PAMPANGA quarry collections on fees imposed on sand and gravel have reached a record-high of P1.036 billion in the first 19 months of the administration of Governor Dennis Pineda, adding more funds to Pampanga's local income for dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic.
The P1,036,607,994 was collected from July 2019 until February 2021, except from March 20 to May 17 when the strictest form of quarantine against Covid-19 grounded the homegrown quarry industry, according to records of the provincial quarry monitoring unit Kalam (Kapampangan a Lulugud at Matapat).
The collection consisted of P150 sand tax, P250 - administrative fee, P30 - weighing scale fee, sand and gravel permit, motor vehicle and heavy equipment accreditation including fines and penalties.
For transparency, the number of booklets of quarry receipts are inventoried and recorded.
By month, the highest collection was made last February, which grossed P72.8 million.
"The amount we collected proved that the monitoring and collecting system we put in place is efficient. Taxing according to actual volume hauled is right. This also showed that quarry operators and haulers are also cooperating with our policies," Pineda said.
He thanked quarry associations that police their ranks and the provincial treasurer's office that collects the taxes and fees at the Capitol and not in checkpoints.
He thanked Kalam personnel and its head former Bacolor Mayor Romeo "Buddy" Dungca for properly regulating the multi-million industry.
Pineda said the high collections bring benefits to the communities. The Local Government Code of 1991 (Republic Act 7160) distributes the sand tax at a 40-30-30 percent sharing to barangays, towns or cities and province, respectively.
In handling the Covid-19 pandemic, the Pineda administration set up three quarantine facilities, established the Balik Pilipinas, Balik Pampanga program for returning Kapampangans, put up mobile and fixed swabbing centers, converted permanent evacuation centers as isolation areas, improved transportation fleet and supported public transport, monitored testing laboratories, enforced safety protocols, financed the medical treatment of indigent patients, passed local ordinances in support of IATF rules, made advanced purchase of vaccines and preparations for the vaccination of medical and security frontliners, among others.
The Porac Sand and Gravel Quarry Operators Association Inc. donated two ambulances to the Provincial Government last Monday (March 1). Worth P3 million each, the ambulances were given to support the provincial healthcare program, according to Antonio Ayson, the group's president.