100 OG. No. 41, 6684 (Oct. 11, 2004); Times and Tribune, Aug. 4, 2004
WHEREAS, current developments warrant the
modification in the rates of duty on crude petroleum oils and refined
petroleum products;
WHEREAS, Section 6 (Tariff Treatment) of
Republic Act (R.A.) 8479, otherwise known as the "Downstream Oil
Industry Deregulation Act of 1998," provides that: "Any law to the
contrary notwithstanding and starting with the effectivity of this Act, a
single and uniform tariff duty shall be imposed and collected both on
imported crude oil and imported refined petroleum products at the rate
of three percent (3%): Provided, however, That the President of
the Philippines may, in the exercise of his powers, reduce such tariff
rate when in his judgment such reduction is warranted, pursuant to
Republic Act No. 1937, as amended, otherwise known as the "Tariff and
Customs Code": Provided, further, That beginning January 1, 2004
or upon implementation of the Uniform Tariff Program under the World
Trade Organization and ASEAN Free Trade Area commitments, the tariff
rate shall be automatically adjusted to the appropriate level
notwithstanding the provisions under this Section."
WHEREAS,
Sections 401 and 402 of the Tariff and Customs Code of 1978
(Presidential Decree No. 1464), as amended, empower the President of the
Republic of the Philippines to increase, reduce, or remove existing
rates of import duty, as well as to modify the form of duty and the
tariff nomenclature, under Section 104 of the Code;
NOW,
THEREFORE, I GLORIA MACAPAGAL ARROYO, President of the Philippines, by
virtue of the powers vested in me by law, do hereby order:
SECTION 1. The articles specifically listed in Annex "A"
*
hereof, as classified under Section 104 of the Tariff and Customs Code
of 1978, as amended, shall be subject to the rates of import duty
[Most-Favoured-Nation (MFN) and Association of Southeast Asian Nations
(ASEAN) - Common Effective Preferential Tariff (CEPT)] indicated in
Columns 4 and 5 opposite each article.
SECTION 2.
The ASEAN-CEPT rates so indicated in Annex "A" shall be accorded to
imports coming from ASEAN Member States applying CEPT concession to the
same product pursuant to Article 4 of the Agreement on the CEPT Scheme
for the ASEAN Free Trade Area (CEPT Agreement), signed on 28 January
1992, and its Interpretative Notes.
SECTION 3. The
rates of import duty on tariff headings not enumerated and those listed
but represented by the symbol "x x x" shall remain in force and in
effect.
SECTION 4. Upon the effectivity of this Executive Order, all articles listed in Annex "A"
*
which are entered and withdrawn from warehouses in the Philippines for
consumption shall be levied the MFN rates of duty therein prescribed.
SECTION 5.
Upon the date of effectivity of this Executive Order, all articles
listed in Annex "A" which are entered and withdrawn from warehouses in
the Philippines for consumption shall be imposed the ASEAN-CEPT rates of
duty therein prescribed subject to qualification under the Rules of
Origin as provided for in the CEPT Agreement.
SECTION 6. The MFN and CEPT rates shall take effect once the Department of Energy certifies that a trigger price has been reached.
SECTION 7.
The Department of Energy, in coordination with the Department of
Finance, Department of Trade and Industry, National Economic and
Development Authority and the Bureau of Customs shall promulgate the
guidelines to implement this EO.
SECTION 8. All
Presidential issuances, administrative rules and regulations or parts
thereof, which are contrary to or inconsistent with this Executive Order
are hereby revoked or modified accordingly.
SECTION 9.
This Executive Order shall take effect after fifteen (15) days
following its complete publication in two (2) newspapers of general
circulation in the Philippines.
Adopted: 23 July 2004
(SGD.) GLORIA MACAPAGAL-ARROYO
President of the Philippines
By the President:
(SGD.) ALBERTO ROMULO
Executive Secretary
* Text Available at Office of the National Administrative Register, U.P. Law Complex, Diliman, Quezon City.
* Text Available at Office of the National Administrative Register, U.P. Law Complex, Diliman, Quezon City.