Almost 100 levy regulations under review

Almost 100 levy regulations under review

JAKARTA (JP): The central government is moving to dispose of
official levies which local administrations claim overly burden
companies.

The Director General of Public Administration and Regional
Autonomy, Sumitro Maskun, said yesterday the Ministry of Home
Affairs is currently reviewing 96 such regulations.

"We will determine if the regulations should be scrapped,
maintained, or revised," Sumitro said at a hearing with the House
of Representatives' Commission II for domestic affairs.

Those under review consist of 36 decrees issued by provincial
administrations and 60 decrees by regencies, he said.

The government's announcement came less than a week after
President Soeharto ordered local administrations to scrap bylaws
which create market distortions and repress economic growth.

Entrepreneurs have often complained about the countless
regulations on levies which give rise to a high-cost economy and
make their products uncompetitive in the world market.

Businesspeople and government officials plan to meet at the
manpower ministry next month to discuss the problem of levies.

To be chaired by Coordinating Minister for Production and
Distribution Hartarto, the event is a follow-up to a previous
meeting between Minister of Manpower Abdul Latief and leaders of
the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry earlier this
month.

Levies imposed on businesses by local administrations
dominated yesterday's hearing. Several House members said some
regulations issued by the administrations were confusing.

"In East Timor, the provincial government has a decree
legalizing gambling in a bid to collect money to finance the
upcoming National Sports Week," said legislator Salvador J.X.
Soares.

Gambling is illegal in Indonesia.

President Soeharto's recent order to stop private company PT
Arbamass Multi Invesco, partly owned by his grandson Ari Sigit,
from collecting beer levies in Bali provoked a lively debate
among House members from the ruling group Golkar.

Salvador and A.A. Oka Mahendra proposed that the company
should be stopped from collecting levies in other provinces as
well.

"Why has the policy (to stop the levies) been applied only in
Bali?" asked Oka, who hails from Bali. "Should the government
wait until public pressure is strong enough in other places
before it acts?"

PT Arbamass has a permit issued by the Directorate General of
Public Administration and Regional Autonomy to collect Rp 600
from each label it sells to local beer retailers.

Salvador said PT Arbamass, through its subsidiary PT Arha
Bangun, has failed to control the distribution of beer in East
Timor.

"Beer is freely available in shops with prices increasing up
to 40 percent," he said.

House member Mekka Hayade pointed out that many levies in the
provinces are against existing decrees issued by heads of local
governments. (pan)