{
    "success": true,
    "data": {
        "id": 1105227,
        "msgid": "timber-companies-upset-over-local-fee-payment-1447893297",
        "date": "2001-05-02 00:00:00",
        "title": "Timber companies upset over local fee payment",
        "author": null,
        "source": "JP",
        "tags": null,
        "topic": null,
        "summary": "Timber companies upset over local fee payment JAKARTA (JP): Timber companies have to pay a number of fees to local government following the implementation of regional autonomy in January this year, an executive of a forestry-based company said here on Tuesday. Sumardi, the president of PT International Timber Corporation Indonesia Kartika Utama (ITCI), said the additional levies imposed by the local government had caused financial difficulties to timber companies.",
        "content": "<p>Timber companies upset over local fee payment<\/p>\n<p>JAKARTA (JP): Timber companies have to pay a number of fees to<br>\nlocal government following the implementation of regional<br>\nautonomy in January this year, an executive of a forestry-based<br>\ncompany said here on Tuesday.<\/p>\n<p>Sumardi, the president of PT International Timber Corporation<br>\nIndonesia Kartika Utama (ITCI), said the additional levies<br>\nimposed by the local government had caused financial difficulties<br>\nto timber companies.<\/p>\n<p>He cited that his company and other timber companies in East<br>\nKalimantan had to pay four kinds of levies to the local<br>\ngovernment.<\/p>\n<p>\"The local fees are really crippling our business because<br>\nbesides such levies, timber companies have to make various<br>\npayments to the central government,\" Sumardi said after a company<br>\npresentation at the Ministry of Forestry.<\/p>\n<p>East Kalimantan-based timber companies are required to pay<br>\nUS$8 per cubic meter of their log production to the provincial<br>\nadministration for the rehabilitation of burned forests.<\/p>\n<p>They are also asked to pay Rp 15,000 per cubic meter for the<br>\ndevelopment of human resources in the local forestry industry, Rp<br>\n3,000 per cubic meter as compensation to local communities and $2<br>\nper cubic meter for the development of an Islamic center in the<br>\nprovince.<\/p>\n<p>\"In addition, we must also pay a certain amount to local<br>\nresidents as compensation for their land,\" Sumardi said.<\/p>\n<p>Besides such local fees, the central government also requires<br>\npayment of reforestation funds, concession fees, royalties and<br>\nproperty tax.<\/p>\n<p>Under the autonomy law, the provincial administration<br>\nreceives 80 percent of the forestry royalties.<\/p>\n<p>The Association of Indonesian Concession Holders (APHI) has<br>\nrecently lodged an objection to the Ministry of Forestry over the<br>\nunrealistic amount of payments that they have to make both to the<br>\nlocal and central government.<\/p>\n<p>The association said that the government should issue a clear<br>\ncut policy related to fee payment so that the ministry's policy<br>\nwill not overlap with those issued by the local government.<\/p>\n<p>According to APHI, during the first three months of this year,<br>\ntotal fees paid by the industry accounted for 55 percent of the<br>\nsales price of the logs.<\/p>\n<p>\"The fee payment has really hurt the business because the<br>\nother operating costs are also increasing,\" APHI's chairman<br>\nAdiwarsita Adinegoro said.<\/p>\n<p>According to Adiwarsita, many forestry problems stemmed from<br>\nthe lack of guidelines in implementation of the regional autonomy<br>\nlegislation.<\/p>\n<p>The regional autonomy law has brought more harm than benefit<br>\nto the forestry industry due to the lack of clear guidelines, he<br>\nsaid.(03)<\/p>",
        "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/timber-companies-upset-over-local-fee-payment-1447893297",
        "image": ""
    },
    "sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
    "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}