Forestry ministry stops six levies

JAKARTA (JP): The Ministry of Forestry has decided to remove six of the 16 levies imposed on forest products in an effort to reduce business costs and ease the flow of goods.

Minister of Forestry Djamaludin Suryohadikusumo said yesterday the levies to be removed were only those based on ministerial decrees, while those stipulated by presidential decrees and laws would be maintained.

"The six types of fees are currently imposed by the ministry's central office... We hope to eliminate more of those implemented by local administrations which have been the object of complaints by many businesses lately," he said.

Djamaludin said he has ordered his staff at the local level to discuss with local administrations which fees could be removed.

He explained that the six levies to be eliminated include the fees on timber grading, on the transportation of wild animals both within the country and for export, and the transportation of Arwana (scleropages) fish.

Djamaludin said grading fees are being eliminated because grading, or the measuring of timber, is now conducted by private forest firms, thus no fees have to be paid to the government.

Meanwhile, the levies on the Arwana, which is an endangered species, are being removed because the fish is now cultivated and rarely caught in the wild.

"But we will keep the other fees -- such as forest royalties, reforestation funds and contributions on wild animals -- which are all based on laws and presidential decrees," he said.

Djamaludin said the proposal to remove the six fees has been submitted to the office of the Coordinating Minister of Economy and Finance for approval.

He said the removal of those fees will come into effect "as soon as possible".

Djamaludin declined to mention how much his office will be losing as a result of the changes, but estimated that from grading fees alone, the ministry gets up to Rp 14 billion (US$6.09 million) a year.

"But this loss is small, as compared to the reforestation funds we receive from forest concessionaires," he asserted.

Reforestation funds, along with a number of other mandatory fees, are meant to ensure that forest concessionaires manage their forests in an environmentally-sustainable manner.

On Dec. 31, 1995, unused reforestation funds collected by the ministry totaled Rp 2.6 trillion and the interest on the amount was Rp 796 billion. (pwn)