course correction before it’s too late.
Simplify, do not complicate
To discourage indiscriminate dumping and clear clogged, stagnant waterways in Metro Manila and other urban areas, I propose a simple, budget-neutral solution that local government units (LGUs) can implement immediately:
Pass a Penalty and Reward Ordinance: LGUs should enact a local ordinance that imposes a mandatory fine-such as P500-on anyone caught dumping garbage into waterways.
Incentivize citizens via smartphone reporting: To ensure enforcement, the ordinance should offer a 50 percent reward (e.g., P250) to citizens who capture photo or video evidence of violators using their smartphones. LGUs can receive these submissions through dedicated portals on their official websites and social media pages, while barangay officials assist in identifying local offenders.
Include community service options: If a violator is unable to pay the fine, the ordinance should require them to complete two days of community service-specifically focused on cleaning local waterways-so the community still benefits.
If strictly enforced, this self-sustaining reward system would create a strong deterrent against illegal dumping and significantly reduce the garbage accumulation that drives urban flooding.
Plastic recycling: A high-value resource strategy for LGUs
I believe local government units have a major opportunity to convert municipal plastic waste into a valuable economic and operational asset. Unlike organic waste, plastic waste preserves much of its high chemical energy content through recycling-making it an underutilized reserve of energy and raw materials. By turning plastic waste from a disposal challenge into a localized resource, LGUs can help build cleaner, more energy-resilient, and economically sustainable communities.
In my next column, I will fully detail the negative effects of raising taxes on vape products, sugary drinks, and single-use plastics.
Dr. Jesus Lim Arranza is the Chairman Emeritus of the Federation of Philippine Industries and concurrent Chairman of the Anti-Smuggling and Anti-Illicit Trade Committee.