PANGILINAN, HONTIVEROS SEEK TO STRIP PRESIDENTIAL POWERS TO ADJUST TARIFFS ON RICE

Citing the devastating impact of imposing lowered tariffs on imported rice, Senators Francis "Kiko" Pangilinan and Risa Hontiveros filed a Joint Senate Resolution on Monday, August 4, seeking to strip the president of powers to adjust imported rice tariffs.

Joint Senate Resolution No. 2 is asking both the House of Representatives and the Senate "to terminate the delegated authority of the President to adjust tariff rates on rice."

It also seeks to revert the tariff rates on imported rice to the previous level of 35%--from 15% based on Executive Order No. 62 signed by the Executive Department in June 2024-upon the effectivity of the Joint Resolution.

"Kailangan natin umaksyon ngayon. Hindi mamaya. Hindi bukas. Ngayon," Pangilinan, now the chair of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Food, and Agrarian Reform, said. "Wag natin patayin ng paunti-unti ang ating mga magsasaka. Ipaglaban naman natin ang karapatan nila na kumita ng sapat at maayos, na mabuhay ng may dangal."

The Joint Resolution cited that the drastic slashing of tariff rates on imported rice last June 2024 "unleashed a flood of foreign grain into the Philippine market," which devastated farmers and destroyed their livelihoods.

The country's massive importation of rice in 2024-when the Philippines became the world's top rice importer because of the lower tariffs--"directly competes with and undercuts domestic produce."

Aside from its adverse impact on the country's agricultural sector, the lower tariff rates forced farmers to sell their palay (unhusked rice) at prices lower than their production costs.

According to the Joint Resolution, the farmgate price of palay as of June 2025 fell to an average of P16.9 per kilo, a drastic drop from the P24.9 per kilo a year ago. The average production cost (excluding drying, transportation, and storage) per kilo of palay, however, was P13.38 in 2023.

While the Joint Resolution acknowledged that Section 1608 of Republic Act No. 10863, otherwise known as the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act (CMTA) of 2016, delegates authority to the President to adjust tariffs, it also stressed that "this is not an absolute power" and that Congress has the authority to withdraw or terminate it.

Further, the Joint Resolution is directing the appropriate committees of both the Senate and House of Representatives to hold caucuses and review the current situation of the rice industry and the welfare of local farmers.

Photo courtesy: Office of Senator Francis "Kiko" Pangilinan
04 AUG 2025 SEN KIKO

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