History

• Agrarian reform is the rectification of the whole system of agriculture, an important aspect of the Philippine economy because half of the population is employed in the agricultural sector, and most citizens live in rural areas.
• Agrarian reform is centered on the relationship between production and the distribution of land among farmers.
• Agrarian reform is also focused on the political and economic class character of production and distribution in farming and related enterprises and how these connect to the wider class structure.
• Land reform involves changing or establishing laws, regulations, or customs regarding land ownership.
• The BIR is under the jurisdiction of the Department of Finance.
• The Philippine Autonomy Act was enacted in November 2023.
• The DAR website provides information on agrarian reform history.
• The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has a history dating back to the Spanish colonial period.
• The Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) is responsible for implementing the Philippine Autonomy Act.
• Land reform also refers to the remedies to improve the relation between the tiller and the owner of the land or employee and employer in a farm.
• The Spaniards brought a system 'Pueblo Agriculture', where rural communities, often dispersed and scattered in nature, were organized into a pueblo and given land to cultivate.
• Through the Law of Indies, Spanish crown awarded tracts of land to religious order, repartamientos and Spanish encomenderos.
• The Encomienda System and Hacienda System were prevalent during the American Era.
• The Philippine Bill of 1902 set the ceilings on the hectarage of private individuals and corporations may acquire: 16 has for private individuals and 1,024 has for corporations.
• The Land Registration Act of 1902 (Act No 496) provided for a comprehensive registration of land titles under the Torrens system.
• The Department also pursues an “Oplan Zero Backlog” in the resolution of cases in relation to agrarian justice delivery of the agrarian reform program to fast-track the implementation of CARP.
• Under his leadership, the President wants to pursue an “aggressive” land reform program that would help alleviate the life of poor Filipino farmers by prioritizing the provision of support services alongside land distribution.
• The President directed the DAR to launch the 2nd phase of agrarian reform where landless farmers would be awarded with undistributed lands under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP).
• The legal case monitoring system (LCMS), a web-based legal system for recording and monitoring various kinds of agrarian cases at the provincial, regional and central offices of the DAR to ensure faster resolution and close monitoring of agrarian-related cases, was also launched.
• Under his administration the DAR created an anti-corruption task force to investigate and handle reports on alleged anomalous activities by officials and employees of the department.
• Duterte plans to place almost all public lands, including military reserves, under agrarian reform.
• The President also placed 400 hectares of agricultural lands in Boracay under CARP.
• Aside from these initiatives, Aquino also enacted Executive Order No. 26, Series of 2011, to mandate the Department of Agriculture, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Department of Agrarian Reform Convergence Initiative to develop a National Greening Program in cooperation with other government agencies.
• The Public Land Act of 1903 introduced the homestead system in the Philippines.
• The Tenancy Act of 1933 regulated relationships between landowners and tenants of rice (50 - 50 sharing) and sugar cane lands.
• The Torrens system, which the Americans instituted for the registration of lands, did not solve the problem completely.
• President Manuel Roxas passed Republic Act No 34 to establish a 70 - 30 sharing arrangement between tenant and landlord, which reduced the interest of landowner’s loans to tenants at six percent or less.
• President Elpidio Quirino established the Land Settlement Development Corporation (LASEDECO) to accelerate and expand the resettlement program for peasants.
• President Ramon Magsayasay during his term the LASEDECO became National Resettlement and Rehabilitation Administration (NARRA).
• Local taxes are one of the main sources of revenues of the local government units, including real property tax.
• Consumption tax is based on the amount of goods and services utilized such that the more you consume the higher the tax you pay.
• From 1521 to 1821, the Spanish treasury had subsidized the Philippines in the amount of P250,000.00 per annum due to the poor financial condition of the country, which can be primarily attributed to the poor revenue collection system.
• A taxpayer is any person subject to tax, and the sources of income is derived from within the Philippines.
• Taxes imposed at the national level are collected by the Bureau of Internal Revenue, while taxes from local level are collected by a local treasurer’s Office.
• We all pay taxes, directly or indirectly, according to our income or level of consumption.
• On July 2, 1904, the Bureau of Internal Revenue was created during the term of Second Civil Governor Luke E. Wright, and on August 1, 1904, it was formally organized and made operational under the Secretary of Finance Henry Ide, with John S. Hord as the first collector.
• The policy of taxation in the Philippines is governed chiefly by the Constitution of the Philippines and the Three Republic Acts: Constitution Article VI, Section 28, National Law National Revenue Code – R.A.8424 or the Tax Reform Act of 1997, and Republic Act No. 10963 or the Tax Reform for Acceleration ad Inclusion Act of 2017.
• Taxation refers to all types of involuntary levies, from income to capital gains to estate taxes.
• Taxes are mandatory contributions of everyone to raise revenue for nation-building, according to Department of Finance, Republic of the Philippines.
• Income tax is based on the ability to pay principle wherein people with higher income should pay more.