Salceda: Tax legal online sabong, other electronic betting games

MANILA, Philippines — Legal online sabong (cockfight) and other electronic betting activities should be taxed, House ways and means committee chairperson Joey Salceda said Wednesday.

In filing House Bill No. 7919, Salceda said the taxes collected would provide more revenues for the government that could help in responding to the coronavirus pandemic while at the same time providing “oversight, transparency, and regulation” for legal electronic sabong and other legally-operated electronic betting activities.

“The operations are already legal, by virtue of local ordinances, but the electronic aspect of it is a legal gray area. Because of the ambiguity, we are unable to levy national taxes on these activities or look into their operations. My bill addresses that concern,” Salceda said.

Under House Bill No. 7919, a tax regime is imposed on “offsite betting activities on locally licensed games.”

The measure, however, excludes “games and activities specifically authorized by law to be performed by the government gaming authorities, such as the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) and the Philippine Charity and Sweepstakes Office (PCSO).”

“This regime will ensure that the government will still be able to collect taxes on activities where there is ambiguity as to regulatory purview,” Salceda said.

Under Salceda’s proposal, the tax shall be 5 percent of the gross revenues gained from offsite betting activities on locally licensed games. It shall not be in lieu of taxes required by the local government units and regulatory fees and charges imposed by government agencies.

The bill likewise allows the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) “to accredit and inspect totalizators and other gambling devices used in the collection, consolidation, and recording of wagers made in offsite betting activities on locally licensed games.”

“This measure is consistent with my view that all gambling activities that the law allows should be highly beneficial to the government’s fiscal position. Otherwise, what is the point of allowing them?” Salceda said.

“Local government will have full authority to license the games under their jurisdiction, and they will be able to impose whatever taxes they want to. But the national government will also be imposing these taxes, for the use of the airwaves which is national property,” he added.

Further, Salceda added that the additional regulatory oversight requirements would help the government rein in these activities whenever necessary.

“Nandyan na ‘yan. Legal na sa maraming bayan. Pakinabangan na ‘lang natin dahil kailangan ng gobyerno ng pondo para labanan ang COVID-19. At lagyan ng safeguards, para kayang bantayan ng gobyerno,” Salceda said.

“Otherwise, without a national government share and without national government regulations, it’s a free-for-all at the local level. That’s never good when you’re talking about gaming, an activity with valid public concerns,” he added. [ac]